On a recent run in the Cotswold Hills, I learnt an unexpected lesson about the reliability of data.
There I was, running along, when I was approached through the woods by a family with three terriers. Two of the dogs were jostling for position out in front, neither particularly interested in me. A much older dog was bringing up the rear, ambling along at his own pace several metres behind.
I exchanged greetings with the humans, while the old dog interrupted his study of the moss growing on a drystone wall to eye me suspiciously as I ran past.
I headed on up the path towards the top of the hill, but after a short distance I became aware that the old terrier was following right on my heels. He stopped too, and stared up at me with a look that seemed to say: “Now what?”
“You’re going the wrong way,” I explained, pointing back towards his family, who were now some distance away. “That way, go on.”
The dog looked decidedly indifferent and didn’t move. So pointing again, I tried being more assertive. “Go on! Off you go! Shoo!”
Shaggy dog story
I turned to run on, but the old terrier followed me. I clapped my hands and he did that doggy thing of leaping sideways and barking excitedly as if it were a game. I tried turning him round 180 degrees and giving him a nudge in the right direction. Still nothing.
By this time, the owners had disappeared round a bend in the path and I’d been left completely alone with their dog.
At a loss, I picked him up, tucked him under my arm like a rugby ball and was about to start chasing after his family, when I heard a noise behind me. I turned to find two very bemused people coming down the path. One was laughing with tears in her eyes. The other, who was just about managing to hold it together, asked me: “Er, what exactly are you doing with our dog?”
What can we learn from this shaggy dog story, other than the fact that terriers are evidently much cleverer than data analysts? Well, it just goes to show that the obvious answer is not always the right one, and sometimes the most seemingly irrefutable indicators can point you in entirely the wrong direction.
Consequently, we need to be very careful placing too much faith in data and should never make judgements on the basis of one piece of evidence, no matter how robust it appears. Bear this in mind when you are tracking pupil progress. Maybe that child is heading in the right direction after all.
James Pembroke founded Sig+, an independent school data consultancy, after 10 years working with the Learning and Skills Council and local authorities
