SENATE BILL REPORT
SHB 1741
This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent. |
As of March 21, 2017
Title: An act relating to educator preparation data for use by the professional educator standards board.
Brief Description: Concerning educator preparation data for use by the professional educator standards board.
Sponsors: House Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Slatter, Hargrove, Dolan, Stonier, Senn, Ortiz-Self, Jinkins, Tarleton, Pollet and Santos).
Brief History: Passed House: 2/28/17, 78-20.
Committee Activity: Early Learning & K-12 Education: 3/14/17.
Brief Summary of Bill |
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SENATE COMMITTEE ON EARLY LEARNING & K-12 EDUCATION |
Staff: Alia Kennedy (786-7405)
Background: Professional Educator Standards Board (PESB). The PESB is a 13-member board that establishes policies and requirements for educator preparation and certification. PESB maintains data concerning educator preparation programs, including data on quality, educator certification, and educator employment trends and needs.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). FERPA is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the United States Department of Education. FERPA allows schools to disclose information from a student's education record, without consent, to certain parties or under certain conditions. A school may disclose information in a student's records, without consent, to authorized representatives of state and local educational authorities for audit or evaluation of federal or state supported education programs. A school may also disclose information in a student's records, without consent, to organizations conducting studies or research on behalf of educational agencies or institutions when the:
study is conducted so only representatives of the organization who have legitimate interests in the information can identify the student or parents;
information is destroyed when it is no longer needed; or
educational agency, institution, state, or local educational authority agrees to these terms.
Education Research and Data Center. The ERDC, in the Office of Financial Management, compiles data about students as they move through school. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction collects data on K-12 student enrollment and outcomes, whereas the post secondary institutions collect data about their enrolled students. ERDC receives the data from both of these sectors, in addition to early learning and workforce data, to create a longitudinal data system and contribute to cross-sector research.
Teacher-Preparation Regulations. The federal Higher Education Act (HEA) requires states and institutions of higher education that receive funds under the HEA to report annually on various characteristics of their teacher preparation programs. An institution that does not provide the required information in a timely or accurate manner may be fined.
In October 2016, the United States Department of Education released teacher-preparation regulations that build on the HEA's annual reporting requirements. The final regulations define quality indicators that a state must use to assess the performance of its teacher preparation programs, including additional indicators of program inputs and outcomes, such as the ability of the program's graduates to produce gains in student learning. The final regulations link assessments to eligibility for the federal Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant program, which provides grants of up to $4,000 annually to eligible teacher preparation candidates who agree to serve full-time in high-need fields at low-income schools.
Summary of Bill: State-approved educator preparation programs are required to collect and provide data as required for approval by PESB to ERDC. ERDC and state-approved educator preparation programs must enter into data-sharing agreements to facilitate the transfer of data required by PESB. ERDC must hold, analyze, and make data on educator preparation available for research and monitoring by PESB, state-approved educator preparation programs, and other researchers with appropriate data-sharing agreements.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Available.
Creates Committee/Commission/Task Force that includes Legislative members: No.
Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.
Staff Summary of Public Testimony: PRO: The intent of this legislation is to improve the efficiency of educator preparation programs by allowing institutions to transfer data they are already collecting into a secure and streamline database. The sharing of data is about putting the best teacher possible in the classroom. The bill helps beginning teachers pick the best preparation program, allows school districts to hire the best graduates, and ensures that lawmakers and taxpayers know which education programs are and are not working. The bill reduces the amount of work it currently takes to query this type of data. Changes to the bill make it so that those researchers with proper data sharing agreements can access the data and use it for the purposes of advancing the college of education.
Persons Testifying: PRO: Representative Vandana Slatter, Prime Sponsor; Bob Cooper, Washington Association of Colleges for Teacher Education; Justin Montermini, Professional Educator Standards Board.
Persons Signed In To Testify But Not Testifying: No one.