Dive Brief:
- Susan Dynarski, a professor of education, public policy, and economics at the University of Michigan, fears that the rush to propose student privacy legislation could limit the collection of important, helpful data.
- Currently, there are over 170 student privacy proposals, and Dynarski says some of this legislation could actually harm the students who need the insight and accountability the most.
- Speaking with The New York Times, Dynarski says current proposals restrict companies and researchers, and also that they're repetitive, since companies aren't allowed under FERPA to use student data for their own profit.
Dive Insight:
To avoid "unintentionally chok[ing] off the use of student data for its original purpose: assessing and improving education," Dynarski says legislators should consider a bill that would enable the federal government to throw the book at districts and states that violate current privacy laws. She, however, doesn't believe new restrictions should be thrown into the mix. In her opinion, the fear of "large-scale" student data theft feels unlikely, as there just isn't the same value to test scores as there is to credit card or social security numbers.
