Schools Find Uses for Predictive Data Techniques

The use of analytic tools to predict student performance is exploding in higher education, and experts say the tools show even more promise for K-12 schools, in everything from teacher placement to dropout prevention.

Use of such statistical techniques is hindered in precollegiate schools, however, by a lack of researchers trained to help districts make sense of the data, according to education watchers.

Predictive analytics include an array of statistical methods, such as data mining and modeling, used to identify the factors that predict the likelihood of a specific result. They’ve long been a standard in the business world—both credit scores and car-insurance premiums are calculated with predictive analytic tools. Yet they have been slower to...