Three-dimension classification of district-led innovations: technical infrastructure, implementation approach, and scalability¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 design), q1 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The report organizes its five featured District-Led Innovations along three dimensions: technical infrastructure requirements (foundational, enhanced, advanced), implementation approach (in-house, partnership, externally developed), and scalability (school-level, district-level, broadly replicable). It states "we've organized these examples across three key dimensions that emerged from our analysis," and notes the DLIs "exist along a spectrum of complexity and scale—from simple, spreadsheet-based tools used at individual schools to sophisticated district-wide platforms that integrate multiple data sources." This taxonomy lets readers locate their own context among the showcased approaches.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Analysis of a DLI's technical demands, development model, and replication scope

Constraints¶

• The report notes DLIs are not always the right approach for every district, given concerns about long-term sustainability and scalability

Target Learners¶

• school and district leaders considering custom data solutions

Target Learning Objectives¶

• matching student success data solutions to local technical capacity and scale needs

Claims¶

• Demopolis High School's Google Sheets-based student tracker was followed by a 7% drop in chronic absenteeism and over 3% change in graduation rate [+W]
• Lynwood Unified's custom dashboards and intervention tools were followed by a decrease in high school D/F rates of over 8% and 593 interventions logged in one year [+W]

Related Theories¶

• Student success systems framework: four essential elements for secondary schools
• Nine common pain points districts encounter when implementing student success technology platforms

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Liberman, B., Bradbury, J., Vollavanh, A. & Karim, S. (Eds.). (2025). Innovating for Student Success: District-Led Innovation Showcase. Digital Promise. https://doi.org/10.51388/20.500.12265/255