This post is by guest author Christina Hank.I am an advocate for streamlining and simplifying processes, and if Ohio's new Instructional Improvement System, or IIS, actually lives up to its name, it should absolutely streamline and simplify some processes.Today, when I pull student data for our teachers and principals, I have to go to several different websites--one for value-added data, one for Ohio's assessment data, and one for local-developed assessment data. Talk about a convoluted process.The IIS, sounds like it will be a one-stop shop for all of this data....and more.Districts will be able to house curriculum resources, assessments, and student data in one place. This will allow each person to access with a single username and password--instead of one for each different site.Because districts will be using a common storage system, the IIS will also allow cross-district collaboration and sharing--no more reinventing the wheel in terms of curricular resources.It's not ready for rollout yet because Ohio and Massachusetts, its partner in the endeavor, are still negotiating the vendor contracts, but I'm already calculating the amount of time I could save with this centralized system.[Note: Hank shares more information on the ISS's costs and features on her blog, Turn On Your Brain. You can also read an outline of what exactly the ISS should be able to do here.]
Christina Hank is the secondary curriculum coordinator at Medina City Schools. StateImpact Ohio invited her to help us cover the Ohio Annual Statewide Education Conference in Columbus. She has previously worked as a high school English teacher and an ELA specialist at the Ohio Resource Center. She has a master's degree in education from Ashland University and a bachelor's degree in English from Ohio State University. She blogs at Turn On Your Brain.