Post-NCLB: Education Dept. devises new accountability measures for schools

TRENTON – The state Education Department has come up with three new designations for hundreds of schools after it received

TRENTONThe state Education Department has come up with three new designations for hundreds of schools after it received a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind law in February.

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The new categories will be Priority, Focus, and Reward schools, and are part of the Christie Administration’s plan to have Regional Administration Centers, or RACs. The designations are part of a plan to strengthen the accountability measures of schools, according to the department, as well as treat schools in a way that takes their individual situations and problems more into consideration that NCLB did.  

“Unlike under NCLB, where all schools received the same consequences regardless of their performance challenges, we now have the ability to target our interventions to areas of need,” Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf said in a release. “When schools have targeted problems we need to develop targeted solutions rather than develop one-size-fits-all improvement plans.”

The state’s 75 Priority schools are some of the consistently lowest-performing schools and would receive the greatest amount of state support.

Interventions in Priority Schools will be closely monitored and will continue for a three-year period, providing schools the time needed to implement required changes and demonstrate improvement in student achievement, the department stated.

Priority Schools that fail to implement the required interventions or fail to demonstrate required improvement in student academic achievement may become subject to state-ordered closure, replacement, or other action, according to the state.

The 183 Focus schools have some areas that are in need of improvement to help all students be on track for college or make them career-ready. The department reported that it looked at trends and test performance in coming up with the designations.

The state’s 112 Reward Schools have outstanding student achievement or growth over the past three years.

“We are entering a new age of school accountability in New Jersey, one that frees high-performing schools from state interference and defines a stronger investment from the state to turn around pockets of persistent academic failure,” Cerf said in a statement.

“No longer can we stand on the sidelines when our schools are not preparing students in New Jersey to graduate from high school ready for college and a career. There is a moral imperative for the state to take a stronger role in persistently failing schools and to work collaboratively with communities and districts to give all students a fair chance.”

The waiver from NCLB means the state will no longer be subjected to what state education officials described as “antiquated” accountability provisions and sanctions required for not making Adequate Yearly Progress.

The department said that schools or districts that aren’t in any of the three categories will have autonomy over their investments and other measures regarding performance and improvement.

Beginning in the 2012-13 school year, the department will develop individual growth targets for each school report those targets in a new School Performance Report. These new reports will also include measures of college readiness and comparison to peer schools across the state. School Boards will be required to have public discussions on the findings of these reports to ensure transparent communication about school performance.

A full list of Priority, Focus, and Reward Schools can be found here: http://www.nj.gov/education/reform/PFRschools/

 

 

Post-NCLB: Education Dept. devises new accountability measures for schools