Montgomery, Ala. ─ The news is good for Alabama’s Title I schools (high-poverty schools that receive federal funding). The 2009 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) report reveals a 29 percent decrease in the number of Title I schools identified for School Improvement.
“Our public schools accomplished all this even as they faced increasing academic goals and severe cuts due to 12.5 percent proration of the Education Budget and a suffering economy,” said State Superintendent of Education Joe Morton. “Alabama is moving forward to meet the 2014 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) deadline of having all students proficient in reading and mathematics. Every year, the rigor increases: NCLB ratchets up the requirements and our schools are meeting the challenge.”
School Improvement
If a school does not meet AYP goals for two consecutive years in the same component, (reading, mathematics, or additional academic indicator: attendance in elementary and middle schools and graduation rates in high schools), the school enters School Improvement status. For all schools, it takes two years of not making AYP to be designated as a School Improvement school. Likewise, it takes two years of positive growth and of making AYP in any challenge areas for a school to progress out of the School Improvement process.
Alabama evaluated 1,376 public schools, including 866 Title I schools, for the 2009-10 AYP status (based on 2008-09 data). Statewide, 122 schools have been identified for School Improvement. Of those identified, 52 are Title I schools – a 29 percent decrease over last year’s 73 Title I schools. These 52 Title I schools must offer School Choice if a school of choice is available in the same district.
School Choice
NCLB requires Title I schools identified for School Improvement in Year 1 and beyond to offer school choice to all students. In 2008, schools identified for School Improvement Year 1 could take advantage of an approved waiver request from the U.S. Department of Education (USDE). Through this waiver, select districts had the flexibility to offer students School Choice, supplemental educational services (SES), or both - whichever met the districts’ unique circumstances.
Title I schools identified for School Improvement in Year 2 and beyond are required to continue the school choice option to all students and provide SES to students eligible for free/reduced meals. Non-title I schools may offer the same provisions, but are not required to due to cost factors. In 2009, the Alabama Department of Education requested a continuation of the waiver. Parents may contact their local school system’s central office for assistance.
“Although NCLB continues raising the bar, we continue to reduce the number of Alabama public schools designated in School Improvement. In fact, over 97 percent of Alabama’s public schools would score an “A” or “B” on a traditional grading scale of 90-100 equals an A and 80-89 equals a B,” said Dr. Morton.
“These decreasing numbers show our statewide programs and initiatives are making a difference in Alabama’s public schools,” continued Morton. “The Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI); Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI); and ACCESS (Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide) Distance Learning have proven track records in School Improvement and student success. Graduation Coaches are in place in 24 pilot systems, and 38 local school systems received PASS [Preparing Alabama Students for Success] grants. Alabama’s FIRST CHOICE includes academic tools such as Credit Recovery, Credit Advancement, Credit-Based Endorsement, and Making Middle Grades Work to further support schools, teachers, and students.”
Federal Programs Director Deann Stone says much is being done to assist schools in need of improvement. “Our Statewide System of Support for school improvement is focused on educating all of Alabama’s children. It ultimately comes down to making sure every child has grade-to-grade academic success and graduates from high school ready for the next challenge,” said Stone.
New federal guidelines for the 2009-2010 school year include:
· New guidance from the USDE issued in January 2009 requires local school systems (LEAs) to notify parent of child’s eligibility for public school choice no later than 14 calendar days before the start of the school year (see NCLB Public School Choice Non-Regulatory Guidance).
· An LEA must display on its Web site certain information on SES (see NCLB Supplemental Educational Services Non-Regulatory Guidance).
· An LEA is required to prominently display on its Web site the following information regarding public school choice:
1. Beginning with data from the 2007-2008 school year, and for each subsequent school year, the number of students who were eligible for and who participated in the public school choice option; and
2. For the current school year (2009-2010), a list of available schools to which students eligible to participate in public school choice may transfer.
Accountability results, assessment results, a listing of all schools, including their respective AYP and School Improvement status, and School Choice information can be found on the Alabama Department of Education’s Web site at www.alsde.edu under “Accountability Reporting.”
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