Shining a light on "Dark Data": Untapped Insights for Coaches

 Written for Coaches, by Coaches

When we hear "data," we usually picture massive spreadsheets and high-stakes test scores. It’s exhausting. But what if the most powerful data for day-to-day coaching is hiding right under your nose?

Welcome to "Dark Data"—the goldmine of untapped insights quietly sitting in the background of the tools and platforms your teachers and students already use daily.

What Does "Dark Data" Look Like? If you partner with your school's IT department, you will find a wealth of informal data waiting to be explored:

• LMS Lurkers: Not just if students are logging in, but when.
• The Single Sign-On Scoop: Participation and usage reports from portals like Clever or ClassLink.
• Workspace Wonders: Google's App Usage reports—are students actually collaborating on Docs, or just working in silos?
• Classroom Management Metrics: Usage stats from software like Securly Classroom that show how teachers are utilizing tools to guide digital focus.

A Quick Word to the Wise (From Your Friendly IT Director) As you go spelunking for dark data, you might be tempted to track overall "screen time." We've all heard the uptick in questions from parents and schools about this lately! However, our IT friends remind us that screen time is a notoriously difficult metric to actually calculate and validate accurately. Instead of worrying about how many minutes a screen is glowing, keep your coaching focus on how the tools are being utilized!

Aligning Dark Data with The Core of Coaching Framework© Because it is low-stakes and objective, dark data perfectly aligns with our core coaching goals. Here is how to use it:

1. Building Relationships: Data Without Defensiveness Dark data allows us to step away from evaluations and use informal information as a starting point for collaborative discussions. It allows us to use low-stakes evidence as a foundation for empathetic conversations.

2. Driving Sustainable Change: From Paralysis to Action Teachers easily succumb to "data paralysis" when looking at massive benchmarks. Dark data lets you tackle bite-sized information to collaboratively set goals and make immediate, tangible improvements to daily routines.

3. Fueling Institutional Shifts: Connecting the Dots Dark data provides fantastic, meaningful markers of progress—like teacher engagement trends, informal student performance patterns, and the adoption rates of new instructional strategies across the building . This helps you effectively communicate the impact of coaching initiatives and demonstrate systemic change to school and district leaders .

So grab your flashlight, log into your school's platforms, and see what brilliant insights are waiting in the dark! Use the end of the year to provide the "dark data" with a better home for learning next year. 

💾 Want more? 

• 📚 Read
• Using Data to Drive Instructional Coaching
• 4 Instructional Coaching Principles to follow when helping teachers use data
• 🔊 Listen to the The Edu Coach Collective
• Boost Your Coaching Impact with Data Insights
• Data Driven Instruction
• 🎬 Watch 
• WEBINAR: Coaching Makes an Impact. How to Share Your Impact with Data.
• Using Data for Better Student & Teacher Outcomes