Why data interoperability is critical for K-12 and how to achieve it

Imagine how powerful it would be if all of the various systems and applications used by K-12 school systems could easily "talk" to each other and share information, with data flowing seamlessly from one application to another.

Schools could realize huge operational efficiencies: Central office staff could enter student information once in a centralized portal, and then relevant portions of that information could be shared securely and automatically with various departments and applications as needed. There would be no need for duplicate data entry, saving countless hours for administrative staff.

More importantly, teachers and administrators would have clearer insight into each student's needs from enrollment to graduation. If disparate systems could communicate with each other effortlessly, then it would be easy to harvest the data from many different applications and leverage it to ensure student success.

To achieve this vision, school systems must attain interoperability among the various software programs they use. However, there are many hurdles standing in the way.

This white paper explains why interoperability is important and what it will take for K-12 school districts to reach this goal — including a reliable, high-speed network infrastructure for transmitting data and keeping it secure.