PROJECT BRIEF

BACKGROUND

In a world that is increasingly driven by data, government entities are doing their best to adapt and employ data-driven decision making into their policymaking and day-to-day functions.The City of Tempe, Arizona is directly addressing this challenge through the implementation of the Open Data Portal, where City leadership provides complete transparency with their constituents by making public all of the data collected and utilizied in decision making. The City is now looking to develop and administer a Data Literacy Framework to educate all city employees on data and how it can be used responsibly to streamline operations and ultimately make smarter governance decisions. 

AIMS

Although various data literacy frameworks have been developed in the education and private sectors respectively, comprehensive frameworks for the public sector are often difficult to access and lack the breadth that is essential for widespread utilization. Project objectives include data curriculum development, (2) training module and assessment criteria (3) implementation strategy recommendations.

METHODOLOGY

Project research incorporated insights from a multitude of disciplines including pedagogy, data science, data security, data ethics, public policy, and the private sector. An analysis of existing best practices was complemented by case studies and stakeholder engagement to ensure City-specific needs were centered in data literacy curriculum design.

DELIVERABLES

The primary deliverable for this project was a curriculum which included supplementary materials and resources that formulate a comprehensive Data Literacy Framework for the City of Tempe. Curriculum resources included data management strategies, existing data policy awareness, interactive training modules, and multimodal implementation models for instruction.

IMPACT AND FUTURE WORK

This framework can be utilized by the City of Tempe to improve data literacy across all departments, making Tempe a city where all residents benefit from a data-driven approach to policymaking and governance. Providing the City of Tempe with continued support during framework implementation is essential to ensuring employees benefit from continued education and training in the age of rapid technological advancements.