Abstract

Educational design research has emerged in recent years as a powerful applied methodology within the school improvement literature that holds considerable potential for expanding and enhancing educators’ context-specific teaching and learning improvement efforts. This article explores how K-12 school leaders can apply core tenets of design research–based school improvement thinking in conjunction with practical data-teaming processes to accurately identify and address underlying, root-causal problems associated with educators’ professional practice that can often fuel persistent student-learning problems in elementary and secondary school contexts. One hypothetical school improvement case study, serving as a case exemplar of the applicability of the customized “design-based school improvement data-teaming” approach advocated in the article, is highlighted. A literature-informed discussion, organized within three relevant areas of transformative school improvement practice and examining salient aspects of the profiled case study and associated educational design research results and findings, is then presented. Finally, a number of practical leadership strategies to support educators’ design-based school improvement data-teaming practices in real-world school settings gleaned from the discussion are offered.

Using Design Research Thinking and Data-Teaming Processes to Transform Educators’ Professional Practice:

A School Improvement Case Study