[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 566 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 566

  To award grants to improve equality of access to technology-enabled 
    education innovations and understanding of how partnerships of 
  educational agencies and research institutions design and implement 
 such innovations in ways that improve student outcomes, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 27, 2015

  Mr. Honda introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To award grants to improve equality of access to technology-enabled 
    education innovations and understanding of how partnerships of 
  educational agencies and research institutions design and implement 
 such innovations in ways that improve student outcomes, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Technology-Enabled 
Education Innovation Partnership Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
 TITLE I--TECHNOLOGY-ENABLED EDUCATION INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM.

Sec. 101. Grants.
Sec. 102. Report and evaluation.
Sec. 103. National technology activities.
           TITLE II--TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION RESEARCH CENTERS.

Sec. 201. Establishment of a Technology Innovation Partnership 
                            Coordinating Center.
Sec. 202. Establishment of Advanced Learning Technology Research and 
                            Development Centers.
                    TITLE III--AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS

Sec. 301. Availability of funds.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Technology and the Internet have transformed nearly 
        every aspect of both the global economy and our daily lives. In 
        a technology-rich world, no amount of memorizing information 
        will make a student competitive in the global labor market. 
        America needs an education system that supports students from 
        all walks of life in becoming inquisitive, resourceful thinkers 
        who use technology to pursue knowledge, collaborate across 
        geographic and cultural boundaries, acquire new skills, and 
        solve complex problems.
            (2) Equality and equity of access is more than access to 
        the same hardware, software, and broadband connections. It 
        includes access to the best digital learning resources and 
        access to teachers who know how to orchestrate the use of these 
        resources in ways that inspire students and produce better 
        learning outcomes.
            (3) Technology by itself will not improve student outcomes. 
        What is needed are carefully designed innovations that include 
        not just technology but also good learning content, effective 
        instructional strategies, supports for teachers and school 
        systems figuring out how to use the new approach, and the 
        capacity to collect, analyze and reflect on data that will show 
        whether or not the innovation is having the intended effects.
            (4) Effective learning technology implementations 
        addressing the challenging aspects of language arts, 
        mathematics and science that all students are expected to 
        master. This will require partnerships among education 
        agencies, education researchers, and technology developers with 
        the common goal of harnessing technology to provide 
        opportunities for deeper learning to students who would not 
        otherwise experience them.
    (b) Purposes.--The purpose of this Act is to--
            (1) accelerate the development of technology-supported 
        innovations that improve student learning and educational 
        attainment; and
            (2) promote the use of technology-supported innovations 
        that improve student outcomes in classrooms serving high-need 
        students.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``local educational agency'', 
        ``professional development'', and ``State educational agency'' 
        have the meanings given the terms in section 9101 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        7801).
            (2) Eligible partnership.--The term ``eligible 
        partnership'' means a partnership that--
                    (A) shall include--
                            (i) not less than one--
                                    (I) State educational agency; or
                                    (II) local educational agency; and
                            (ii) not less than one research and 
                        evaluation partner; and
                    (B) may include other necessary partner 
                organizations, as determined by the Secretary (acting 
                through the Office of Innovation and Improvement), 
                including technology developers or vendors, technical 
                assistance providers, and education associations.
            (3) High-need student.--The term ``high-need student'' 
        means--
                    (A) a student from a family living below the 
                poverty level for the most recent fiscal year for which 
                satisfactory data are available;
                    (B) English language learners; and
                    (C) students with disabilities.
            (4) Institution of higher education.--The term 
        ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1001(a)).
            (5) Meta-analysis.--The term ``meta-analysis'' means a 
        statistical technique for combining the results of multiple 
        independent studies of the same or similar phenomena in order 
        to provide a more precise estimate of the treatment effect.
            (6) Research and evaluation collaborator.--The term 
        ``research and evaluation collaborator'' means as an 
        institution of higher education, a nonprofit research 
        organization, or an established evaluator of educational 
        programs that--
                    (A) is not a member of an eligible partnership;
                    (B) is independent of a State educational agency; 
                and
                    (C) has demonstrated capacity to--
                            (i) conduct valid and objective social 
                        science research on the relationship between 
                        technology-enabled education innovation 
                        programs and outcomes, mediated by qualities of 
                        implementation; and
                            (ii) provide timely empirical feedback that 
                        contributes to improving technology-enabled 
                        education innovation.
            (7) Research and evaluation partner.--The term ``research 
        and evaluation partner'' means an institution of higher 
        education or a nonprofit research organization in an eligible 
        partnership that is responsible for--
                    (A) designing and conducting an evaluation of the 
                extent to which the partnership's innovation leads to 
                better outcomes for students; and
                    (B) researching the way in which the innovation is 
                implemented in different settings and with different 
                kinds of students, and the relationship between 
                implementation practices and differences in student 
                outcomes.
            (8) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
            (9) Technology-enabled education innovation program.--The 
        term ``technology-enabled education innovation program'' means 
        an educational intervention that--
                    (A) employs information technology, best available 
                knowledge about how people learn, and an understanding 
                of how programs are implemented in education settings; 
                and
                    (B) may be implemented at scale with reasonable 
                costs, with the ratio of expected benefits to costs 
                being significantly superior to that for existing 
                approaches.

 TITLE I--TECHNOLOGY-ENABLED EDUCATION INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM.

SEC. 101. GRANTS.

    (a) Program Authorization.--From the amounts appropriated under 
section 103 after making a reservation under subsection (b) of such 
section, the Secretary of Education is authorized to award grants, on a 
competitive basis, to eligible partnerships to design, implement, 
refine, and scale technology-enabled education innovation programs.
    (b) Application.--
            (1) In general.--An eligible partnership desiring a grant 
        under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary 
        at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
        information as the Secretary may require.
            (2) Application contents.--An application described in 
        paragraph (1), shall, at a minimum--
                    (A) include a description of how the eligible 
                partnership proposes to use the grant funds to 
                implement a technology-enabled education innovation 
                program;
                    (B) list the objectives of the technology-enabled 
                education innovation program;
                    (C) provide a budget for the use of the grant 
                funds;
                    (D) describe the evaluation plan and assessment 
                measures for the technology-enabled education 
                innovation program; and
                    (E) provide such additional assurances and 
                information as the Secretary determines to be 
                necessary.
    (c) Awards.--
            (1) Minimum and maximum grant amount.--A grant awarded 
        under this section shall be not less than $300,000 and not 
        greater than $1,000,000 for each fiscal year.
            (2) Duration.--A grant under this section shall be awarded 
        for a period of 3 years.
            (3) Extension.--
                    (A) Duration and amount.--A grant awarded under 
                this section may be extended for an additional 2 years 
                in an amount determined appropriate by the Secretary.
                    (B) Progress and peer review.--An extension of a 
                grant awarded to an eligible partnership under this 
                section shall be contingent upon evidence of progress 
                and capacity for scaling the technology-enabled 
                education innovation program carried out by the 
                partnership with the grant funds, as determined by a 
                peer review process conducted by the Secretary.
    (d) Preference Points for Matching Funds.--The Secretary may award 
up to 10 percent in competitive preference points to an eligible 
partnership in which the State educational agency or local educational 
agency partner provides 10 percent or more matching funds to cover the 
cost of the activities funded by a grant awarded under this section.
    (e) Required Use of Funds.--An eligible partnership that is awarded 
a grant under this section shall use such grant to carry out a 
technology-enabled education innovation program--
            (1) under which 75 percent or more of students taking part 
        in such program attend a school in which 50 percent or more of 
        the student body is eligible for free or reduced-price lunches 
        (under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1761)); and
            (2) that at a minimum--
                    (A) uses technology to address curriculum content 
                and instructional strategies that support science, 
                language arts, or mathematics, in accordance with 
                career and college ready standards and 21st century 
                skills;
                    (B) demonstrates that sufficient technological 
                infrastructure (which may include connectivity, end 
                user devices, servers, peripherals, or other technology 
                directly related to the technology-enabled innovation) 
                is, or will be, available in the schools participating 
                in the partnership grant to implement the innovation 
                program successfully;
                    (C) measures student learning outcomes aligned to 
                the objectives of such innovation program; and
                    (D) provides teachers with professional development 
                to increase their knowledge and skill related to 
                educational content, pedagogical techniques, and how to 
                use technology effectively in support of learning, 
                which will enable teachers to have the skills and 
                knowledge to implement the innovation program's 
                instructional strategies with the intended level of 
                frequency and with fidelity to the learning principles 
                on which the innovation is based.

SEC. 102. REPORT AND EVALUATION.

    (a) Annual Report Required.--An eligible partnership shall submit 
an annual report to the Secretary detailing--
            (1) all activities undertaken by the eligible partnership 
        using grant funds;
            (2) student learning outcomes; and
            (3) refinements planned for the technology-enabled 
        education innovation program based on analysis of student 
        learning outcome data.
    (b) Independent Evaluation.--Data used in the report shall be 
gathered and evaluated by a research and evaluation collaborator.
    (c) Alternative Measures.--
            (1) Assessment.--Measures to evaluate under subsection (b) 
        the academic achievement of students enrolled in a technology-
        enabled education innovation program may include alternative 
        measures such as student enrollment in advanced course options, 
        consistent completion of homework, or other alternative 
        measures that the Secretary may prescribe, except that if no 
        suitable alternate measure exists to capture outcome data of 
        national significance, an eligible partnership may develop a 
        new measure.
            (2) Reliability.--An eligible partnership shall demonstrate 
        that the alternative measures of academic achievement are 
        reliable and valid for the purpose for which such measures are 
        used.
    (d) Data Sets.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 3 years of carrying out the 
        innovation program established under this section, an eligible 
        partnership shall provide a data set containing student records 
        to a Technology-Enabled Education Innovation Partnership 
        Coordinating Center established under section 201.
            (2) Data elements.--A data set described in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) shall contain--
                            (i) a record with an assigned student 
                        number for each student participating in the 
                        innovation program carried out by the eligible 
                        partnership and--
                                    (I) information sufficient to 
                                determine which innovations were 
                                experienced by the student and to 
                                analyze the quantitative education 
                                outcomes that were measured for that 
                                student;
                                    (II) student demographic data that 
                                will permit subgroup analyses, 
                                including by gender, racial or ethnic 
                                group, disability status, economic 
                                disadvantage, English language 
                                proficiency, and migrant status; and
                                    (III) such other information that 
                                the Secretary may require based on the 
                                specifications determined under section 
                                201(b)(1) and that is common to all 
                                technology-enabled education innovation 
                                programs; and
                    (B) may not include any personally identifying 
                information.

SEC. 103. NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY ACTIVITIES.

    From the amounts appropriated under section 4 to carry out this 
title, the Secretary shall reserve 5 percent for the support of 
national technology activities that share information across 
technology-enabled education innovation programs funded under this 
title, such as support for better dissemination of information across 
such innovation programs to national audiences, by--
            (1) conducting a study of new approaches to using 
        technology to enhance education outcomes as needed to support 
        making policy around educational technology;
            (2) disseminating on the Internet for all State educational 
        agencies and other interested parties findings concerning the 
        conditions and practices associated with the use of technology 
        in schools; and
            (3) providing technical assistance to assist State 
        educational agencies and local educational agencies in applying 
        research-based knowledge to implementing technology in schools.

           TITLE II--TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION RESEARCH CENTERS.

SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT OF A TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP 
              COORDINATING CENTER.

    (a) Establishment of Center.--The Secretary shall establish a 
Technology-Enabled Education Innovation Partnership Coordinating Center 
for the purpose of creating and promoting use of a Web-accessible 
archive of the data sets gathered from eligible partnerships under 
section 102(d).
    (b) Requirements.--The Secretary shall direct the center 
established under subsection (a) to--
            (1) convene a panel of experts in learning technology, 
        educational improvement, and research methods to specify a set 
        of common data elements required to be submitted by eligible 
        partnerships under section 102(d);
            (2) provide technical assistance to such eligible 
        partnerships around data submission, data security, and privacy 
        protection;
            (3) conduct meta-analyses and other syntheses of the data 
        produced by such eligible partnerships; and
            (4) allow independent researchers access to the data.

SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVANCED LEARNING TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH AND 
              DEVELOPMENT CENTERS.

    (a) Establishment of Centers.--The Secretary, in consultation with 
the Director of the National Science Foundation, shall establish and 
oversee one or more advanced learning technology research and 
development centers to address the priorities and grand challenges for 
learning technology set forth in the 2010 National Education Technology 
Plan, Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology 
published by the Office of Educational Technology of the Department of 
Education.
    (b) Requirements.--A center established under subsection (a), for 
the purpose of advancing learning technology evaluation and assessment, 
shall--
            (1) design and validate an integrated system for designing 
        and implementing valid, reliable, and cost-effective 
        assessments of important college- and work-relevant complex 
        skills, such as critical thinking, problem solving, effective 
        communication, collaboration, creativity, and innovation, 
        across academic disciplines;
            (2) design and validate an integrated approach for 
        capturing, aggregating, mining, student learning, and financial 
        data, and sharing content cost-effectively for multiple 
        purposes across multiple learning platforms and data systems; 
        and
            (3) report data to the Secretary on the designs and 
        validations carried out under paragraphs (1) and (2) in an 
        expedited manner and make such data publicly available within 1 
        year of carrying out such designs and validations.

                    TITLE III--AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS

SEC. 301. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.

    For fiscal year 2016 and for each succeeding fiscal year not less 
than 10 percent of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year for the 
Office of Innovation and Improvement of the Department of Education 
shall be available to carry out this Act.
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