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Past Exchange Summary Reports - Return to Past Exchange Summary Reports Initiating Agency: Cooperating Agencies: Dates of Exchange: Title of Exchange: Background Oklahoma currently relies upon aggregate statistics on students reported by school districts to satisfy numerous state and federal reporting mandates. With the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), it became apparent that a statewide student record system would be necessary to provide a data warehouse with sufficient detail to respond to the vigorous reporting and accountability provisions in NCLB. In response to the NCLB requirements and a desire to reduce the ever-increasing reporting burden for schools, the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE), in partnership with the Oklahoma Business and Education Coalition (OBEC), formed a task force and a project team the summer of 2002 to explore the feasibility of a Statewide Student Record System (SSRS). The task force's charge was to have a proposal, complete with specifications and recommendations for the design of a statewide student record system, ready to present to the legislature by January 31, 2003. Evaluation Software Publishing, Inc. was retained in August 2002, as consultants on the project. They led both the project team and the steering committee in researching the needs and uses for such a system in Oklahoma. The project team, with its diverse membership, met every three weeks from August through January.Need for the Personnel Exchange Oklahoma's student record system project team members had many questions and decisions to make regarding the management of a student identifier system, the composition of data collected, legal issues, the timing of submissions, technology options, analysis capacity, training and more. Personnel exchanges were chosen as the preferred way to tap other states' expert experiences with statewide student information systems. The personnel exchanges proved to be by far the most valuable activities undertaken by the project team.The Exchange Florida was one of the first states to implement a statewide student information system. While their older technology was not a model Oklahoma wanted to emulate, Florida (FL) was selected because of the extensive expertise they have to share in areas such as student identifiers, data content collected, timing of submissions, staffing levels, staff retention, data quality checks and legal challenges. Florida sent a team of three persons with significant experience with Florida's student record system to Oklahoma. The trip provided opportunities to influence several groups of Oklahoma stakeholders. The exchange with Florida was energizing and convincing for a wide audience. The entire project team, steering committee, SEA staff and invited guests were able to hear and benefit first-hand from Florida's experience with their state student record system. Legislators and educators questioned Florida personnel on perceived problem areas - potential lawsuits over confidentiality, accuracy of data, burden on school districts, etc. Florida was very convincing: only one lawsuit early on over confidentiality, ruled in favor of the SEA; student level data levels the playing field - distortion of aggregate statistics by districts not possible; detail student level data enables SEA to generate all state and federal statistical reports on behalf of schools and districts; new legislative inquiries don't require surveying schools for additional statistics. Student data enables the SEA to examine trends, tie funding to courses and provide a wealth of information to the public, relieving the districts of that burden. LEA representative Annette Barwick's testimony was very helpful. Her district has over 175,000 students. SEA mandates what, but not how LEAs keep data. Districts have the autonomy to have their own student system, can conduct research and analysis as they choose; are saved the trouble of filling out hundreds of state and federal forms because they provide unit level records for students, staff and finance at periodic reporting intervals. Oklahoma Department of Education Contact: Patti High patti_high@mail.sde.state.ok.us |
