SEGway November 2016

From what we have heard so far from the president elect and the incoming secretary of education, we would not be surprised to see the following in 2017:

1. A continued emphasis on assessment as an accountability measure.  The new administration is likely to continue to hold schools accountable for performance.
2. A continuing shift in educational decision making from the federal to the state level.  This shift began with the ESSA and we are likely to see additional measures toward this end.
3. Increased call for and reliance on evidence-based educational products and services.  The incoming administration will likely favor an evidence-based approach to education.  The new secretary comes from a medical environment where products go through rigorous research prior to use.
4. More monitoring of the requirement to have research reports for adopted products that use federal funds for purchasing.  Requiring sound research report for product efficacy in order to use federal funds for purchase is likely to be more rigorously enforced.
5. Continued development and implementation of digital educational technology. To the extent that the incoming administration wants to see greater efficiency in education and advocates for technology, we are likely to see a greater push for technology-based solutions.
6. Improved integration of assessment and analytics within digital instructional tools and platforms. With the increased push for evidence, providers will need to ensure that they provide the proper measures and data to evaluate performance, monitor usage, and make informed decisions.   
7. Increased use of custom assessments to meet state and district needs. With the shift in decision-making to the states, we will see a continued return to state-based and district-based assessments and a move away from Consortium-based assessments.
8. Reduced focus on student performance to evaluate teachers.  The political, technical and operational pitfalls of using student performance data as the sole criterion to evaluate teachers are widely seen.  There is likely to be waning support for this approach.
9. A greater push for school choice.  The new administration has included this as a key provision in their educational policy documentation.
10. A decline in Common Core.  The incoming administration repeatedly called for the elimination of Common Core State Standards during the campaign.  It is also included as a key provision in the administration's policy document.

We are actively planning for 2017.  We are gearing up for a very busy and exciting year.  Call or email us today at 800-254-7670 ext. 102 or hrickert@segmeasurement.com to find how SEG can help you improve product quality and increase sales through better assessment and product effectiveness research.