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NCLB waiver brings ‘balance’ to state’s school accountability system
Posted: 2/3/2012 10:42:04 AM
The following is testimony that WEAC President Mary Bell gave before the Senate and Assembly Education Committees on Thursday about the Elementary and Secondary Education Act/No Child Left Behind waiver application from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction:
Thank you for holding this hearing and inviting public testimony on Wisconsin’s request for a waiver from several provisions in the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) commonly referred to as “No Child Left Behind.” My name is Mary Bell. I am a library media specialist and English teacher currently serving as the president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the largest union of education employees in the state.
Our union of educators supports efforts by State Superintendent Tony Evers to find a better way to measure how all of Wisconsin’s schools are performing to ensure accountability because all children should have outstanding educational opportunities. Through a series of forums around the state last fall, we were pleased to add the voices of educators and community residents offering input on how the state might approach increasing childhood literacy, developing a fair and reliable way to evaluate teachers and principals, and pursuing an accountability system that reflects what Wisconsin citizens value in their schools. Education policy proposals are strengthened when those who work in our classrooms and interact with students are part of the conversation.
This waiver application is an improvement over the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act with its overemphasis on student testing and impossible proficiency standards that set all schools up for failure. The waiver provides useful information for teachers and administrators to quickly identify and help struggling students. That’s important, because under the current system students are tested in the fall but educators do not see their results until the following spring. Under NCLB, schools that fail to make Adequate Yearly Progress face sanctions that are more focused on punishing than improving schools, like replacing staff and reconstituting schools, among other actions. Make no mistake, Wisconsin’s waiver application is aggressive, as schools that are persistently low-achieving and do not make improvements will be closed. But, in contrast to NCLB, the waiver is solutions-based, designed to make all schools better, and targets resources to where they are needed most.
Under NCLB, we have also seen schools and districts narrowing their curriculum to focus on tested subject areas at the expense of other areas – art, music, health, physical education, career and technical education, and other important components of a well-rounded education. Clearly, NCLB needs to be changed.
The plan by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for the NCLB Flexibility Waiver brings more balance to the state’s accountability system as it establishes an index to track schools in four priority areas: 1) student attainment; 2) student growth; 3) closing achievement gaps; and 4) on-track to graduate and post-secondary readiness. In addition, three performance expectations will be factored into the new accountability index: 1) test participation; 2) dropout rates; and 3) 3rd grade reading. The priority area scores will be factored together with the performance expectations to provide an accountability score for a school on an index from 1-100.
The waiver request also reduces the cell size from 40 students to 20 students for accountability calculations which will better identify groups of students who may be struggling but were not reported under the old system. The new reporting system will require school districts to better identify groups of students and areas where learning gaps may exist so that they address the learning needs of all students. With these changes, improved professional development is important. To be successful, teachers will need more common planning time where they can work together on strategies to ensure student success.
In addition, in the waiver request, Wisconsin will move away from the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Exam (WKCE) and the Wisconsin Alternative Assessment and toward the new SMARTER Balanced Assessments and Dynamic Learning Maps. These new tests include a variety of assessments at the classroom, school and district levels to provide schools and educators with data throughout the academic year. Teachers will then be able to use this timely data to inform their instruction and guide learning interventions. School districts can use the data to target professional development and ensure an accurate measure of each student’s progress. Again, professional development will be important here.
Notably, all schools receiving public funds, including Title I schools, non-Title I schools, charter schools and voucher schools are subject to the proposed new state accountability system. Over the years, WEAC has advocated for holding all taxpayer-supported schools to the same standards and to assess them in the same way so it is easier for parents and the community to make “apples to apples” comparisons. If our state is serious about pursuing a comprehensive accountability system that assesses whether the education needs and achievement goals of all students are being met, voucher and charter schools must be included along with traditional public schools. To do anything less would shortchange students, parents, local communities, and our state.
Of course, student test scores and graduation rates are only one part of the picture. While these outputs are important markers, they do not tell us what we need to do to improve school performance. Efforts to improve school quality must identify variables internal to the process of education itself that are directly related to student learning. These inputs include teacher quality, professional development, the availability of subject-specific specialists, class size, tutoring and other academic supports, and a rich curriculum.
As we traveled the state last fall in our Speak Out for Public Education forums, parents told us that when it comes to measuring schools and holding them accountable, they wanted to know about programs in art, music, physical education, world languages, and similar opportunities. These programs contribute to student achievement and build a well-rounded education. (A summary report and video outtakes from our conversations with communities across the state can be found by visiting www.weac.org/speakout). An accountability system that only focuses on outputs and disregards inputs is unbalanced. We sincerely hope a holistic approach that includes both outputs and inputs will be included in the state’s final waiver application.
For an accountability system to be successfully implemented, resources must be available. For instance, it takes staff time and costs money to carry out the proposed on-site diagnostic reviews and targeted intervention. To fund data collection systems that trigger labeling of schools, but not invest in solutions and interventions, would only repeat past mistakes from the flawed NCLB.
I applaud State Superintendent Evers and the Department of Public Instruction for offering an NCLB waiver request that is thoughtful, honors and reflects the work of diverse taskforces, and seeks to improve instruction and student outcomes. I hope any potential legislation introduced in conjunction with the state’s waiver application equally embraces the deliberative work of the task forces and reflects what truly makes a difference for our children.
For more on the waiver, including a link to a survey to add your thoughts, click here.
