Educational Outcome Measures for Courts

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Educational Outcome Measures for Courts

• January 19, 2012

Nora Sydow, J.D. National Center for State
Courts National Resource Center on Legal and
Judicial Issues
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Outcome Areas

• The Focus Group created measures in these six
  outcome areas
• School placement stability
• Academic performance
• Early education
• Special education
• Social behavior and
• Postsecondary entrance rates.

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Education Measures School Stability

• Percentage of children under court jurisdiction
  who did not have a school change when they had a
  change in living placement
• Median number of school transfers while under
  court jurisdiction
• Median number of school days between the last day
  attended at old school to first day attended at
  new school

4
Education Measures Academic Performance

• Percentage of school-aged children performing at
  or above grade level at case closure
• Percentage of children who drop out of school
  while under court jurisdiction
• Percentage of children who attended at least 95
  of school days while under court jurisdiction

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Education Measures Early Education

• Percentage of children ages 3-5 who have been
  enrolled in an enriched early education childhood
  program while under court jurisdiction

6
Education Measures Special Education

• Percentage of children ages 0-3 who have been
  evaluated for early intervention programs while
  under court jurisdiction
• Time from referral for special education services
  to assessment
• Time from completion of special education
  services assessment to delivery of services

7
Education Measures Social Behavior

• Percentage of children under court jurisdiction
  who have received school disciplinary actions

8
Education Measures Post-Secondary Education

• Percentage of high school graduates/GED holders
  under court jurisdiction who have been accepted
  into a post-secondary education program

9
Education Measures Multiple Outcome Areas

• Percentage of ASFA hearings where the childs
  education was addressed
• Percentage of hearings where the childs
  education decision-maker was present

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Focus Group Considerations

• The Focus Group sought to develop measures courts
  would actually implement. With that goal, the
  measures were designed to be
• Relevant and meaningful to courts
• Tied to education outcome areas and
• Feasible.

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Prioritizing the Measures

• The Focus Group identified four key measures
• Percentage of children under court jurisdiction
  who did not have a school change when they had a
  change in living placement
• Percentage of ASFA hearings where the childs
  education was addressed
• Percentage of children ages 3-5 who have been
  enrolled in an enriched early education childhood
  program while under court jurisdiction
• Percentage of high school graduates/GED holders
  under court jurisdiction who have been accepted
  into a post-secondary education program

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Whats next for these measures?

• Continue to work with jurisdictions to pilot the
  measures
• Forthcoming article in Family Court Review, July
  2012 issue
• Added to the full set of court well-being
  measures, developed in June 2011