1.Building Statewide
longitudinal data systems
(a)The Secretary of
Education is authorized to award 5-year grants, on a competitive basis, to
State educational agencies to enable such agencies to design, develop, and
implement statewide longitudinal data systems to efficiently and accurately
collect, manage, analyze, disaggregate, and use individual student data,
consistent with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
6301 et seq.).
(b)Each
State educational agency desiring a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the Secretary of Education at such time, in such manner, and
accompanied by such information as the Secretary may reasonably require,
including how the State will provide matching funds.
(c)As a condition of receiving a grant under this section, a
State shall provide non-Federal funds as follows:
(1)In years 1 and 2 of the project funded by the grant, not less
than 1 non-Federal dollar for every 3 Federal dollars.
(2)In years 3 and 4 of the project, not less than 1 non-Federal
dollar for every 1 Federal dollar.
(3)In year 5 of the project, not less than 3 non-Federal dollars
for every 1 Federal dollar.
(d)Peer review and
awarding of grantsIn awarding grants under this section, the
Secretary of Education shall use a peer review process that—
(1)ensures technical
quality (including validity and reliability) and protects student privacy
consistent with section 183 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20
U.S.C. 9573); and
(2)promotes the
generation and accurate and timely use of data that—
(A)is needed for
States and local educational agencies to comply with this Act, close
achievement gaps, and fulfill other reporting requirements; and
(B)is needed to
facilitate research to improve student academic achievement and close
achievement gaps.
(e)Funds made available under this section shall be used to
supplement, and not supplant, other State or local funds used for developing
statewide data systems.
(f)A State that receives a grant under this section shall use
the grant funds to build or upgrade a high quality robust statewide
longitudinal data system that includes the elements and structures described in
section 2.
(g)Not
later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually
thereafter, the Secretary of Education shall make publicly available a report
on the implementation and effectiveness of Federal, State, and local efforts
related to the goals of this section, including—
(1)an analysis of
States’ progress in developing statewide longitudinal data systems that include
the elements and structures required by subsection (f);
(2)an evaluation of the ability of such
systems to manage individual student and personnel data consistent with this
Act, promote linkages across States, and protect student privacy consistent
with section 183 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C.
9573);
(3)an analysis of
State practices regarding the use of statewide longitudinal data systems,
including increasing educators’ capacity to use data; and
(4)an identification
of best practices and areas for improvement.
(h)Authorization of
appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated
$100,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal
years, for grants under this section.
2.Understanding the
capacity of current data systems
(a)A State that receives
a grant under section 1 shall describe, in the State's State plan required
under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.), how, within 4 years of the date of enactment of this
Act, the State will have in place a statewide longitudinal data system, which
shall include information from students in public charter schools.
(b)The data system required under subsection (a) shall
include the following essential elements:
(1)A
unique statewide student identifier that remains stable and consistent across
time.
(2)Information on an
individual student's—
(A)school, grade,
and classroom-level enrollment;
(B)membership in a
demographic group specified in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II));
(C)attendance;
(D)participation
in—
(i)a
program under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.);
(ii)a
program for English language learners;
(iii)a
bilingual education program;
(iv)a
program under part C of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6391 et seq.); or
(v)a
program under subpart 6 of part D of title V of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7253a et seq.); and
(E)eligibility
for—
(i)a
free or reduced-price lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); or
(ii)special
education and related services.
(3)The ability to
match an individual student's score on an academic assessment, including an
assessment specified under section 1111(b)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)), from year to year to measure
academic growth.
(4)Information on
students who were not tested, as required under section 1111 of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965, and the reasons the students were not
tested.
(5)A
unique, statewide teacher identifier that remains stable and consistent over
time and matches student records to the appropriate teacher. Any use of such
data beyond identifying professional development needs of teachers or revising
instructional methods and curricula (including use of such data for
compensation, job evaluation, continued employment, or other employment
decisions) shall not reduce the rights or remedies of employees under any other
Federal, State, or local law, collective bargaining agreement, or memorandum
understanding.
(6)Student-level
transcript information, including information on courses completed and grades
earned.
(7)Student-level data
on participation in and performance on college admissions or placement
assessments, or both.
(8)Student-level data
on students’ entrance to and exit of the education system, including first time
grade-level enrollment, grade-level retention, verified transfer status,
drop-out status, receipt of standard diploma or nonstandard diploma, receipt of
GED, incarceration, and death.
(9)Ability to link
information from preschool through grade 12 to data systems in higher
education, and to gather information on college enrollment, placement,
persistence, and attainment, and ability to link data systems to data from
workforce development, unemployment insurance, child welfare, juvenile justice,
and military services information systems.
(10)A
statewide data audit system assessing data quality, validity, and
reliability.
(11)Teacher
elements, including grade levels and subjects of teaching assignments, major
and minor undergraduate area of study, preparation program participation,
certification status, professional development program participation, years of
teaching expertise, and highly qualified (as defined in section 9101 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) status. Such
teacher elements shall be aligned to the stable, unique, consistent statewide
teacher identifier.
(c)The data system required under subsection (a) shall also
include structures to ensure the following:
(1)The privacy of
student records, consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974 (20 U.S.C. 1232g).
(2)Effective data
architecture, including standard definitions and formatting, and warehousing,
including the ability to link student records over time and across databases
and to produce standardized or customized reports for use by local educators
and policymakers.
(3)Interoperability,
utilizing established open technical standards, among software interfaces
utilized to collect, analyze, report out, and share the data of such
system.
(4)Interoperability,
utilizing established open technical standards, with the other State and local
systems developed and implemented pursuant to this section.
(5)Interoperability,
utilizing established open technical standards, with the system linking migrant
student records required under part C of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6391 et seq.).
(6)Electronic
portability of data and records across local educational agencies and between
prekindergarten through grade 12 and postsecondary institutions within a State
and across States.
(7)Professional
development for those that use and operate such system.
(8)Researcher access to the data in such
system, consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974
(20 U.S.C. 1232g).
3.Improving
education through better use of data, alignment of State and district data
systems, and training and technical assistance
(a)The Secretary of Education is authorized to
award grants, allocated 50 percent according to poverty and 50 percent
according to student population, to State educational agencies to enable such
agencies to implement activities to ensure the alignment and effective use of
data systems.
(b)As a condition of
receiving a grant under this section, a State shall provide a match of not less
than 1 non-Federal dollar for every 3 Federal dollars received under the
grant.
(c)Funds made available under this section shall be used to
supplement, and not supplant, other State or local funds used for enhancing
capacity to use data systems.
(d)In
this section:
(1)Student
information management systemThe term student information
management system means an electronic data system used to hold
individual student and teacher information, data, and records.
(2)Curriculum
management system, instructional management system, or learning management
systemThe term curriculum management system,
instructional management system, or learning management
system means an electronic software system used by educators to
regularly assess students’ performance as compared to standards and align
specific and individual curriculum activities to students’ needs.
(e)Each State educational agency desiring a grant under
this section shall submit an application to the Secretary of Education at such
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary may
reasonably require, including—
(1)a
description of how the State will build educator and policymaker capacity to
use data and data systems to improve teaching and learning, increase student
achievement and outcomes, and close achievement gaps;
(2)a
description of how the State will support local educational agencies in
utilizing available data and collecting and utilizing formative and other
assessment data to individualize instruction;
(3)a
description of how the State will utilize established open technical standards
to align statewide longitudinal data systems with local student information
management systems and curriculum management systems, instructional management
systems, or learning management systems;
(4)a
description of how the State will work with local educational agencies to
analyze current resources at the school and local educational agency level to
ensure participating jurisdictions have the technology, such as Internet
connections, computing power, software, servers, and hard disk space, necessary
to successfully implement the data collection, reporting, assessment processes,
and content delivery the system demands; and
(5)if the State plans
to award subgrants, a description of how the State will support local grant
recipients in meeting the purposes, goals, and requirements of this
section.
(f)State required
use of fundsA State receiving a grant under this section shall
use funds for activities that build educator and policymaker, at the local
educational agency and school level, capacity to use data and data systems,
such as—
(1)providing data integrity training at the
school and local educational agency levels to address technology maintenance
needs at the school and local educational agency levels, privacy policies
(including training relating to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974 (20 U.S.C. 1232g)), data integrity issues, report planning, and
processes;
(2)providing
professional development to teachers, office personnel, and school and local
educational agency administrators to appropriately collect, report, and use
data;
(3)developing
processes to analyze and disseminate best practices, strategies, and approaches
regarding pedagogical advancement that will leverage the data system to enhance
teaching and learning, including creating opportunities for individualized
instruction; and
(4)aligning with the
utilization of established open technical standards, statewide longitudinal
data systems with local student information management systems and curriculum
management systems or instructional management systems.
(g)A State receiving a grant under this section may use funds
to—
(1)hire and train
dedicated personnel to support the collection, submission, and public reporting
of data requirements under this Act and the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.);
(2)provide students
with individualized learning opportunities based on data;
(3)utilize
established open technical standards to address portability and
interoperability of data among States, local educational agencies, or
schools;
(4)utilize
established open technical standards to connect the statewide data system with
other State systems, including those with school funding information,
employment information, military information, child welfare, juvenile justice,
and postsecondary education;
(5)conduct and
publicly report on the findings of data analyses to identify and fill areas in
need of improvement in policy and instructional practice; and
(6)provide subgrants to local educational
agencies, or consortia of local educational agencies.
(h)To be eligible
to receive a subgrant from a State educational agency under this section, a
local educational agency, or consortium of local educational agencies, shall
submit to the State educational agency an application at such time, in such
manner, and accompanied by such information as the State educational agency may
require, including—
(1)a
description of how the applicant will use funds under this section to
facilitate the use of data to improve teaching, learning, and student
outcomes;
(2)a
description of how the applicant will align its use of funds under this section
to the local educational agency technology plan and to the local educational
agency goals and plans for improving student achievement under section 1112 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6312) and, if
applicable, section 1116 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 6316);
(3)a
description of how the applicant will use funds to promote the generation and
accurate and timely use of data to improve student academic achievement and
close achievement gaps; and
(4)such other
information as the State educational agency may reasonably require.
(i)
(1)A local educational agency, or consortium of local
educational agencies, receiving a subgrant under this section shall use the
funds to—
(A)implement
curriculum management systems, instructional management systems, or learning
management systems, or other tools and resources to facilitate the use of
formative assessment and individualized instruction to improve student
achievement;
(B)provide
professional development, including—
(i)on-going and
sustainable professional development addressing how to utilize curriculum
management systems, instructional management systems, or learning management
systems and formative assessments as a means to individualize instruction to
improve student achievement;
(ii)professional
development to tie curricular resources directly to standards, including
digital resources addressing various learning styles; and
(iii)other activities
to facilitate the use of data to improve teaching and learning; and
(C)improve systems
and processes related to the implementation and use of local student
information management systems, including professional development and
alignment with State systems.
(2)Funds made available under this section shall be used to
supplement, and not supplant, other State or local funds available for local
activities described in this subsection.
(j)Not
later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually
thereafter, the Secretary of Education shall make publicly available a report
on the implementation and effectiveness of Federal, State, and local efforts
related to the uses of funds under this section.
(k)Authorization of
appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to carry
out this section $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and for each succeeding
fiscal year.
4.Supporting the
State education data centerThere are authorized to be appropriated such
sums as may be necessary for contracts or grants as part of a jointly funded
project for support of a State education data center and State educational data
coordinators.