public comment

August 14, 2015
Director of the Information Collection Clearance Division
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Ave., SW (LBJ)
Mailstop L-OM-2-2E319
Room 2E103
Washington, D.C. 20202
To the Director:
The International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) is pleased to
submit comments in reference to the Federal Register Notice on Proposed
Collection Activities for the Impact Evaluation of Data-Driven Instruction
Professional Development for Teachers, Docket No. ED-2015-ICCD-0076.
The mission of iNACOL is to ensure all students have access to a world-class
education and quality blended and online learning opportunities that prepare
them for a lifetime of success. iNACOL supports innovators in online, blended,
and competency education to share best practices, provide resources, connect
practitioners, develop quality standards, and amplify educator voices to transform
education. With over 4,500 members, we are supporting the largest active
community of innovative practitioners transforming the future of learning.
In responding to this request for comment, iNACOL wishes to address the
following issue raised in the Notice:
How might the Department enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected?
iNACOL encourages the Department to study a sample of schools that offer a
diverse cross-section of learning environments, including new learning models
that personalize learning using competency-based approaches, supported by
blended and online learning modalities and environments. A diverse sample of
learning environments will allow evaluators to identify important variables in the
impact of data-driven instruction professional development for teachers. These
variables could include the availability of learning analytics, adaptive educational
tools, instructional design, teacher capacity, and the extent to which systems are
built around student learning versus seat time.
The ultimate power of blended and online learning lies in the potential to
transform the education system and enable higher levels of learning through
competency-based approaches. Technology-based models can allow for rapid
capture of student performance data and differentiated instruction tailored to the

specific needs of individual students. By adapting instruction to reflect the skills
and knowledge students have mastered, blended and online models have the
potential to keep students engaged and supported as they learn and to help them
progress at a flexible pace, leading to dramatically higher levels of learning and
attainment.
This study provides an important opportunity to learn how new learning models
support and amplify the effect of data-driven instruction professional
development. The shift to new learning models will require educators to take on
new roles and develop increased capacity to continuously use data to improve
student learning. As an increasing number of districts and schools shift to these
new learning models, the results of this study can provide valuable data that
point to promising and best practices for the field.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to comment.
Sincerely,

Maria Worthen
Vice President, Federal & State Policy
Attachments:
1. New Learning Models Vision (iNACOL)
2. Blended Learning Teacher Competency Framework (iNACOL)
3. Laying the Foundation for Competency Education: A Policy Guide for the
Next Generation Educator Workforce (iNACOL & KnowledgeWorks)