The longterm effect of Goals 2000 and the School-to-Work Opportunities Act will make schools responsible for the psychological and social development of children. Academic formation will be replaced by career preparation. Therefore, the U.S. Department of Education has mandated a comprehensive program of electronic data collection about our children, to be created and ‘maintained by the schools.
The wheels are already turning. Over the protests of parents, the school board of Fairfax County, Virginia, anticipates the purchase of an $11 million computer database compatible with the U.S. Department of Education’s data exchange program. Files will track children throughout their school years and even into the workplace. This electronic portfolio, containing examples of the student’s work, will replace the student’s personal resume.
According to the U.S. Department of Education Student Data Handbook or Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education detailed information regarding every aspect of a child’s life is recommended for collection: All educational records, a complete medical history, all health and diagnostic evaluations, and birth records are recommended for inclusion, along with the child’s religious affiliation and family income.
There already are reports from parents in public and parochial schools that children are being subjected to invasive testing procedures and surveys that probe their children’s attitudes and beliefs. The increasing focus on the “affective domain” means that teachers will be expected to evaluate the emotional health of the child as well as his family relationships. All teacher and peer assessments are recommended for inclusion in the electronic file by the U.S. Department of Education.
State legislation is being introduced in Ohio that could help restore to parents their authority over their children’s education by restricting the amount and kind of information that the government could authorize for collection,