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OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 7,
2016) – Responding to new federal and
state laws that set requirements for school accountability, the Oklahoma State
Department of Education (OSDE) is proposing adoption of a new, stronger and
more reliable A-F School Report Card system. The agency’s recommended
calculation will be voted on by the State Board of Education at its Dec. 15
meeting before being submitted to the state Legislature and governor for final
approval.
The report card calculation is the result of months of collaboration between
OSDE staff and a 95-member task force representing educators, parents,
students, higher education, Career Tech, business and community leaders, tribal
nations, lawmakers and organizations advocating for students with disabilities
and English learners (ELs).
State Superintendent of
Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister said the proposal fulfills mandates
established by the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which replaced No
Child Left Behind, and by House Bill 3218, which Gov. Fallin signed into state
law earlier this year.
“This accountability system
is the culmination of an intensive and collaborative process that benefited
from a diverse array of Oklahoma education stakeholders across the state,”
Hofmeister said. “The new report card calculation is valid, reliable and meaningful,
and it corrects glaring shortcomings of the previous A-F system. I am grateful
for the Assessment and Accountability Task Force members who have dedicated
their time, expertise and perspective in helping shape what we believe will
help guide school improvement and provide families and communities with
important information about their schools.”
A group of assessment and
accountability experts worked with the task force to draft the final report of
recommendations. The team leader was Marianne Perie, Ph.D., of the University
of Kansas’ Achievement & Assessment Institute. Notes and full audio of task
force meetings are posted on the OSDE website at sde.ok.gov.
The new calculation gives
equal weight to student performance in English language arts (ELA) and
mathematics as well as student growth in these subjects. Other indicators
include English language proficiency assessment (ELPA) progress, graduation
rate, postsecondary opportunities and chronic absenteeism, which is defined as
missing at least 10 percent of the school year.
The revised report card
system is a significant improvement over the state’s prior incarnation.
Copious research has
highlighted the link between chronic absenteeism and low academic achievement.
“The relationship between
absenteeism and worse outcomes persists among students of all ages,” noted a
Brookings Institution report, “Lessons for Broadening School Accountability
under the Every Student Succeeds Act,” which was published in October. “As early
as kindergarten, school absences lower subsequent achievement levels. Missing
school lowers achievement in elementary school and middle school. Chronic
absenteeism is also a valuable indicator of whether a student is on track to
complete high school.”
More than 16 percent of
Oklahoma high school students were absent at least 15 school days in the
2013-2014 school year. That figure was 9.5 percent for elementary school
students and nearly 12 percent for middle school students.
Elementary and middle school
report card scores will be factored with a 90-point rubric as follows:
- ELA performance – 15 pts.
- Math performance – 15 pts.
- Science performance – 5 pts.
- ELA growth – 15 pts.
- Math growth – 15 pts.
- English language proficiency assessment (ELPA) progress
– 15 pts.
- Chronic absenteeism – 10 pts.
Scores will be converted to
A-F letter grades:
A > 70
B 57-70.00
C 43-56.99
D 30-42.99
F < 30
While high school grading is
similar to that of elementary and middle schools, greater emphasis is placed on
college and career readiness. Measuring growth is problematic in the short term
given that OSDE is recommending an off-the-shelf college-readiness exam for 11th
grade, but the OSDE’s final report details how a growth indicator could be
added within several years.
The point structure for high
schools is:
- ELA performance – 15 pts.
- Math performance – 15 pts.
- Science performance – 15 pts.
- ELPA progress – 15 pts.
- Graduation rate – 10 pts.
- Chronic absenteeism – 10 pts.
- Postsecondary opportunity – 10 pts.
In addition, a high school
can receive an additional point for high participation and proficiency in U.S.
History.
Task force members praised
the collaborative spirit that informed the accountability process.
“Under Superintendent
Hofmeister's leadership, OSDE met the extraordinary challenge of redesigning
our state testing and accountability system. They did this while
maintaining an open-door policy for educators and community members,” said
Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Deborah Gist. “The first step is
complete, and we already see significant improvements. We will make many more
important decisions in the coming months and look forward to continuing our
close partnership with Superintendent Hofmeister and her team to ensure that
the final product works well for students, educators, and schools.”
Others echoed Gist’s
sentiments.
“The accountability system is
all about kids, and that’s the only thing I care about. This report card system
is vital for parents, communities and schools,” said Tracy McDaniel, principal
and founder of KIPP Reach College Preparatory in Oklahoma City. “The data it
will provide can better inform people about how their schools are doing as well
as giving educators tools to improve.”
“I believe our diverse task
force developed an accountability system of indicators and calculations
that capture the complexity of public education and remove bias against
high-poverty schools,” said Dr. Shirley Simmons, assistant superintendent of
educational services for Norman Public Schools. “Focusing on the indicators in
the accountability system, rather than the summative grade, will provide
educators and parents with reliable and useful information about their
schools.”
“This was a terrific
collaborative process that brought many voices to the table,” said Brent
Bushey, executive director of the Oklahoma Public School Resource Center. “It
was a truly impressive effort.”
Under the new report cards,
the grade scale is designed to reserve A and F designations for the best and
worst schools. Subsequently, the bulk of schools will fall into the B, C and D
ranges. This change ensures that resources are focused on the lowest-performing
5 percent of schools, designated as comprehensive support schools. Schools with
the lowest achievement for one or more student groups, but not in the lowest 5
percent, will be identified for targeted support.
Federal law requires schools
to test at least 95 percent of their student population. Under the new report
card system, a school that fails to do so with any student group will receive a
“minus” beside its letter grade.
The report cards will also
contain other information as required by ESSA, such as per-pupil expenditures,
that will not factor into the calculation. The report cards will enable people
to dive deeper into data.
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