Frequently Asked Questions
Currently, the Data Dictionary contains the definitions and business rules for the data elements in the collections. They are arranged in alphabetical order for easier searching. Also, the data dictionary uses "business" names for data elements where ADE tends to lean towards "technical" names (ie. the field names used by the programs to load the data from collections into databases). Ultimately, we see the Data Dictionary providing the mapping of "business" named data elements to all the physical uses of data. (e.g. Student Birth Date is used in field "ST_Brth_Dt" on report "ABC", and Student Birth Date is used in field "stbthday" on collection file "XYX", etc).
Not necessarily. The information gathered in the Data Dictionary, documents the data elements as they are used in the collection of data. Many times, the data is manipulated and provided to SBOE or school districts in summarized or aggregated form instead of the details. It could also be the detail data may be classified or personal in nature which is not available to the public or other school districts and only available in a non-specific reporting format.
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