January 2018

On January 30, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on "Protecting Privacy, Promoting Policy: Evidence-Based Policymaking and the Future of Education."

Committee members heard from witnesses on how education research can support evidence-based policymaking while ensuring the protection of student privacy. Witnesses included AERA member Neal Finkelstein, program director of innovation studies at WestEd, whose testimony spoke to the evolution of IES and education researchers to make education research more accessible and actionable for practitioners and policymakers.

Another witness, Carey Wright, state superintendent at the Mississippi Department of Education, provided detailed examples of how the Mississippi State Longitudinal Data System has informed practice that led to improved student indicators.

AERA has a long history of commitment to privacy and to strong confidentiality and data protection provisions.

“AERA has always maintained that, with thoughtful data security plans and regulations, student data can be protected without undermining the data integrity for use by researchers, policymakers, and practitioners,” said AERA Executive Director Felice J. Levine.