Report Title:

Education; K-16

THE SENATE

S.C.R. NO.

99

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2001

S.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

REQUESTING THE Department of Education and University of Hawaii to study the feasibility, benefits, and costs associated with linking their individual student information systems to create a linked K-16 database.

 

WHEREAS, the primary purpose of education is to enable the greatest possible development of human capital; and

WHEREAS, this development is essential to the creation of a sound economy, engaged citizenry, and vibrant cultural milieu; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that a kindergarten through grade sixteen (K-16) student information system is an ideal foundation for providing cumulative and comprehensive information about student achievement, course work, and experiences as the pupil passes through the entire public education system, information that can facilitate standards-based teaching and learning; and

WHEREAS, the State of Hawaii does not have the capacity to link Department of Education K-12 and University of Hawaii grades 13-16 student information systems for the purpose of aligning school structure and organizational development with school philosophy, vision, mission, and goals; and

WHEREAS, districts that have implemented K-16 systems, such as the El Paso Collaborative for Academic Excellence, have seen significant improvement in student academic achievement and test scores; and

WHEREAS, reducing the number of students requiring remedial courses would facilitate progress towards degrees and result in more efficient use of resources; and

WHEREAS, after the El Paso, Texas school district instituted a K-16 system, its community colleges and university were eventually able to eliminate remedial classes; and

WHEREAS, according to Michael W. Kirst, a professor at Stanford University and a researcher with the National Center for Postsecondary Improvement, the "more remedial courses students must take, the less their chances are of ever receiving a bachelor's degree;" now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2001, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Education and University of Hawaii study the feasibility, benefits, and costs associated with linking their individual student information systems to create a linked K-16 database that can track student achievement, course work, and experiences as the pupil passes through the entire public education system; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, if the Department of Education and the University of Hawaii find that they do not have the appropriate expertise to conduct such a study, or if they deem it to be a more cost-effective use of resources, then they are authorized to contract this study out to an entity whose primary mission is to assess, analyze, and make recommendations regarding education policy in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study review a sample of other states’ K-16 data systems; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education and University of Hawaii system report findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2002; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent of Education, the Chairperson of the Board of Education, and the Chairperson of the Board of Regents.