ADDING TRANSPARENCY TO ACCOUNTABILITY
-Daniel Patrick Moynihan
THEMES IN THE NEWS FOR THE WEEK OF OCT. 11 - 15, 2010 BY UCLA IDEA
10-15-2010 - Shortly before signing the budget last week, Gov. Schwarzenegger vetoed almost $1 billion in spending, including $20 million that would have gone toward developing the state’s data-tracking system.
The California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System, known as CALPADS, would gather student test scores, demographic data, enrollment, teacher assignments, and data on student movement in and out of school districts, essentially tracking students from kindergarten to high school graduation.
In short, the longitudinal database could help make sense of the state’s educational landscape, better identify its problems, and inform efforts to improve student achievement. The governor’s veto continues the state’s difficulty in achieving a useful data system. In addition to funding problems, the system has been beleaguered by technical glitches and implementation issues at district levels (California Watch, Education Week).
The inability to access relevant information about schools runs