The moral and legal issues identified involved the Public Records Act regarding the proper handling of student records and information. The strategy identified for the handling of student-related personal details involved whether it was a moral issue to have employees access the student files, software, and computer systems without prior authorization. The legal consequence of such unauthorized access was that it could lead to a potential breach of various federal regulations. Literature and case laws regarding using student records were thus analyzed. The studies revealed an emerging trend with the use of online classes and whether it could create a potential breach of federal regulations.
Analysis of Literature
Student records are primarily protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). According to Jacobs et al. (2016), the FERPA is a federal privacy law that gives parents protections with regard to the use of their children’s educational records like transcripts, report cards, disciplinary records, class schedules, and contact and family information. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under different programs through the U.S. Department of Education. Jacobs et al. (2016) observed the need for informed consent from the parents when releasing any of the given information to third parties. The authors also observed that certain data like e-mails sent to parents were not considered as education records unless the e-mail is filed under the child’s educational records.
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Educational data systems that monitor student records have become larger and more prevalent than ever before. The personal opinion paper by Ho (2017) analyzed the implications of big data in education. The article observed that federal and state educational systems have been developed to become a centralized system that can describe the academic progress of students. The digital systems have allowed for detailed records of student struggles, successes, and feedback systems that have improved student interactions. However, one of the negative implications observed by Ho (2017) was the backlash from parents and students in the name of family and student privacy. The FERPA provided guidance regarding the privacy and analysis of digital education data. The result is that there is a patchwork of legislation regarding family privacy and educational data that can limit educational research and practice.
Student records also have various legal issues regarding privacy in virtual education. The journal research article by Zeide & Nissenbaum (2018) analyzed various legal issues regarding the use of student data. The authors observed that the FERPA permits schools to share covered student information without parental consent when doing so served legitimate education interests. California law also had similar observations where using student information served was legal if it served school purposes. The Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) required that federally-funded schools obtain written consent before administering surveys that have sensitive information regarding the religious practices and political beliefs of students. Additionally, the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) and the Future of Privacy Forum required that institutions should not sell student’s personal information other than that used to support authorized educational purposes or authorized by parents. The authors further observed the challenges of implementing such programs in virtual education where it was easy to gather student information.
The emergence of big data and virtual education has made student privacy a very important societal issue. Reidenberg & Schaub (2018) observed that student privacy has become more important than ever before. Schools can expect to have multiple conflicts with the recording of student data as long as they have not developed clear moral and ethical details. The authors observed that the missions of education and educational institutions have changed with the introduction of technological innovation. Student data privacy should be a critical concern for institutions that want to respect the law and avoid any litigations.
The analysis of literature and case laws regarding student records data revealed emerging trends regarding the use of technology and student information. One of the key issues that can occur is whether student information used for online educational services is protected by the FERPA. An institution can have student accounts where the school will have contact information, names, and educational records of the student. Kim (2019) observed in the periodical that the collection of additional data like e-mail addresses, gender, race, income status, standardized test scores, grades, and date of birth can be worrisome as it can infringe on a student’s privacy. Online educational services can also collect a significant amount of information from students in the form of metadata. For instance, there can be information about the amount of time taken by a student to complete a specific task, the date used to complete an activity, attempts made for the activity, and the amount of time a student’s mouse hovered over a question. The book by Boruch and Cecil (2016) indicated that metadata that does not have any direct or indirect identifiers to students is not protected under FERPA. However, metadata that relate directly to the students are protected under FERPA, and an institution should ensure that all FERPA requirements are met when using and analyzing any piece of student metadata. The increased use of online learning and virtual classrooms can present various legal challenges regarding the recording and use of student data. Institutions should ensure that they follow all the FERPA requirements to avoid any possible litigation.
Case Laws
Various case laws were identified about the topic of unauthorized access of student records. One of the cases identified was Gonzaga Univ. v. Doe that involved whether a student could sue a private university for damages and enforce the FERPA Act. The respondent John Doe, a former undergraduate at Gonzaga University, planned to graduate and teach at Washington public elementary school. However, the dean overhead one student telling another that the respondent engaged in sexual misconduct against another female undergraduate. The respondent learned of the investigation and sued the institution for violation of FERPA and unauthorized access. The Supreme court rejected the suit and observed that FERPA did not establish individual rights against a state actor that accepted federal funding. The case observed that the institution had used the individual’s records with the right purpose.
The U.S. v. Miami University involved a dispute between the university newspaper and the university’s administration. The university newspaper sought to obtain disciplinary records to track crime trends at the institution. The administration objected, stating that such records were protected by the FERPA act. The supreme court ruled that the disciplinary records were not part of educational records and were thus not protected by FERPA laws. The case was important as it showed that disciplinary records might not be subject to FERPA laws. It also provides a definition of educational records that should be protected from unauthorized access.
The Vernonia School Dist. 47J v. Acton involved the Oregon school board engaging in random drug testing for student-athletes. The student-athletes objected to the initiative observing that collecting such records was in violation of the Fourth Amendment. The Supreme Court ruled that the Oregon school board’s random drug-testing policy for the student-athletes was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The case showed that institutions might initiate reasonable policies that can record student data. In such cases, the institution would have to show that the data collected would serve the right purpose.
The Owasso Independent School Dist. No. I-011 v. Falvo involved a conflict regarding the use of peer grading where students would mark and score each other’s tests, assignments, and papers. One of the parents in Owasso Independent School observed that peer grading involves students exchanging papers with each other, publicizing student records, and embarrassing students. Such publicizing of student records could lead to violation of the FERPA laws. The supreme court ruled that peer grading did violate the terms of FERPA. The case provided an instance regarding the proper handling of student records, observing the need for the data to be kept confidential.
References
Boruch, R. F., & Cecil, J. S. (2016). Assuring the confidentiality of social research data . University of Pennsylvania Press.
Gonzaga Univ. v. Doe, 536 U.S. 273, (2002). https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/536/273.html
Ho, A. (2017). Advancing educational research and student privacy in the “big data” era. In Workshop on Big Data in Education: Balancing the Benefits of Educational Research and Student Privacy (pp. 1-18). National Academy of Education Washington, DC.
Jacob, S., Decker, D. M., & Lugg, E. T. (2016). Ethics and law for school psychologists . John Wiley & Sons.
Kim, T. (2019). The Messy Reality of Personalized Learning. New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/the-messy-reality-of-personalized-learning
Owasso Independent School Dist. No. I-011 v. Falvo , 534 U.S. 426, (2002). https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/00-1073.ZO.html
Reidenberg, J. R., & Schaub, F. (2018). Achieving big data privacy in education. Theory and Research in Education , 16 (3), 263-279.
U.S. v. Miami University , 294 F.3d 797 (2002). https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-6th-circuit/1362646.html
Vernonia School Dist. 47J v. Acton , 515 U.S. 646 (1995). https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/94-590.ZO.html
Zeide, E., & Nissenbaum, H. (2018). Learner privacy in MOOCs and virtual education. Theory and Research in Education , 16 (3), 280-307.
