States’ Plans for ECE Data Systems: Trends & Opportunities in RTTT-ELC October 28, 2012 Child & Families Outcomes Conference Albert Wat National Governors Association

The Early Childhood Data Collaborative (ECDC) Mission Promote policies and practices that support states’ development and use of early childhood data systems. Guiding Principles  From compliance-driven to improvement-driven data systems  From fragmented data systems to coordinated data systems  From “snapshot” data to longitudinal data systems

3 3 ECDC Partners Child Trends is the Hub Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley Council of Chief State School Officers Data Quality Campaign National Conference of State Legislatures National Governors Association Center for Best Practices Pre-K Now, a campaign of the Pew Center on the States Supported by funding from the Birth to Five Policy Alliance

Fundamentals 1.Unique statewide child identifier 2.Child-level demographics and program participation information 3.Child level data on development 4.Ability to link child level data with K-12 and other key data systems 5.Unique program site identifier with the ability to link with children and the ECE workforce 6.Program site structural and quality information 7.Unique ECE workforce identifier with ability to link with program sites and children 8.Individual-level data on ECE workforce demographics, education and professional development information 9.State governance body to manage data collection and use 10.Transparent privacy protection and security policies and practices

5 5 Overview of RTTT-ELC Applications Developing Coordinated and Longitudinal Data Systems: Trends and Opportunities in the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge Applications (RTTT-ELC)  30 of 37 applicants addressed optional priority to build or enhance an early learning data system  Nine states (six of which addressed data systems priority) won grants in 2011  Five more states will receive grants in 2012, four of which addressed data systems priority

6 6 Trends in RTT-ELC Applications  Making data accessible to improve and inform ECE practice and policy;  Linking existing ECE data systems;  Filling ECE data gaps, including workforce and child development data;  Strengthening the connection between ECE data and data from other systems; and  Developing interagency data governance structures.

7 7 Making Data Accessible  States set goals to provide data to policymakers, ECE providers, parents, etc.  Proposed strategies include: web portals, dashboards, scorecards, and reports tailored for different users.  Pennsylvania proposed a “provider scorecard” to compile data on individual ECE program sites, including QRIS information, workforce qualifications, child outcome information, etc.  Minnesota proposed new Early learning Information Portal to produce dashboards and reports that help educators, administrators, and parents analyze data for continuous improvement.  Illinois…

Teacher Portal/ Instructional Improvement System Student DataLearning MapsProfessional Development Lesson PlansCurriculum/ Assessment Tools Illinois Shared Learning Environment (powered by the Shared Learning Collaborative: 8

9 9 Linking Existing Data Systems  States proposing various approaches, including “data warehouses” vs. “federated” systems;  Proposed strategies to facilitate linkages:  Identifiers to match records among datasets that represent the same child, program site, or provider/teacher;  Common data standards to ensure that data fields represent the same type of information when linking databases; and  Data-sharing agreements to develop formal documents that define how data would be linked and used.

10 Linking Existing Data Systems  Identifiers  CT – Birth certificate numbers  NY – Extend use of K-12 identifier to child care and EI  Common data standards  CT – Small grants to support agencies  MN, MA, NC – Adopt CEDS  Data sharing  MN, NY, IL – Memoranda of Understanding

11 Filling ECE Data Gaps States proposing to fill two significant gaps identified through ECDC 2011 state survey:  Improving ECE workforce data by adding new fields and expanding the reach of workforce registries.  IL – include all child care directors and staff in licensed ECE programs.  VT – include health workers and early interventionists  Collecting data on child development by capturing data on developmental screenings and referrals (RI), formative assessments (MD), and kindergarten entry assessments (KEA).

12 Connecting ECE Data to Other Systems States propose to strengthen data linkages with:  K-12 state longitudinal data systems (required)  Head Start – ME, IL  Health and human services data  NM – linking to child welfare and Child and Adult Care Food Program data  VT – linking to Medicaid Management Information System (developmental screening, well-child visit)

13 Developing Governance Structures Governance structures would set state policies to guide data collection, access, and use. Strategies include:  Leveraging existing SLDS governance structure – ME, KY;  Establishing data governance body within Early Childhood Advisory Council – RI, NC, VT;  Developing new interagency data governance bodies - CT

14 Relevance for Part C and 619  Making Data Accessible  Are data about Part C and 619 programs, staff, children, and families represented in states’ plans for dashboards, portals, reports, etc.?  Are they an intended audience for these data products?  Linking Existing ECE Data Systems  Are Part C and 619 programs, staff, children, and families included in plans for linking/creating identifiers?  Are data standards from Part C and 619 programs aligned with other ECE and K-12 data systems?  Are the interests of Part C and 619 programs, staff, children, and families represented in data sharing agreements?

15 Relevance for Part C and 619  Filling ECE Data Gaps  Are Part C and 619 staff included in ECE workforce registries?  Are Part C and 619 children’s outcome data integrated with other ECE assessment data?  Connecting ECE Data to Other Systems  Are Part C data linked to K-12 system?  Are 619 data linked to health and human services systems?  Developing Governance Structures  To what extent are Part C and 619 interests represented in new or existing governance structures (e.g., ECAC, SLDS)

16 What we don’t want to happen… My state built an LDS and all Part C/619 got was this stupid T-shirt

17 Contact Info Albert Wat, Senior Policy Analyst National Governors Association Elizabeth Groginsky, Executive Director Early Childhood Data Collaborative Join the ECDC Listserv at