Each year, state legislators craft new policies that drive data use across their states, and as part of a comprehensive review of state education data legislation, the Data Quality Campaign (DQC) keeps track. In 2022, state legislators introduced 131 bills in 35 states--42 of which became law in 17 states-- that would govern the use of data along…

This case study examines the complexities of rapid-response data collection via the Play Observatory project's online qualitative survey of children, families, and child-oriented organizations. This research took place during a global pandemic and combined data collection with cataloguing and preserving materials for future research. Placing…

The "Forum Guide to Metadata" presents and examines the ways in which metadata can be used by education agencies to improve data quality and promote a better understanding of education data. Supported by metadata-related case studies from state and local education agencies, the guide highlights the uses of metadata from a technical point…

This report focuses on data governance at post-secondary institutions and related organizations. Data governance is defined as the formal execution and enforcement of authority over the management of data and data-related assets (Seiner, 2014). An overview of data governance at higher education institutions provides detail on elements of data…

Our current federal postsecondary data system is incomplete and fails to provide today's students with the accurate, timely information that they need to inform their college choices and promote their success. As policymakers consider proposals to improve this federal data system, they should model best practices of responsible data-use to ensure…

The "Forum Guide to Data Governance" highlights how data governance programs benefit education agencies and provide timely and useful best practices, examples, and resources for agencies implementing or updating their data governance programs. This resource is intended to address the needs of federal, state, and local agencies related…

Information communications technologies (ICTs) like laptops, smartphones and portable storage devices facilitate travel, communication and documentation for researchers who conduct fieldwork. But despite increasing awareness about the ethical complications associated with using ICTs among journalists and humanitarians, there are few reflections on…

The educational setting has been the backdrop for numerous debates as far back as recorded history. Today's educational setting, however, contains technological elements so advanced that they by their very nature bring with them a series of highly significant implications which educators have never before been required to address. These issues…

Recent technological advances have led to tremendous capacities for collecting, storing and analyzing data being created at an ever-increasing speed from diverse sources. Academic institutions which offer open and distance learning programs, such as the Hellenic Open University, can benefit from big data relating to its students' information and…

Against the backdrop of the ever-increasing influx of big data, this article examines the opportunities and concerns over big data in education. Specifically, this article first introduces big data, followed by delineating the potential opportunities of using big data in education in two areas: learning analytics and educational policy. Then, the…

Over the last two years, more data was created than in the entire previous history of humankind (IBM, 2016; Marr, 2016). Roughly 1.7 megabytes of new information will be created every second for every person on earth by the turn of the decade (Evans, 2011; Gantz & Reinsel, 2012; Marr, 2016). Data are created continuously and at a rate that is…

While many strategies for protecting personal privacy rely on regulatory frameworks, consent, and anonymizing data, they are not always effective. Terms and Conditions often lag behind advances in technology, software, and user behaviours, and consent to use data for a range of unclear purposes may be provided unwittingly. As the commercial market…

There is demand among policy-makers for the use of state education longitudinal data systems, yet laws and policies regulating data disclosure limit access to such data, and security concerns and risks remain high. Well-developed synthetic datasets that statistically mimic the relations among the variables in the data from which they were derived,…

Accurate and complete data can empower college choices, promote student success, and inform federal, state and institutional policies. Yet existing postsecondary student data systems are disconnected, duplicative and incomplete. "A Blueprint for Better Information: Recommendations for a Federal Postsecondary Student-Level Data Network"…

Data is a crucial component in educational success. It gives educators the power to address student needs, study what strategies work, and make necessary changes so that every student has the greatest opportunity. Today, educators, parents, and students have access to more data than ever before and have access to more technology tools to…