What is Data SGP?

Data SGP allows educators to track student growth over time. It compares test scores on one Star assessment against previous ones and indicates any improvements needed in order to meet target scores. Teachers use this information as part of setting academic goals for their students and understanding what needs to be taught to enable progress.

SGP provides teachers with a clear picture of student progress that enables them to quickly identify students who require additional support and assistance with particular subjects or grades, and enable differentiation within classrooms to meet the needs of all learners. SGP can also assist educators in understanding which strategies will enable their students to make maximum academic gains; using such tools to strengthen teaching and learning practices will ultimately increase achievement levels among all learners and ensure their ultimate success.

Data SGP analysis is now the go-to standard method of analysing student growth, yet teachers often encounter difficulties using it. A common misperception about SGP analyses is that they’re expensive and time consuming – while this may be true initially, once data preparation has taken place correctly the analyses themselves can often take less than half the time of traditional methods to complete.

Teachers wanting to use SGP must first register on their state website with an account, then access reports pertaining to their schools and districts. These reports include SGP data for each subject tested as well as lists of students who fell outside the curve – in some states a scoreboard may even show which students made the greatest academic progress.

The SGP database comprises two tables, sgpData and sgpData_INSTRUCTOR_NUMBER, both containing unique student identifiers for every test record taken by that student; insturctor information associated with each record in this table allows linking specific teachers directly with student’s SGP records.

SGP packages also contain state-specific meta data stored within a table called sgpData_INSTRUCTOR_NUMBER that can be accessed using higher level functions within this package. These functions are intended to be more operational than other SGP analysis functions; they require only sgpData and SGPstateData as input data sources. Most other SGP analyses assume data to be presented in long format format. Failing to adhere to these requirements may lead to misleading or inaccurate analysis results, particularly when updating SGP data with additional years. When updating an additional year of SGP data, it is imperative that both the sgpData and SGPstateData tables be updated at once. As such, this will ensure all SGP analyses utilize the most recent, accurate data. This allows for the most precise comparisons of current to past student performance as well as identification of trends within SGP data that may help inform instructional decisions or optimize available resources.