Variables included in the Dataset:
K-12
- Demographics
- School
- District
- Attendance/Dropout
- Grades/GPA
- Courses
- Test scores
- ACT/SAT
- Disciplinary action
- Teacher info (salaries, etc.)
Higher Education
- Demographics
- Type of college
- Enrollment
- Courses
- Major
- Grades
- Tuition/Scholarships
Workforce
- Demographics
- Salary
- Industry
Link: http://www.schools.utah.gov/computerservices/Services/USOEDataPoliciesAndProcesses.aspx
Date Inventory Completed: 5/22/15
Screening
- Is there data available for 2013?
- Can we access the data by August 15th? Potentially, but need to submit an IRB
Does this dataset appear to meet our needs for the Census study? UNDECIDED
Explanation: This data has potential since it is linked between K-12 and Higher education. However, it is unclear how long the proposal review and IRB process will take.
Full Inventory
Purpose
- What is the purpose of the organization collecting the data?
“USOE uses data to analyze student performance and inform educational improvements at the policy, state board, and classroom level.”
- Who else uses the data? (make a note if they sell the data to companies)
Some data is available to public, non-confidential is available to those who submit research requests.
Description
- What is the general topic of the data?
- K-12 Student Information
- Higher Education Student Information
- Workforce Information
- Longitudinal Education Information (includes K-12, Higher Ed, and/or Workforce)
- What are the earliest and latest dates for which data is available?
1998-2014
- How soon after a reference period ends can a data source be prepared and provided?
Less than one year.
Method
- What is the data collection method (portal, other)?
Unknown
- What is the raw source of the collected data (teacher, superintendent)?
Unknown
Selectivity (conversely, the representativeness)
- What is the universe (e.g., population) that the data represents?
Public and charter (private schools not applicable), Native American Reservations in the state do not have current data.
Stability/Coherence
- Note any changes to the universe of data being captured (e.g., including private schools).
Some years have data on the reservations in the state but not since 2007.
- Note any changes to the data capture method or sources of data.
The Utah Data Alliance was established in 2009 so the workforce, k-12, and higher education data were not in sync until recently.
Metadata
- Is there a description of each variable in the source along with their valid values?
Unknown
- Are there unique IDs for unique elements that can be used for linking data?
Unknown
- Can K-12 be linked to higher ed or higher ed to workforce?
Yes
- Links to codebooks: N/A
Accuracy
- Any known sources of error?
Unknown
- Describe any quality control checks performed by the state (or data manager).
Unknown
Accessibility
- How is the school-level data accessed (note if it needs to be screen scraped)?
Most of the k-12 data seems to be available online in spreadsheets.
- How is the student-level data accessed?
Need to submit a USOE Education Research Proposal.
- Note if IRB is needed or any other restrictions on accessing data.
IRB required
- Any records or fields collected, but not included in data source?
Will not publish any subgroup of people less than 10.
- Cost? - One time or annual or project based payment?
One-time fee.
Privacy and security
- Note any confidentiality policies or legal limitations other than FERPA:
N/A
- What do they consider personally identifiable information?
Unclear
Research
- What research has been done with this dataset?
State education policy
- Research links:
N/A
Describe any other notes you have or any gaps/concerns you see with this dataset: The combined data is not readily available without approval but the state has made an effort to combine all three facets of K-12, higher education, and workforce. This has the potential to be a great state to study but still several unknowns without being able to see the actual data.