HSLDA: Does the Common Core Lead to National Data Collection? & “The Common Core basically nationalizes mediocrity.”

 

The U.S. Department of Education is prohibited by law from creating a national data system.¹ But the Education Science Reform Act of 2002 gave the federal government the authority to publish guidelines for states developing state longitudinal data systems (SLDS).² Over the past decade, 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.”³ We believe that this expansion of state databases is laying the foundation for a national database filled with personal student data.

Home School Legal Defense Association has long opposed the creation of such a 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. 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.

At this point, it does not appear that the data of students who are educated in homeschools or private schools are being included in these databases. But HSLDA is concerned that it will become increasingly difficult to protect the personal information of homeschool and private school students as these databases grow. Oklahoma’s P20 Council has already called for databases to include the personal data of homeschool students.

More @ HSLDA

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The Common Core State Standards initiative claims to prepare students for college and career, but is its one-size-fits-all approach harmful to a child’s education? This week on Home School Heartbeat, join your host Mike Farris and HSLDA Federal Relations Director Will Estrada as they discuss the issue.

 Click on a program title to listen online and read a transcript

9/9	Nationalizing Mediocrity
9/10	The Threat to Homeschooling
9/11	The Secret Role of the Fed
9/12	Expanding Databases
9/13	A Broken Philosophy