Data Ethics

Ellen B. Mandinach is a senior research scientist emeritus at WestEd, having retired in 2025. She is a leading expert in the area of data-driven decision making at the classroom, district, and state levels. Her work over the past 20 years has focused on understanding how educators are using data to inform practice. She has served on a number of technical working groups and advisory boards on data use, including the expert committee for the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards on teacher assessment and data literacy and the Forum Guide on Data Literacy. Dr. Mandinach developed the constructs and theoretical frameworks for data literacy for teachers and culturally responsive data literacy. Most recently, her focus has been the ethics of data use.

In an era where data-driven decision making has become central to education - al practice, Ellen Mandinach delivers a groundbreaking work that moves beyond technical data skills to address the critical question of how we should use data responsibly. Data Ethics brilliantly demonstrates that effective data use isn't just about having the right numbers. It's about using data appropriately to serve all students equitably. Mandinach's comprehensive framework, built around transparency and consequences, provides educators with practical tools to navigate the complex ethical dilemmas they face daily. From preventing unintended harm to students to resisting accountability pressures that compromise educational integrity, this book offers both theoretical grounding and real-world scenarios that make abstract concepts immediately applicable.

• AcknowledgmentsPreface1 An Introduction: Why Data Ethics?2 Defining Data Ethics—It is More than Just Data Privacy3 Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Data Ethics4 A User’s Guide to the Scenarios 5 First Set of Scenarios6 Second Set of Scenarios7 Change is Systemic—The Roles of Organizations and Agencies8 What Needs to Happen—Actionable Next Steps: A RecapReferences Index