Pre-Service Teacher’s Efficacy, Anxiety, and Concerns about Data and the New Idea of Anchored Judgment

Abstract

In this study, teacher education students’ concerns, sense of efficacy, and anxiety related to the future use of data to drive educational decision-making were explored. In alignment with prior research with practicing teachers, this sample of pre-service teachers reported concerns (thoughts, preoccupations, and feelings) that indicate they are not interested in engaging in data driven decision-making (DDDM). Moreover, they had a low sense of efficacy for DDDM and high levels of anxiety for DDDM; further indicating that they are unlikely to adopt DDDM practices. We explain these results, but we go further and propose a new way of talking about data that may mitigate some of these concerns. Specifically, we propose a new paradigm for evidence-based practice in which teacher experience and intuition are deemed of equal import with data. We propose anchored judgment as an integrated decision-making model in which the intersection of teacher experience, teacher intuition, and classroom data creates the context for optimal instructional decision-making. This model is based on established research about effective decision-making in psychology, medicine, and business, and may help support the international educational mandate for DDDM.