Data modernization is a multi-step process that improves an organization's data infrastructure, tools, and practices. It involves moving data from legacy systems to modern technologies, often in the cloud, to make data more accessible. It involves adopting contemporary technologies and strategies to address outdated data management practices. 

For K-12 organizations, including local education agencies (LEAs), state education agencies (SEAs), and education service centers, data modernization is a critical journey that enables them to use the power of data to drive better decision-making and improve student outcomes.

Learning and Employment Records (LERs) are revolutionizing how we document and share our skills and achievements. These digital records include academic transcripts, licenses, certifications, and informal experiences, offering a comprehensive view of our lifelong learning.

LERs are comprehensive digital records that capture academic achievements, professional licenses, certifications, and even informal experiences. These records are dynamic and offer a holistic view of an individual's skills and accomplishments, aiding them in their educational and career journeys.

This resource covers credential creation & issuance, interoperability, secure sharing, and data privacy.

Focusing on data interoperability, particularly within the state policy context, provides significant opportunities for individuals to benefit from access to their own information and for state systems to serve residents through program improvement better. However, policymakers should keep in mind that other issues must remain a priority if they are to realize these outcomes. Data privacy and security, particularly in the K-12 space, must be considered alongside the advancement of technology solutions.

LER stands for Learning and Employment Record. It refers to a collection of digital records that document an individual's learning experiences, skills, and achievements acquired both inside and outside of traditional academic settings. LERs provide a comprehensive snapshot of a person's educational journey, including academic transcripts, professional certifications, licenses, and informal learning experiences such as volunteer work or internships. The goal of LERs is to offer a dynamic and comprehensive tool for individuals to showcase their skills and achievements as they pursue opportunities in education and the workforce.

An Application Programming Interface, or API, connects your data from different applications and helps facilitate interoperability between edtech providers and district systems. It’s vital for school districts to understand what an API is and how it works to modernize data infrastructure to create safe ecosystems for student data.  This understanding will enable districts to ask the right questions when procuring and implementing edtech software. Learn more about what an API is, how this impacts you and your district, and best practices when utilizing APIs with edtech providers!

In our quest to help networks better understand and improve their K12 school system's capabilities, we created the School Network Pledge. This pledge symbolizes secure access to student data, educates practitioners and families about student privacy, promotes equity, and ensures fiscal responsibility for edtech purchases. By signing this pledge, schools are signaling to other school networks, edtech vendors, and their community that they’re committed to helping students grow with interoperability.

To support edtech vendors in enhancing the use of educational data and improving teaching and learning practices for stronger student outcomes, we created the Edtech Vendor Interoperability Pledge. This pledge symbolizes the commitment to maximizing equitable access and availability through data interoperability. By signing the pledge, edtech vendors are signaling they are committed to enhancing their products' security, access, privacy, and interoperability. This enables educators, and families to be more involved in their student’s education, enhancing the effectiveness of their educational data. It also informs teaching and learning practices for stronger student outcomes.

A successful and modernized Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) should function as a dynamic tool empowering educators, principals, and decision-makers to directly impact student outcomes. Beyond the mere collection of data, the system must seamlessly transform information into actionable insights through intuitive dashboards. This evolution from data to information to knowledge to wisdom is crucial for informed decision-making at various educational levels.

Ready to uncover recommendations, resources, and success stories to enhance your journey to harness the full potential of SLDS (Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems)? Dive into Project Unicorns’s latest resource and learn how to use the strategy of federal funding braiding to secure federal funding sources and improve your implementation.

Stories from the Field, curated by Project Unicorn, provide a glimpse into the collaborative efforts between school systems and edtech solution providers, offering valuable insights into what's possible within an interoperable data ecosystem in education. These stories supplement the findings from the 2023 State of the Sector (SOTS) Report, offering a detailed analysis of K-12 school system capabilities related to education data, with input from 208 unique LEAs, Regional Education Service Agencies, and school systems. Explore Stories from the Field and the SOTS report to better understand the evolving landscape of education data.

The potential of cooperatives to build capacity for implementing Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) is vast. With the ability to foster interagency cooperation and strengthen the data ecosystem, this strategy presents an innovative approach. This resource provides suggestions and examples of incorporating cooperatives into your SLDS initiative. Learn about the key benefits, anticipate challenges, and explore recommendations for state leaders.

Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) can be crucial in education data management and data-driven decision-making. Some states have increasingly looked to make these connections to workforce development, such as California’s Cradle to Career system. These systems are designed to collect, store, analyze, and manage a wide range of data related to student performance, school information, demographics, and other relevant indicators in the education data curriculum. To ensure effective use and meaningful data analysis, interoperability is a key consideration in SLDS implementation.

As we work to provide physical infrastructure for our schools that is safe, healthy, and supportive for all students, the time has come to align resources towards creating a digital infrastructure that is equally safe, accessible, resilient, sustainable, and future-proof.

Protecting student data privacy is critical to implementing interoperable technology systems. Read this jump-start guide to learn about key education data privacy organizations and resources that support best practices in student data privacy during your interoperability journey.

To provide more insight and guidance into how edtech purchasing happens and consider how educators and leaders can work together to make more informed purchasing decisions, the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and Project Unicorn have released Better Edtech Buying: A Practical Guide - Revised Edition.

Data interoperability can make it easier for states to deploy and maintain State Longitudinal Data Systems. Learn how the Indiana Department of Education, North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, South Carolina Department of Education, and Texas Education Agency are leveraging data interoperability to support data-based decision-making at the federal, state, district, and local levels.

Why One Supports the Other: Data interoperability is a helpful component to building and maintaining quality software. Interoperability isn't a panacea, but making intentional and informed choices about implementing an interoperability standard contribute to better development practice, better privacy practice, and better security practice. Here are 5 ways interoperability, privacy, and security enhance each other.

With the explosive growth of digital resources to support both instruction and business decision making, more K-12 staff know how to use technology — and value the use of data to inform practice. Yet many express concern that they are “data rich and information poor,” which makes integrating, analyzing, and applying data a key challenge. Educational leaders who can harness the growing data generated in their districts can be empowered to transform both instructional and business practices.

Data integration platforms, products and services can help school systems seamlessly and securely bring together previously siloed education data, supporting advanced data analytics and reporting. This can help educators make better decisions to support students and save school systems time and money. Peruse our list of integration specialists to find the right provider and solutions for you!