Case Studies
RAISEonline - the online reporting tool
RAISEonline, launched in 2006, has established itself as the main tool for analysing school performance data in England. It is used by 22,000 schools and 3,000 inspectors to support school improvement and self-evaluation, as well as the school inspection process.
The UK education system makes use of RAISEonline to systematically reduce the amount of work required to input data, and increase the knowledge base within its Government funded schools.
Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills), fund the RAISEonline project which is developed by RM. This is the primary distribution channel supporting the new inspection process established by Ofsted.
Analysing data
Assessment and contextual data is loaded for pupils aged 11, 14 and 16 from RM's systems which collect, match and process pupil data. A range of school performance indicators (including the attainment of pupils, threshold levels and value added progress measures) are calculated for each school. Schools and Inspectors have access to over 100 web-based reports, delivered using Microsoft's SQL Reporting Services. These reports have evolved over several years and use RM's expertise in designing and developing education-focused reports which analyse school performance.
School administrators are able to amend and change data, such as adding and removing pupils or changing grades. This provides the ability for schools to carry out 'what if' scenarios and target setting (calculating estimates for pupils based on their prior attainment). The use of statistical tests and exception highlighting allows schools to focus on areas or groups of pupils where performance is particularly strong as well as areas for improvement.
Website production & management
The RAISEonline website allows users to view interactive reports and download PDF versions of collected reports (for every school in England we create a full report, pulling together the most important analyses). It also allows users to set targets for their pupils and school, and analyse pupils' test papers at question and item level.
The system is continually improving. For 6 months of the year, the focus is on releasing new assessment data and pupil information. For the other 6 months, the system goes through a development programme to improve functionality and develop new reports.
Users verify system success
Since the launch of RAISEonline in 2006, over 2.5 million online reports have been downloaded and viewed by schools and inspectors in England. The accuracy and quality of the analyses are critical in informing the 300 school inspections that take place each week.
Benefits
One of the benefits of RAISEonline is that users can create their own customised reports using the flexible reporting tools. For example, through using data filters and options for grouping and sorting data, a school can create a report which compares assessment data for boys who have free school meals against the national average.
RAISEonline also reduces the administrative burden on schools by providing a secure, centralised database, thereby removing the need for stakeholders to load their own data. Teachers have more time for focus on analysing school performance data and how this can be used to improve teaching and learning.