Advancing Holistic Decision‐Making Systems in Schools: Insights From Academic Research and Practical Applications

ABSTRACT Background There is growing recognition in the education sector of the critical role empirical data plays in aiding strategic decision‐making and supporting personalised learning. The call for increased and more nuanced data‐driven decision‐making has been primarily addressed by the institutional use of student learning dashboards and learner profiles in higher education; their application and evaluation in K‐12 settings remain underexplored. Existing approaches often lack robust empirical evidence, and there is limited research addressing their use in real‐world classroom environments. Objectives and Methods This study aims to bridge the knowledge gap by systematically reviewing both academic and non‐peer‐reviewed literature on decision‐making systems in schools. The review focused on understanding the types of data used, the implementation status of dashboards and learner profiles, and the practical applications in K‐2 education. The analysis included 19 academic papers as well as 10 pieces of non‐peer‐reviewed literature to examine the landscape of decision‐making systems. Results The analysis revealed that while academic literature highlights the underuse of diverse data types and a scarcity of real‐world evaluations, non‐peer‐reviewed literature showcases promising holistic decision‐making approaches employed by schools and government bodies globally. However, these practical applications often lack empirical validation. Conclusions This study provides a novel contribution by exploring how researchers can move beyond stand‐alone studies focusing on academic performance to gauge the success of different decision‐making systems. The study also recommends that practitioners invest in more research‐backed systems to create better teaching and learning practices and enhance personalised learning. By highlighting the current gaps and offering forward‐looking recommendations, our study clarifies the present landscape and serves as a foundation for future research to improve student learning outcomes.