2005Midterm_MarcDoc_LowerEdPlanHighlights

1
(No Transcript)
2
The federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law
requires that all children be proficient in
reading and math by the 2013-14 school year. It
places pressure on states to improve student
achievement and close academic gaps among
students of different racial, ethnic and economic
backgrounds. The law also provides for
corrective actions that must take place for
schools/districts that fail to improve. In
August 2003 the State Department of Education
notified 149 elementary and middle schools in 34
districts that they did not make Adequate Yearly
Progress (AYP) in reaching the goal of all
students being proficient in reading and math by
the 2013-14 school year. Districts need to make
the AYP list for two consecutive years before the
district receives a designation of In Need of
Improvement. The consequence for schools being
designated as In Need of Improvement is a
five-year cumulative set of corrective actions
ranging from public school choice to alternative
governance.   In an effort to help
schools/districts to face the challenge offered
by NCLB, Governor Rowland is proposing a
comprehensive plan that offers strategies
designed not only to intervene in districts that
have been designated as not making Adequate
Yearly Progress, but also to proactively ensure
that pre-school children in poor performing
districts will be prepared to succeed in
school.   The cornerstone of his plan is the
continued expansion of access to quality
pre-school programs for all children. Recent
research has shown the significant role
pre-school plays in preparing children to become
successful learners and in closing the
achievement gaps among Connecticuts students,
regardless of socio-economic background.
Expanded pre-school programs will be supplemented
with the expansion of Early Reading Success
programs for children in grades K 3, which
combine both proactive strategies through
offering reduced class sizes and full-day
kindergarten, and intervention strategies through
intensive reading programs, including
after-school and summer school programs. In
addition, summer school programs will be expanded
to further assist districts in helping their
children become proficient students.   Targeted
aid will be provided for the sixteen schools
currently designated as in need of improvement
for failure to make adequate yearly progress
for at least 2 years. Those schools will receive
School Improvement Grants to be used for specific
immediate educational purposes identified by a
needs assessment as critical to the immediate
improvement of academic achievement in the
school.   Students in the 42 elementary and
middle schools that did not make adequate yearly
progress and had whole school academic
deficiencies in Math and Reading will be eligible
to apply for the newly created Equal Opportunity
Scholarships. These scholarships can be used for
tuition, books, and uniforms at non-public
schools. In addition to current public school
choice options this will provide approximately
500 children with an additional opportunity for a
diverse, high-quality educational experience.
  In addition to the steps outlined above, the
Governor will continue his commitment to the
existing public school choice options Magnet
Schools, Charter Schools, OPEN Choice, and the
Regional Vocational-Technical School System. To
address the ongoing funding issue facing RESC
operated Magnet Schools, legislation will be
proposed to require districts participating in
these schools to pay a more equitable share of
the operating costs.
3
OverviewNo Child Left Behind
4
No Child Left BehindConsequences of Not Making
Adequate Yearly Progress

• Year 1 Public Identification
• Year 2 Designated In Need of Improvement
• Consequences for TITLE I Schools/Districts
  Identified in Year 2 as In Need of Improvement
• Year 1 Public School Choice Option
• Year 2 Supplemental Services Must be Made
  Available
• Year 3 Corrective Action
• Year 4 Develop Restructuring Plan
• Year 5 Alternative Governance

5
Criteria for Making Adequate Yearly Progress

• Percent of students proficient on the CMT and
  CAPT Reading Subtest and Mathematics Subtest
• Whole School and Subgroups, including
• Major Racial/Ethnic Subgroups
• Students with Disabilities
• English Language Learners
• Economically Disadvantaged (Free and
  Reduced-Lunch)
• Based on Scoring Levels of
• Advanced
• Goal
• Proficient
• Basic
• Below Basic
• Elementary and Middle Schools Writing 70 At
  Basic or Above or Annual Improvement
• High Schools 70 Graduation Rate or Annual
  Improvement
• 95 Participation of School and Subgroups on
  Standard, Out of Level, or CMT/CAPT Checklist

Source State Dept. of Education
6
Federal Starting Point for CT Accountability(usin
g 2002-03 CMT and 2001-02 CAPT Results)

• CMT CAPT
• 65 59 Proficient in Mathematics
• 57 62 Proficient in Reading
• 95 95 Participation in Testing
• Target by 2013-14
• 100 Proficient in Math and Reading
• Minimum of 95 Participation

Source State Dept. of Education
7
Connecticut Schools Designated as In Need of
Improvement Under NCLB(as of August 2003)

• District of Schools Enrollment
  Designation
• Bridgeport 2 Elementary Schools
  1,431 Corrective Action
• 2 High Schools 2,949 Public School Choice
• Hartford 3 Elementary Schools
  1,547 Corrective Action
• 1 High School 1,294 Public School Choice
• New Haven 2 Elementary Schools
  1,318 Corrective Action
• 1 Middle School 446 Corrective Action
• 1 High School 188 Public School Choice
• RVTSS 4 High Schools 2,493 Public School
  Choice
• TOTAL 16 Schools 11,666 Students

8
Summary of Governors Education Initiative to
Close the Achievement Gap
9
Plan Highlights

• Programs
• Targeted School Improvement Grants
• Equal Opportunity Scholarships
• Expand Access to Quality Pre-school Programs
• Provide Additional Resources to Early Reading
  Success and Summer School Programs
• Continue Expansion of Public School Choice
  Options
• Magnet Schools
• Charter Schools
• OPEN Choice
• Regional Vocational-Technical Schools

• New Funding
• 1,200,000
• 1,500,000
• 14,000,000
• 2,000,000
• 61,639,217
• 17,832,000
• 10,640,000
• 130,814,882

10
Targeted School Improvement Grants

• The Governors plan will provide School
  Improvement Grants to districts that are in the
  first three years of the designation of in need
  of improvement using the criteria the federal
  No Child Left Behind law. This state grant
  (75,000 per school) would be provided to school
  districts after a comprehensive needs assessment
  was conducted by an outside review team comprised
  of Department of Education staff and other
  qualified individuals. The grant can be used for
  specific immediate educational purposes
  identified by the needs assessment as critical to
  the immediate improvement of academic achievement
  in the school district. Local school districts
  must match each 75,000 grant with 25,000 in
  local funds.
• Eligible District/No. of Schools Grant
• Bridgeport 4 Schools 300,000
• Hartford 4 Schools 300,000
• New Haven 4 Schools 300,000
• RVTSS - 4 Schools 300,000
• TOTAL GRANT 1,200,000

11
Equal Opportunity Scholarships

• Students who attend one of the 42 schools
  identified, as of August 2003, as having whole
  school achievement deficiencies in math and
  reading under the NCLB criteria will be eligible
  to apply for Equal Opportunity Scholarships.
  Each scholarship will total 4,000 and can be
  used for tuition, books, and uniforms at both
  private and parochial schools.
• The State will dedicate 1.5 million in new funds
  to be used for these scholarships. These state
  funds shall be given out in amounts of 3,000 per
  eligible student. Legislation will also be
  proposed requiring the districts containing these
  schools to match the States 3,000 with 1,000
  in local funding. This will bring the total
  scholarship amount to 4,000 per student. In
  addition, the district must provide these
  students with transportation to the
  private/parochial school at the districts
  expense as long as the alternative school is
  within the students town or in an abutting town.
• In addition to current public school choice
  options this will provide approximately 500
  children with an additional opportunity for a
  high quality educational experience.

12
Expand Access to Quality Pre-School
ProgramsThe Governors plan will add 14
million in funding to expand pre-school slots in
all current Priority School Districts, 11 of
which have schools identified in August 2003 as
having schools not making adequate yearly
progress with whole school achievement
deficiencies under the criteria of NCLB. Slots
will be offered first to 4 year-olds, who will be
entering kindergarten the following school year.

• In the 2002-03 school year, the average
  percentage of children who attended pre-school in
  the municipalities that make up Education
  Reference Group (ERG) A was 85, while in ERG I
  the average percentage was 58.
• All 11 districts identified as having schools
  not making adequate yearly progress with whole
  school achievement deficiencies are currently
  designated as Priority School Districts and fall
  into ERG designations H and I.
• The current school readiness program provides
  funding for nearly 6,300 children. The
  additional funding recommended in the Governors
  plan would allow for 2,000 new full-time,
  full-day slots.

13
Educational Reference Groups

• ERG A ERG B
• Avon Bethel
• Darien Brookfield
• Easton Cheshire
• New Canaan Fairfield
• Redding Farmington
• Ridgefield Glastonbury
• Simsbury Granby
• Weston Greenwich
• Westport Guilford
• Wilton Madison
• Woodbridge Marlborough
• Region 9 Monroe
• New Fairfield
• Newtown
• Orange
• South Windsor
• Trumbull
• West Hartford

• ERG H ERG I
• Ansonia Bridgeport
• Bristol Hartford
• Danbury New Britain
• Derby New Haven
• East Hartford New London
• Killingly Waterbury
• Meriden Windham
• Middletown
• Norwalk
• Norwich
• Putnam
• Stamford
• West Haven
• Norwich Free Academy

Highlighted Districts were identified as having
schools designated as in need of improvement
and having whole school achievement
deficiencies under NCLB.
14
Expand Early Reading Success and Summer School
Grant Programs

• Early Reading Success
• The Governors proposal would add 1million in
  funding to the existing Early Reading Success
  Program targeted to the current Priority School
  Districts, 11 of which have schools identified as
  of August 2003 as not making adequate yearly
  progress with whole school achievement
  deficiencies in accordance with NCLB criteria.
  These funds will complement the approximately 13
  million in federal Reading First Initiative
  funds the State has received, which are to be
  dedicated to the same purpose. The state
  currently spends about 20 million on Early
  Reading Success.
• The Early Reading Success program is designed to
  implement a three-year plan to improve the
  reading skills of students in grades kindergarten
  to three, who are in Priority School Districts.
• Funds can be used for (1) establishing full day
  kindergartens (2) reducing class size in grades
  kindergarten to three and (3) establishing
  intensive early intervention reading programs,
  including after-school and summer programs, for
  students identified as being at risk of failing
  to read by the end of first grade, and students
  in grades one to three, inclusive, who are
  reading below grade level.

• Summer School
• The Governors proposal would add 1 million in
  funding to the existing Summer School Program.
  As with the Early Reading Success Program, these
  funds will also be dedicated to the current
  Priority School Districts.

15
Current Public School Choice Options

• Interdistrict Magnet Schools For the 2003-04
  school year, 36 magnet schools serve 11,335
  students statewide. These programs are designed
  to support racial, ethnic, and economic diversity
  while offering a high quality, special
  curriculum.
• Charter Schools For the 2003-04 school year, 12
  charter schools serve 2,281 students statewide.
  They offer innovative educational programs and
  are another vehicle for reducing the racial and
  economic isolation in Connecticuts public
  schools.
• OPEN Choice The OPEN Choice program allows
  urban students to attend public schools in nearby
  suburban towns and vice versa. The program
  includes Hartford, Bridgeport, New Haven and
  their surrounding districts. For the current
  school year an estimated 1,559 students are
  participating in the program.
• Regional Vocational-Technical School System The
  Regional Vocational-Technical School System
  operates 17 high schools and 2 satellite programs
  statewide. Current secondary enrollment is
  11,377 while the adult day programs enroll an
  additional 622 students.

16
History of State Expenditures for Public School
Choice Programs
17
History of Enrollment in Public School Choice
Programs