As a school leader, I am sure I am not alone in constantly wrestling with big-picture questions: What is the true purpose of education? What is our school’s unique mission? And most importantly, how do we know we’re actually making a difference?
Above my desk hangs Nelson Mandela’s famous words, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." But I often pause and ask—are we really doing that? Yes, we track academic achievement, monitor growth, and analyze school climate surveys. But does checking those boxes truly prove that we’re fulfilling our mission? At Lincoln Community School in Accra, Ghana, we’re pushing beyond traditional metrics to find a way of measuring what we think truly matters. Here’s a glimpse into our journey.
For the past three years, we have been deeply engaged in our own Measuring What Matters project. Each year, a team of teachers forms a task force to lead this initiative. Their mission? To gather meaningful evidence on how well our students understand learning, leading, and connecting—the core pillars of our mission statement.
To do this, the team conducts interviews with six randomly selected students from each grade (Pre-K through Grade 12), using a common set of carefully crafted questions. These interviews explore students' perspectives on their education, their grasp of key school concepts, and their perceptions of our strengths as a learning community. With students' permission, the interviews are recorded and stored for future analysis.
Task force members then work in pairs to analyze the responses, using established criteria to identify patterns and track changes over time. The findings are shared with the entire faculty, who also get the chance to hear directly from the students they teach. This process not only helps us assess our impact but also sparks meaningful conversations about how we can continue to align our practice with our mission.
In the first year of the Measuring What Matters project, the results were eye-opening. While there were pockets of clarity across our school, it became evident that students did not consistently understand our core values and approach to learning. Of course, we never wanted students to simply recite our mission—but their struggle to articulate these ideas underscored the importance of intentionality in our work.
Since then, our teachers have made a concerted effort to use common language, explicitly connect learning to our school’s purpose, and reinforce our values in meaningful ways. The impact has been profound. By the second and third year of the project, we saw improvements. Nearly all randomly selected students—except for those new to our school—could confidently describe themselves as learners. They spoke about setting goals, using teacher feedback effectively, understanding our school’s values, and feeling a strong sense of belonging.
This journey has reaffirmed a vital truth; when we are intentional about what matters, students internalize it in ways that shape their learning and identity.
Like all meaningful work, this project is an ongoing journey. This year, the task force expanded the scope of our inquiry by adding new questions about service learning and learner agency—both emerging focus areas for our school and linked to our strategic plan. As expected, the results were mixed. Some students articulated these concepts with clarity and confidence, while others showed uncertainty. This revealed both progress and areas for growth.
At a full faculty meeting, after listening to the student interviews, teachers gathered in grade-level teams to reflect and strategize. Their central question was “What do we need to do differently to deepen students’ understanding of these important ideas?” These discussions led to concrete action plans, ensuring that our efforts to shape meaningful learning experiences continue to evolve.
This ongoing, long term approach to measuring progress has become a vital part of who we are as a school. It has reinforced the power of listening to our students—not just assuming that the values and skills we prioritize are naturally taking root. If we truly believe education can change the world, we must be intentional about tracking that change over time. This project is not just a reflection tool; it is a strategic guide, helping us celebrate successes, identify areas for growth, and shape the future with clarity and purpose.
Education is a long game, not a short one. Real impact unfolds over years, not moments. By staying committed to measuring what truly matters, we ensure that our mission is not just words on paper—but a lived experience for every student.
Lesley Tait is the Head of School of Lincoln Community School, Accra, Ghana.
