Guidance on Standards, Assessments, and Accountability-- Pg 5

Adequate yearly progress as defined by a State describes the amount of yearly improvement each Title I school and district is expected to make ... SkiptomaincontentAboutUsContactUsFAQsLanguageAssistanceEnglishespañol中文:繁體版Việt-ngữ한국어TagalogРусский U.S.DepartmentofEducation Searchfor: Togglenavigation U.S.DepartmentofEducation StudentLoans Grants Laws Data Laws&Guidance ELEMENTARY&SECONDARYEDUCATION GuidanceonStandards,Assessments,andAccountability AdequateYearlyProgress Introduction TheStateisresponsiblefordeterminingthemethodsandproceduresformeasuringadequateyearlyprogress.AdequateyearlyprogressasdefinedbyaStatedescribestheamountofyearlyimprovementeachTitleIschoolanddistrictisexpectedtomakeinordertoenablelow-achievingchildrentomeethighperformancelevelsexpectedofallchildren. EachState’sdefinitionofadequateprogressmustbebasedprimarilyonitsfinalassessmentsystemincludedintheState’splan.TheconceptofadequateyearlyprogressunderthenewTitleIincludes(1)anemphasisonaccountabilityofschoolsandLEAsreceivingTitleIfunds(i.e.,whethertheyaremakingadequateprogresstowardenablingtheirchildrentomeettheState’sstandards)ratherthanemphasizingtheTitleIprogramitselforeventheyearlyperformancegainsofparticipatingchildren;and(2)adefinitionthatholdsLEAsandschoolsaccountablefortheamountofimprovementtheymakeeachyear. StatuteandRegulations (Section1111(b)(2);§200.3) EachStateshalldetermine,basedontheState'sfinalassessmentsystem,whatconstitutesadequateyearlyprogressof: anyschoolservedunderTitleItowardenablingchildrentomeettheState'sstudentperformancestandards;and anyLEAthatreceivesfundsunderTitleItowardenablingchildreninschoolsreceivingassistanceunderTitleItomeettheState'sstudentperformancestandards. Adequateyearlyprogressmustbedefinedinamannerthat: resultsincontinuousandsubstantial,yearlyimprovementofeachTitleIschoolandLEAsufficienttoachievethegoalofallchildrenservedunderTitleI,particularlyeconomicallydisadvantagedandlimited-Englishproficientchildren,meetingtheState'sproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance; issufficientlyrigoroustoachievethatgoalwithinanappropriatetimeframe;and linksprogressprimarilytoperformanceontheState’sfinalassessmentwhilepermittingprogresstobeestablishedinpartthroughtheuseofothermeasures,suchasdropout,retention,andattendancerates. ForanyyearinwhichaStateusestransitionalassessments,theStateshalldeviseaprocedureforidentifyingschoolsandLEAsinneedofimprovementthatreliesonaccurateinformationaboutthecontinuousandsubstantialyearlyacademicprogressofeachschoolandLEA. QuestionsandAnswers 59.Howisadequateyearlyprogressdefined? ThedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogresswillvaryfromStatetoState.ThedefinitionmustresultincontinuousandsubstantialyearlyimprovementofeachLEAandschoolreceivingTitleIfundswhichissufficienttoachievethegoalofallchildrenservedunderTitleI,particularlyeconomicallydisadvantagedandlimited-Englishproficientchildren,meetingtheState'sproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance.ThisdefinitionmustbesufficientlyrigoroustoachievethatgoalwithinanappropriatetimeframeandlinkprogressprimarilytoperformanceonaState'sfinalassessmentsystem,whilepermittingprogresstobeestablishedinpartthroughtheuseofothermeasures.Thedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressmayinclude,attheState'sdiscretion,anyadditionalmeasuresorindicatorsidentifiedbyanLEAinitsplantoreviewtheprogressofeachschoolservedinthatdistrict. 60.WhatarethemaindecisionsthataStatemustmakeindefiningadequateyearlyprogress? IftheStatemeasurestheperformanceofallchildren,whataretheState'seducationalexpectationsforthesechildren? Whatarethelevelsofperformanceexpectedofallchildren? WhatisthetimeframeinwhichLEAsandschoolswillbeexpectedtoenabletheirstudentstoreachtheproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance? Whichsubjectswillbeincludedinthedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogress? Whatmeasureswillbeincludedinthedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogress? Whataretheprimaryconsiderationsincreatingtheevaluationdesign? 61.MustaStatedefinewhatconstitutesadequateyearlyprogressforLEAsandschools? Yes.WhileaStatemayallowLEAstoaddlocalassessmentswiththeState'sapprovalortodeveloptheirownassessmentsystemapprovedbytheStateandjudgedonthebasisofmodelsorcriteriaforhighqualityassessments,theStatemustdefineadequateyearlyprogress. 62.Whatassessmentsmustbeincludedinthedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogress? TherearethreegeneralapproachesthatStatesmaytakeindevelopingtheirStateassessmentsystems:anassessmentsystemcontainingonlyuniformStatewideassessments;anassessmentsystemwithStateandadditionallocalassessmentsapprovedbytheState;andanassessmentsystemconsistingentirelyoflocallydevelopedassessmentsapprovedbytheState,judgedonthebasisofcriteriaforhigh-qualityyearlyassessments.Theimplicationsofeachofthesethreeassessmentapproachesfordefiningadequateyearlyprogressarediscussedbelow. UniformStatewideAssessments Ina"uniformStateassessment"system,theresultsfromtheStateassessmentwouldclearlybethebasisfordefiningadequateyearlyprogress.Iflocalassessmentsexist,theroleoflocalinformationcouldbesupplementaryinnaturetohelpLEAsmakebetterprogramdecisions.InthiscasetherewouldbeasingledefinitionforadequateyearlyprogressbasedsolelyontheStateassessmentsystem. MixedStateandLocalAssessments Statesmaychoosetodevelopacombinedstate-localsystem.Therearetwomainkindsofcombinedsystems.First,theremaybeasystemwherethereisauniformStateassessmentforcertainsubjectsorgradesandlocallydeterminedassessmentsinothersubjectsorgradesorincludingotherassessmentapproaches.Forexample,aStatemayhaveawritingassessment,butleaveittothedistrictstoselecttheirownreadingassessment.Similarly,aStatemayhaveauniformmathematicsassessment,butrequireitsdistrictstodevelopasystemthatgivescreditforstudents'workinmathematicsovertheyearorrequiresdistrictstodevelopasemesteroryear-longmathproject. Inthesesituations,theStatewouldsetforththegeneralproceduresforcombiningthetwotypesofinformationfordeterminingadequateyearlyprogress.Forexample,theStatemightdecidethattheStateassessmentwouldbegivenaweightof75%,andthelocalinformationaweightof25%.Districtswouldstillhavetheoptionofpresentingadditionalinformationwhichmightmodifyinferencesabouttheprogressoftheirschools. Second,StatesmightdevelopStatestandardsanduniformassessments,butchoosetogranttheauthoritytosomeLEAstodeveloptheirownassessmentstomatchStatestandards,providedthattheassessmentsmeetcriteriaspecifiedbytheState.Districtswithsufficientassessmentstaffandcapabilitiescouldbenefitfromthisflexibilitybyusing,perhapswithsomemodifications,assessmentsystemstheyhavedevelopedthatmatchtheirinstructionalprograms.TheirassessmentsystemsthenwouldnotonlymatchtheStatestandardsandprovideaccuratedataabouttheeffectivenessoftheirschoolsbut,mostimportantly,wouldassistteachersandstudentstoimproveteachingandlearningonadailybasis.Bothpurposescouldbemetusinginformationfromthesamecomprehensiveassessmentsystem.ThetaskfortheState,ofcourse,istoensurethatthelocalassessmentsdoindeedmatchtheStatestandards.Thisisnotthesameassayingthatthelocalassessmentsfromdifferentdistrictsarecomparableinastrictmeasurementsense,butthatthereisevidencetheassessmentsmatchthestandards,bothinbreadthanddepth.Theprocessofdeterminingadequateyearlyprogressforthesedistrictsisslightlydifferentthanforthefirsttypeofmixed-modeldistricts.Statesneedtodevelopproceduresforthesedistrictsthatareparalleltotheproceduresthatapplytothestate-assesseddistricts--parallelforthesakeofequity,yetsufficientlyflexibletoallowforavarietyofdifferenttypesoflocalassessmentsystemsandinstruments. LocalAssessments SomeStatesmaychoosetogivealldistrictslatitudeindevelopingtheirownassessmentsorinsettingtheirownstandardsaswellastheirassessments.SuchStateswouldneedtodeveloporadoptmodelstandardsorcriteriaagainstwhichlocally-developedstandardsandassessmentscouldbecomparedandapproved.SomeStatesmightestablishvoluntarystandards.Inanycase,asdescribedearlier,Statesareobligatedtodevelopcriteriatoensurethatthedistrictsworktowardhighstandards,andthattheassessmentsactuallyarealignedwiththeirstandards. AlocalassessmentStatewillstillneedtodevelopcriteriaforitsdistrictstodeterminetheadequateyearlyprogressoftheirschools,notasimpletaskgiventhevariabilitytheStatewillencounter.Furthermore,theStatewillneedtocopewiththisvariabilitywhenitdevelopsequitablesystemsfordeterminingtheadequacyofprogressforitsdistricts. 63.WhoisresponsibleforreviewingadequateyearlyprogressofLEAsandschools? ThelawisclearthatStatesareresponsiblefordefiningadequateyearlyprogress.StatesarethenresponsibleforidentifyingLEAswhicharenotmakingadequateprogress.LEAsareresponsibleforreviewingtheprogressofalltheirTitleIschools,andidentifyingthosenotmakingadequateprogress,andthereforeinneedofprogramimprovement. 64.MustadequateyearlyprogressbedefinedinthesamewayforLEAsandschools? No.ThedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressneednotbethesameforLEAsandschools.Forexample,aStatemaywishtouseotherdataelementstodefineadequateyearlyprogressofLEAssuchasthenumberofschoolsinneedofimprovement,thenumberofdistinguishedschools,andothermeasuresthatwouldonlybeappropriateatthedistrictlevel. 65.MustallschoolsservedunderTitleIdetermineadequateyearlyprogress? Yes.IfnoStateand/orLEAassessmentisavailableforaTitleIschool,thenalternativemethodsofdefiningadequateyearlyprogressmustbeagreeduponbytheLEAandState.Forexample,foraK-2buildingwherenoStateassessmentsaregiven,analternativemethodofdefiningadequateyearlyprogressmustbedetermined. 66.MaythedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressvaryfromyeartoyearforschoolsorLEAs? Yes.Althoughconsistencyisthegoal,thereareseveralreasonswhythedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressmaylegitimatelyvaryfromyeartoyear:(1)newassessmentcomponentsmaybeaddedastheassessmentsystemisphasedinoveraperiodofyears;(2)otherachievementindicatorsmaybeaddedordroppedasappropriate;or(3)theweightsofthecomponentsmaychangeastheStateslearnmoreabouthowtheyworktogether.Nevertheless,thedefinitionmustalwaysresultincontinuousandsubstantialyearlyimprovement. 67.MayaStateclassifyLEAsandschoolsintomorethantwocategories(makingornotmaking)adequateyearlyprogress? Yes.Statesmaydevelopprocedurestoidentifyasmanylevelsofdistrictorschoolqualityastheydeemappropriate—aslongastheyareabletoidentifydistrictsandschoolsthatarenotmakingadequateprogress. 68.HowshouldaStatedeterminetheamountofprogressthatneedstobemadeeachyeartoreachthegoalofallchildrenservedunderTitleImeetingtheState'sproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance? Theprocessismainlyoneofdeterminingwhatproportionofstudentsarenotfunctioningattheproficientandadvancedperformancelevels,howlongtheStateordistrictneedstobringthemuptothoselevels,and,therefore,howmuchprogressneedstobemadeeachyear(thatis,whatadditionalproportionofthestudentsneedstobeatthoselevelsineachsuccessiveyear).Althoughtheamountofprogressmadeeachyeardoesnothavetobeconstant,eachyear'srequiredprogressmustbecontinuousandsubstantial. 69.IsthereaspecifictimeframeinwhichallchildrenservedunderTitleImustmeettheState'sproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance? TheappropriatetimeframeforallchildrenservedunderTitleItomeettheStatesproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformancewillvaryfromStatetoState.SincerealreformtakestimeandStatesareatdifferentstagesintheirefforts,eachStatemayhaveadifferenttimeframebutshoulddescribeinitsStateplanhowitsdefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressissufficientlyrigoroustoachievethatgoalduringastudent'sschoolcareer. 70.Whatdoesthelawmeanby"substantial"progress? ThereisnocommondefinitionthatcanbetranslatedintoaspecificamountofprogressacrossalltheStateanddistrictassessmentsystemsduringaspecifictimeframe.Thegoalistomoveasmanystudentsintotheproficientandadvancedcategoriesassoonaspossible.ItisimportantforaStatetodevelopthisdefinitioninvolvingLEAs,teachers,pupilservicespersonnel,otherschoolstaff,parents,andadministratorstodeterminewhatstakeholdersviewassubstantialprogressfortheirState. 71.Doesadequateyearlyprogressrefertotheprogressofstudentsorschools? ItreferstotheprogressofschoolsandLEAs,notstudents.ButitmustbebasedonthesuccessofthoseschoolsandLEAsinincreasingthenumberofstudentsreachingproficientandadvancedperformancelevels.Thisisconsistentwiththenewlaw'sfocusontheeffectivenessofschoolprograms. 72.Whatarethekeystepsindeterminingtheadequateyearlyprogressofschools? Therearethreekeysteps.ThefirststepistodeterminetheperformancelevelforallstudentsassessedbytheStateassessmentsystem.Thesecondstepistosummarizethatinformationfortheschooltodeterminetheextenttowhichthestudentsareattainingtheproficientandadvancedperformancelevels.Thethirdstepistodeterminewhethertheschoolhasmadeadequateimprovementoverthepreviousyearandtheextenttowhichthestudentsareattainingtheproficientandadvancedperformancelevels. 73.Howlongmustastudentattendaschoolordistricttobeincludedinyearlyreviewofprogress? Thelawprovidesthatstudentswhoarenotintheschoolordistrictforthefullacademicyearmaybeexcludedfromtheyearlyreviewofprogressoftheschoolordistrict,respectively.Specifically,studentswhohavenotbeeninaschoolforthefullyeardonothavetobeincludedincomputingadequateyearlyprogressforthatschool,buttheyaretobeincludedinthedistrictreviewiftheyweresomewhereinthedistrictforthefullyear.Studentswhowerenotinthedistrictforthefullyearmaybeexcludedfromeithertheschoolordistrictrevieworboth. 74.WhichstudentsmayanLEAincludetodetermineprogressofatargetedassistanceschool? BecauseadequateyearlyprogressisbasedprimarilyontheState'sfinalassessments,theuniverseofstudentsisthoseinthegradesincludedinthoseassessments.WithinthisuniversetheLEAhasthreechoices: includeperformanceofallstudentsinthegradeassessedwhoarecurrentlybeingservedbyTitleIandthosethathavebeenservedpreviouslybyTitleI; includeperformanceofallstudentsinthegradesassessedwhoarecurrentlybeingservedbyTitleI;or includeperformanceofallstudentsinthegrade. 75.IntargetedassistanceschoolsthatbaseprogressontheperformanceofstudentscurrentlyservedbyTitleI,mustchildrenbeservedbyTitleIforafullacademicyearbeforetheirdatahavetobeincludedindeterminingyearlyprogress? No.Thelawreferstoattendanceforafullacademicyear,nottoserviceforafullacademicyear.Therefore,studentsintargetedassistanceschoolswhohaveattendedtheschoolforafullyearbuthavebeenservedforonlypartofthatyearmustbeincludedindeterminingprogress.SomeTitleIprogramsincludeshort-terminterventions,suchasReadingRecovery. 76.TotheextentaTitleIschoolincludesagradebeingassessedintheStateassessmentsystem,musttheresultsoftheassessmentbeincludedindeterminingadequateyearlyprogressforthatschoolinsituationswhereTitleIservicesarenotprovidedtostudentsinthegradebeingassessed? Yes.Forexample,ifatargetedassistanceschoolprovidesTitleIservicesonlyingradesK,1,and2andtheStateassessmentisadministeredinGrade4,theresultsofthatGrade4assessmentaretobeusedforthepurposesofdeterminingadequateyearlyprogress.However,aLEAmayincludeothermeasuresapprovedbytheSEA. 77.WhatevaluationdesignsaremostappropriateformonitoringtheprogressofTitleIschools? TheappropriatenessofanevaluationdesignfordeterminingadequateyearlyprogressshouldbejudgedbyeachState.AslongastheState'sdefinitionresultsincontinuousandsubstantialprogressinhelpingallparticipatingstudentsattainproficientandadvancedperformancelevels,thedesignssubsumedwithinthatdefinitionarepermissible.SeeAdequateYearlyProgress:inTitleIoftheImprovingAmerica'sSchoolsActof1994,publishedbytheCouncilofChiefStateSchoolOfficers(September,1996)forathoroughdiscussionofseveralpossibledesigns. 78.Mustadequateyearlyprogressbebasedondisaggregatedgroupssuchaseconomicallydisadvantagedandlimited-EnglishproficientstudentsmeetingtheState'scontentandstudentperformancestandards? ThelawdoesnotspecificallyrequireStatestoexamineseparatelytheprogressofselectedgroupsindeterminingadequateyearlyprogress.However,thelawdoesindicatethatadequateyearlyprogressmustbedefinedtoachievethegoalofallTitleIchildren,"particularlyeconomicallydisadvantagedandlimited-Englishproficientchildren,"meetingtheStatesproficientandadvancedlevelsofperformance.ItisunclearhowanLEAcouldrealisticallyachievethisgoal,certainlyoverseveralyears,ifeconomicallydisadvantagedandlimited-Englishproficientchildrenarenotalsomakingsubstantialandcontinuousimprovement.Therefore,weencourageStatestosetrigorousdefinitionsofadequateyearlyprogresstoholdLEAsandschoolsaccountableforensuringthatthelowest-achievingchildren--betheyeconomicallydisadvantaged,limited-Englishproficient,orotherspecialpopulations--aremakingcontinuousandsubstantialprogress.Forexample,aschool'soverallprogressmaybemeetingthetarget,butifthegrowthrateforLEPstudentsisnotenoughtoclosethegapinthespecifiedtime,theLEAmightberequiredbytheStatetoconcludethattheschooldidnotmakeadequateprogress. 79.MustmultiplemeasuresbeusedinjudginganLEA'sandschool'sprogress? TitleIrequiresthatadequateyearlyprogressbebasedprimarilyontheState'sassessmentsystem.ThelawandregulationsalsorequirethattheState'sassessmentsystemincorporatemultiplemeasuresandapproaches.Therefore,definitionsofadequateyearlyprogresswillbebasedinlargepartonthemultiplemeasuresandapproachesusedtoassessstudentprogress.Questions57-60intheAssessmentsectiondescribesomecharacteristicsofmultiplemeasuresandapproaches. 80.Whatkindsofdatacanbeusedinthedeterminationofadequateyearlyprogress? Asnotedinthequestionabove,thedefinitionofadequateyearlyprogressmustbebasedprimarilyontheStatesassessmentsystem.Thelawallowstheuseofadditionalindicatorsofschoolsuccesssuchasattendance,retention,andpromotionrates.Indeterminingthecharacteristicsoftheirassessmentsystems,Statesmayusedifferentcriteriatoanswerthisquestion.TheywillemphasizethedifferentstrengthsofStateandlocaldata. 81.Howcantheinformationfromseveralsourcesbecombinedtobestjudgeaschool'sperformance? Thereareanumberofmethodsofcombininginformationfromassessmentresultsandotherindicators.Theexamplebelowillustratesonemethodofcombininginformationattheschoollevel. Example:CombiningInformationtoDetermineAdequateYearlyProgress AStatemeasuresschoolprogressbasedonstudentperformanceinfourcontentareas--reading,writing,mathematics,andscience--andonattendanceandpromotionrates.TheStatecombinesinformationintheseareastocreateaschoolindex,whichiscomparedtotheprioryear'sindextojudgethedegreeofprogressmadebyaschool.Theindexisdesignedsothatstudentperformancecontributes80percent(four-fifths)andthecombinationofattendanceandpromotionratescontributes20percent(one-fifth).Theprocessforcreatingtheindexisillustratedbelow.(NOTE:ThisexampleisbasedonasimplificationofthemodelusedbyKentuckyinitsschoolaccountabilityprogram.) 1.DeterminethepercentageofstudentsateachoftheState'sfourperformancelevels. PerformLevel Reading Writing MathematicsScience Advanced 8% 12% 9% 11% Proficient 25% 28% 25%20% Basic37% 34%32%38% BelowBasic 30%26%34% 31% 2.TheStatehassetweightsforeachperformancelevel:Advanced:140;Proficient:100;Basic:40;BelowBasic:0.Thenextstepistomultiplyeachofthepercentagesbytheappropriateweightandsumtheresultstoobtainaschoolscoreforeachcontentarea. PerformLevel WeightWeighted ReadingWeighted WritingWeighted MathWeighted Science Advanced 140 11.2 16.8 12.6 15.4 Proficient 10025.0 28.0 25.0 20.0 Basic 4014.813.6 12.815.2 BelowBasic 0 0 0 0 0SUMN/A 51.0 58.4 50.4 50.6 3.TheStateusesaveragedailyattendanceratesandpromotionratesasnon-assessmentindicatorsofschoolprogress.Thevaluesforthesetwoindicatorsareaveragedtoproduceasinglenon-assessmentindicator.Atthesampleschool,averagedailyattendancewas90%andthepromotionratewas95%.Theaverageis92.5. 4.Combinethevaluesofthefourassessmentindicatorsandthenon-assessmentindicator.Dividebyfivetocalculatetheschoolindex. IndicatorValue Reading51.0 Writing58.4 Mathematics50.4 Science50.6 Non-Assessment92.5 Sum302.9 SchoolIndex60.6 82.Mayresultsbesummarizedacrossgradelevelsorcontentareastomakeadecisionaboutadistrict'sorschool'sprogress? Yes.Onewaytoobtainschool-leveldataistocombinestudentperformancedataacrosssubjectareas.IfaschoolservesmorethanonegradewhichisincludedintheStateassessmentsystem,theresultsforthegradesmayalsobecombined.Thisapproachmaybeparticularlyusefulincreatingmorestableassessmentresultsforjudgingtheannualprogressofsmallschools.Aswithanymethodofreportingschool-levelresults,akeyconsiderationisthequalityofthedecisionsmadebasedonthecombinedinformation. 83.Howcanaccuratedatabeobtainedfordeterminingtheprogressofsmallschools? Forsmallschoolswithfewstudents,relativelylargedifferencesinaveragescoresorintheproportionofstudentswhoperformatleastattheproficientlevelaretobeexpectedevenifthequalityofeducationprovidedbytheprogramremainsunchanged.Consequently,aschoolmayshowarelativelylargeincreaseoneyearandarelativelylargedecreasethenextorvisaversa.Thatiswhy,undertheTitleIlaw,schoolsandLEAsareidentifiedforimprovementonlyiftheyfailtomakeadequateprocessfortwoconsecutiveyears.Insmallschools,especiallythosewithtargetedassistanceprograms,assessmentresultscanbeunstableiftheyarebasedonrelativelyfewstudents.Oneoptionfortargetedassistanceschoolsistobasethemeasureofyearlyprogressonallstudentsinthegradesassessed.Toobtainmorestableandtrustworthyresultsforsmallschools,scoresmaybecombinedacrossgradelevelsand/orcontentareas. Example:CombiningDatafromSmallSchools Toobtainmorestableandtrustworthyresultsforsmallschools,Wyomingrequiresschoolstoaggregatescoresacrossgroupsandgradelevelsinadesignatedsequenceuntiltheyrepresenttheresultsforaminimumof25students.Inmanytargetedschools,thetotalnumberofstudentsservedinanygradeisatleast25.Ifitislessthan25,thenthefollowingprocedureapplies: includealltargetedstudentsservedintheschool.Ifthisnewtotalisstilllessthan25,then addallnon-targetedstudentsingradesserved.Ifthisstilldoesnottotal25,then addallothernon-targetedstudentsintheschool. Atthispointallstudentsintheschoolhavebeenincluded.Resultsshouldbereportedevenifthenumberislessthan25. Strategiesforreducingtheproblemsassociatedwiththeuncertaintyofschoolresultsforsmallnumbersofstudentsmayalsoinvolvetheuseofdataforseveralyearsratherthansimplylookingatchangesinperformancefromoneyeartothenext.Twovariationsthatmightbeconsideredinthisregardarebiennialcomparisonsandtheuseofrollingaverages.ThesetwovariationsinvolvereviewingschoolresultsonlessthananannualbasisandwouldrequireawaiverfromtheSecretary. Biennialcomparisonsinvolvetheuseofacombinationoftwoyear'sworthofdatatodetermineprogress.TheKentuckyaccountabilitysystemprovidesanexampleoftheuseofbiennialresults.Two-yearaveragesareusedbothtosetabaselinelevelofperformanceandtoobtainfollow-upperformancedatathatarecomparedtothebaselineresults.Thisyieldsmorestableresultsandincreasesthelikelihoodthatschoolswillbevalidlyidentifiedforschoolimprovement. Theuseofrollingaveragesisanotherpotentialmethodforstabilizingdatabasedonsmallnumbersofstudents.Rollingaveragesof,say,twoyearsmightalsobeusedtoreducethespuriousyear-to-yearfluctuationsresultingfrommeasurementandsamplingerror.Usingthismethod,Statescouldcomparetheaverageperformancefromyears1and2totheaverageperformancefromyears2and3todetermineprogress.Afterthefirsttwo-yearperiod,datawouldbereviewedannually,basedonthepriortwoyears=averageresults. 84.Whatdoesitmeantosaythatasystemiscompensatoryorconjunctive? Compensatorysystemsallowschools(orstudentsifthedecisionisatthestudentlevel)whichshowarelativeweaknessinsomeareato"compensate"bymakingupforitinotherareas.Assume,forexample,thataStateusesacriterion-referencedassessmentinmathematicsandanorm-referencedassessmentasthebasisfordeterminingtheadequateyearlyprogressoftheschools.Underacompensatorysystem,ifaschooldidnotdoverywellonthecriterion-referencedassessment,itcould"compensate"bydoingverywellonthenorm-referencedassessment.Theaverageofthetwomightindicatethattheschoolismakingadequateprogress. Conjunctivesystems,ontheotherhand,requireaschooltomeetacertainminimumofprogressoneachassessment.Ifaschooldidnotmakeitsprojectedlevelofprogressononeoftheassessments,itwouldnotbeallowedtomakeupforitontheotherassessment.    4 | 5 | 6 TOC Printableview Sharethispage LastModified:04/02/2009 HowDoIFind... Studentloans,forgiveness Collegeaccreditation EveryStudentSucceedsAct(ESSA) FERPA FAFSA 1098,taxforms More> InformationAbout... TransformingTeaching FamilyandCommunityEngagement EarlyLearning   OfficeofElementaryandSecondaryEducation OfficeofInnovationandImprovement KeyPolicyLetters Ourmissionistopromotestudentachievementandpreparationforglobalcompetitivenessbyfosteringeducationalexcellenceandensuringequalaccess. StudentLoans RepayingLoans DefaultedLoans LoanForgiveness LoanServicers Grants&Programs ApplyforPellGrants GrantsForecast ApplyforaGrant EligibilityforGrants Laws&Guidance EveryStudentSucceedsAct(ESSA) FERPA CivilRights NewIDEAWebsite Data&Research EducationStatistics PostsecondaryEducationData EDDataExpress Nation'sReportCard WhatWorksClearinghouse AboutUs ContactUs EDOffices Jobs PressReleases FAQs Recursosenespañol Budget,Performance PrivacyProgram SubscribetoE-MailUpdates NoticesFOIAPrivacyPolicyAccessibilitySecurityInformationqualityInspectorGeneralWhitehouse.govUSA.govBenefits.govRegulations.gov