Proposed Rules Guide States on Managing Student Privacy

Proposed changes to federal privacy rules likely to take effect this summer couldn’t be more timely for education systems: They offer first-time guidance on managing student privacy in gathering education data just as states and districts put the finishing touches on federally mandated longitudinal-data systems.

The rules would guide education officials on the delicate task of how to make use of these data systems, while also holding researchers and others responsible for protecting the information they use.

Under grants received through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, better known as the economic-stimulus law, states have until Sept. 30 to complete comprehensive longitudinal-data systems that can trace a student’s academic career from preschool through college. Experts say the linked data will be an unprecedented boon both to researchers and educators looking to pinpoint...