The federal government is laying the foundation for a national
database that could include all of the personal details of every student
in every public school in every state, warns a report by the leading homeschool advocacy group.
The report, compiled by Will Estrada and Katie Tipton of the Home School Legal Defense Association, points out that a “slew of new federal incentives and federally funded data models have spurred states to monitor students’ early years, performance in college, and success in the workforce by following ‘individuals systematically and efficiently across state lines.’”
The authors “believe that this expansion of state databases is laying the foundation for a national database filled with personal student data.”
The report notes that the U.S. Department of Education is banned by law from creating a national data system, but under the Obama administration, new regulations have opened the door.
Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, parents were promised they could access their children’s personally identifiable information collected by schools. But the schools were banned from sharing the details with third parties.
The law explains that personally identifiable information includes names of family members, address, Social Security number, date and place of birth, disciplinary record and biometric record.
The new report says, however, the Department of Education has reshaped FERPA through regulations so that “any government or private entity that the department says is evaluating an education program has access to students’ personally identifiable information.”
Postsecondary institutes and workforce education programs can also be given the data.
While the change has prompted a still-unresolved lawsuit from the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the framework of a national database slowly is slowly being implemented, the report says.
The Home School Legal Defense Association has long opposed the creation of a national database.
“We believe that it would threaten the privacy of students, be susceptible to abuse by government officials or business interests, and jeopardize student safety,” the report says. “We believe that detailed data systems are not necessary to educate young people. Education should not be an Orwellian attempt to track students from preschool through assimilation into the workforce.”
The report points out that guidelines for building state longitudinal data systems that can collect and link personally identifiable information across state lines have been released by task forces funded by both the Department of Education and special interest groups
Many of the recommendations were compiled in the National Education Data Model, a project funded by the Department of Education and overseen by the Council for Chief State School Officers, one of the organizations that created Common Core.
Already, 18 states and many local education agencies are building databases, the report says, and other states are using similar database models.
“Concentrating data collection around a few models means that states are getting closer and closer to keeping the same data and using the some interoperable technology to store it,” HSLDA reports.
The report says 46 states now have databases that can track students from preschool through the workforce.
Several other federal programs also are pushing the creation of databases, including Race to the Top, which was to allocate $4.35 billion to schools that make “certain changes” in their policies, including the adoption of the Common Core initiative, which seeks to standardize curricula nationally.
“Every state that agrees to the Common Core in order to receive RTTT funding also commits ‘to design, develop, and implement statewide P-20 (preschool through workforce) longitudinal data systems’ that can be used in part or in whole by other states,” the report says.
HSLDA warns that the “heavy involvement of the federal government in enticing states to create databases of student-specific data that are linked between states is creating a de facto centralized database.”
“Before our eyes a ‘national database’ is being created in which every public school student’s personal information and academic history will be stored,” the report says.
The authors of Common Core, the report notes, “have been heavily involved in developing data models and overseeing data collection.”
The impact might someday be measured in lost dreams and evaporated opportunities, the report suggests.
“A crucial part of the responsibility of parents is protecting the privacy of their children. This enables parents not only to guard their children’s physical safety, but also to nurture their individuality and secure opportunities for them to pursue their dreams apart from government interference,” the report says.
“The rise of national databases threatens these freedoms.”
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FAQ
1. What is the Common Core?
The Common Core State Standards (“the Common Core”) are two sets
of K–12 academic standards that outline what students are expected to
learn in English language arts and mathematics each year from
kindergarten through high school. The goal of this checklist is not
literacy, proficiency, or increased graduation rates but to make
students “college- and career-ready.”1
The Common Core was written by the National Governors Association
(NGA)—an organization of governors, their head staff members, and policy
makers—and the Council of Chief State School Officials (CCSSO). States
receive Race to the Top (RTTT) federal funding for committing to adopt
and implement the Common Core and to collect student data from preschool
through the workforce. Read the topic paper >>
2. Is the Common Core already being implemented?
3. How is the federal government involved in the Common Core?
4. Does the Common Core have a philosophical bias?
5. Does the Common Core provide for individualized education?
6. Is there any evidence that centralized education works better than decentralized education?
7. Will the Common Core impact homeschools and private schools?
8. Does the Common Core lead to a national curriculum?
9. Does it matter that testing is being aligned with the Common Core?
10. Does the Common Core include a national database?
11. Who supports the Common Core and why?
12. Who opposes the Common Core and why?
*The posts made in this blog are of our opinion only* Without Prejudice UCC 1-207
The report, compiled by Will Estrada and Katie Tipton of the Home School Legal Defense Association, points out that a “slew of new federal incentives and federally funded data models have spurred states to monitor students’ early years, performance in college, and success in the workforce by following ‘individuals systematically and efficiently across state lines.’”
The authors “believe that this expansion of state databases is laying the foundation for a national database filled with personal student data.”
The report notes that the U.S. Department of Education is banned by law from creating a national data system, but under the Obama administration, new regulations have opened the door.
Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, parents were promised they could access their children’s personally identifiable information collected by schools. But the schools were banned from sharing the details with third parties.
The law explains that personally identifiable information includes names of family members, address, Social Security number, date and place of birth, disciplinary record and biometric record.
The new report says, however, the Department of Education has reshaped FERPA through regulations so that “any government or private entity that the department says is evaluating an education program has access to students’ personally identifiable information.”
Postsecondary institutes and workforce education programs can also be given the data.
While the change has prompted a still-unresolved lawsuit from the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the framework of a national database slowly is slowly being implemented, the report says.
The Home School Legal Defense Association has long opposed the creation of a national database.
“We believe that it would threaten the privacy of students, be susceptible to abuse by government officials or business interests, and jeopardize student safety,” the report says. “We believe that detailed data systems are not necessary to educate young people. Education should not be an Orwellian attempt to track students from preschool through assimilation into the workforce.”
The report points out that guidelines for building state longitudinal data systems that can collect and link personally identifiable information across state lines have been released by task forces funded by both the Department of Education and special interest groups
Many of the recommendations were compiled in the National Education Data Model, a project funded by the Department of Education and overseen by the Council for Chief State School Officers, one of the organizations that created Common Core.
Already, 18 states and many local education agencies are building databases, the report says, and other states are using similar database models.
“Concentrating data collection around a few models means that states are getting closer and closer to keeping the same data and using the some interoperable technology to store it,” HSLDA reports.
The report says 46 states now have databases that can track students from preschool through the workforce.
Several other federal programs also are pushing the creation of databases, including Race to the Top, which was to allocate $4.35 billion to schools that make “certain changes” in their policies, including the adoption of the Common Core initiative, which seeks to standardize curricula nationally.
“Every state that agrees to the Common Core in order to receive RTTT funding also commits ‘to design, develop, and implement statewide P-20 (preschool through workforce) longitudinal data systems’ that can be used in part or in whole by other states,” the report says.
HSLDA warns that the “heavy involvement of the federal government in enticing states to create databases of student-specific data that are linked between states is creating a de facto centralized database.”
“Before our eyes a ‘national database’ is being created in which every public school student’s personal information and academic history will be stored,” the report says.
The authors of Common Core, the report notes, “have been heavily involved in developing data models and overseeing data collection.”
The impact might someday be measured in lost dreams and evaporated opportunities, the report suggests.
“A crucial part of the responsibility of parents is protecting the privacy of their children. This enables parents not only to guard their children’s physical safety, but also to nurture their individuality and secure opportunities for them to pursue their dreams apart from government interference,” the report says.
“The rise of national databases threatens these freedoms.”
=================================================
FAQ
2. Is the Common Core already being implemented?
3. How is the federal government involved in the Common Core?
4. Does the Common Core have a philosophical bias?
5. Does the Common Core provide for individualized education?
6. Is there any evidence that centralized education works better than decentralized education?
7. Will the Common Core impact homeschools and private schools?
8. Does the Common Core lead to a national curriculum?
9. Does it matter that testing is being aligned with the Common Core?
10. Does the Common Core include a national database?
11. Who supports the Common Core and why?
12. Who opposes the Common Core and why?
*The posts made in this blog are of our opinion only* Without Prejudice UCC 1-207
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