Developing collaborative data use through professional learning communities: Early lessons from Delaware

•This study examines implementation of a mandate for PLCs focused on data use.•Qualitative and survey data are analyzed from four schools in two districts.•Mandate resulted in teacher use of data, but results varied by school.•Results indicate leaders mediate policy through expectations and supports.•Data use supported by time, monitoring, expectations, and instructional resources.

In 2010–2011 the Delaware Department of Education (DE DOE) mandated that all grade or subject area teachers have 90 min weekly to engage in professional learning communities (PLC) in which collaborative data use was the central activity. The purpose of this research is to learn from the early implementation experiences of four elementary schools in two districts, with particular attention to whether and how schools’ implementation fostered collaborative use of data. Findings suggest the mandate resulted in the establishment of scheduled collaborative time and teachers’ collaborative use of data in all schools. However, the nature of collaborative work and the ways in which data were employed varied in ways that relate to key school and district differences.