As technology has leaped forward to provide valuable learning tools, parents and policy makers have begun raising concerns about the privacy of student data that schools and systems have. Federal laws are intended to protect students and their families but they have not and will never be able to keep up with rapidly evolving technology. School systems can help themselves and their students by following a list of guidelines, the authors say.

Unfortunately, all of the efforts around student data privacy have done little to allay the concerns of parents, say the authors, pointing to a recent survey showing that 79% of parents cited privacy as a concern when their students use technology for school. Compliance with privacy laws is not sufficient. These laws do not address the issue at the heart of privacy concerns — and that is trust. School leaders, online service providers, education associations, and other stakeholders must begin to build trust around the collection and use of data.