Comparing Changes from One Year to Another in One Group to the Changes from One Year to Another in a Larger Group

The EIC can produce estimates of effects for changes over time in just one group and also compare these changes to another group of similar size. But wise consumers might have yet another question: Are the changes seen over time in my school (or district) greater than those that may have occurred in the larger group to which my school (or district) belongs? Are the changes at my school (or district) large enough, when compared to the changes in the total group, to be considered educationally significant? This question is especially important to consider when both the target group and the larger group have been the focus of improvement efforts. As with other examples, these comparisons involve cohorts, two groups that are independent of each other but passing through the same organization, such as fourth graders in one year and fourth graders in another year. Click below to see examples of answering this query using the three types of data accepted for input by the EIC.