Edited byNancy B. Love, Katherine E. Stiles, Kathryn Diranna, Susan E. Mundry
Author BiographyNancy Love is Director of Program Development at Research for Better Teaching in Acton, Massachusetts, where she leads this education-consulting group's research and development. She is the former Director of the Using Data Project, a collaboration between TERC and WestEd, where she led the development of a comprehensive professional development program to improve teaching and learning through effective and collaborative use of school data. This program has produced significant gains in student achievement as well as increased collaboration and data use in schools across the country. Love has authored several books and articles on data use, including A Data Coach's Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power of Collaborative Inquiry (2008, Corwin Press) and Using Data to Improve the Learning for All: A Collaborative Inquiry Approach (2009, Corwin). She is also well known for her work in professional development both as a presenter and author of articles and books, including Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics (Second Edition) with Susan Loucks-Horsley, Kathy Stiles, Susan Mundry, and Peter Hewson (2003, Corwin Press). In 2006, she was awarded the prestigious Susan Loucks-Horsley Award from the National Staff Development Council in recognition of her significant national contribution to the field of staff development and to the efficacy of others.Katherine E. Stiles is a Senior Program Associate in the STEM Program at WestEd. Katherine is Co-Director of WestEd's National Academy for Science and Mathematics Education Leadership, providing professional development and support for education leaders nationwide. The foci of the Leadership Academy-effective leadership, educational change, professional development and communities of learners, facilitation, and using data and evidence to achieve results-are reflected in the book, (2013). She designs and leads science and mathematics education program evaluation projects at the school, district, state, and national level, focusing on assessing the quality of professional development, and the relationship between teachers' conceptual learning, changes in practice, and student learning. Katherine works with schools and districts to enhance student learning through the development of collaborative inquiry into data among staff as part of her work on the Using Data Project and as co-author of (2008). She was co-director of an NSF-funded project, Building Systems for Quality Teaching and Learning in Science, that resulted in the publication of professional development materials and a simulation board game on science education. The project extended the work of the seminal book on professional development that she co-authored, (2010). Prior to joining WestEd in 1995, Katherine worked at the National Science Resources Center in Washington, D.C., as a science curriculum developer and authored four curriculum units for the program.Susan Mundry is currently deputy director of Learning Innovations at WestEd and the associate director of WestEd's Mathematics, Science, and Technology Program. She directs several national or regional projects focused on improving educational practice and oversees the research and evaluation projects of Learning Innovations. She is codirector of a research study examining the distribution of highly qualified teachers in New York and Maine for the Northeast & Islands Regional Education Laboratory and is the project codirector for the evaluation of the Intel Mathematics Initiative, a professional development program for elementary and middle grades teachers aimed at increasing student outcomes in mathematics. She is also a Principal Investigator for two National Science Foundation projects that are developing products to promote the use of research-based practice in science and mathematics. Since 2000, Mundry has codirected the National Academy for Science and Mathematics Education Leadership, which prov