Data Doesn't Have to Be a Four-Letter Word: Progress Monitoring Made Manageable

I'll be honest with you: there was a time when my data collection "system" ran mostly on vibes and good intentions.

Before I got explicit training in graduate school, my progress notes said things like: "He has come so far this year!" and "She's a joy to have in class."

While that kind of fluffy feedback has its place, it doesn't really count as data - at least not for the sake of progress monitoring in special education.

What is quantitative data, and why does it matter?

The kind of data we want for our progress reports is quantitative in nature. That means information that we can express in numbers, not just vague impressions. But how, pray tell, do we come up with this quantitative data?

Well, we assess.

First, we take a baseline measurement so we know exactly where the student is starting. Think of it as a "before" picture.

Then, we monitor progress, which is like taking a series of snapshots to document the journey along the way. At the end of the IEP cycle, you've got a final "after" photo and a whole transformation story - not just a gut feeling that the student has grown.

Are you with me so far? It sounds great, right?

But where are we supposed to find measurement tools for capturing this baseline assessment and progress monitoring data?

Well, there are a few options:

• You could scour the Internet for some semi-usable worksheets that roughly correspond to your goal. (Been there.)

• You could start from scratch and make the assessments yourself. (Done that.)

But I'm afraid both roads lead to burn out, my friend - especially when you're reporting on a caseload of 20+ kids every few weeks.

My Type B teacher brain needed a better way, so I set out to create a simple, sustainable system for measuring and documenting progress. That's how my ​IEP Goal and Task Card sets​ were born.

These days, for every goal I write, I design a set of 40 task cards that are perfectly aligned to the goal. That way, I always have a flexible item bank laminated and ready to go.

When it's time to monitor progress, I just grab a few task cards, do a quick assessment, and then record the results in a simple spreadsheet.

Now my progress reports read more like, "On [date], he responded correctly to 3 out of 4 items, thus achieving his goal of 75% accuracy."

Now that's some good-lookin' data.

Gone are the days when I scrambled to stay in compliance at the end of the grading period.

Now I have some peace of mind in knowing that if I'm ever asked to show my data, I've got actual receipts - not just coffee-stained sticky notes and random work samples.

And don't get me wrong: I still add warm fuzzies to my progress reports, but I've learned to let the data itself do the heavy lifting.

Want to steal my system? I'm here to help you do it!

If you're looking for a little help getting started, I've got you covered.

I recommend that you start with my free IEP goal bank.

Then, check out my collection IEP Goal and Task Cards for middle school math. You can download individual goal kits as you need them, or you can snag my entire toolkit at a discount.

If you want to peek behind the curtain to see how I write my IEP goals, check out this little explainer for my Interactive IEP Goal Template:

Until next time, happy goal writing!

For the love of math,

Dayna