BUILDING NEXT-GENERATION ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEMS

March 28, 2011 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

Continue and broaden the discussion of the Next-Generation State Accountability Taskforce's work.

Communicate that states are leading on establishing these systems and expect federal support for these endeavors.

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States have a unique and timely opportunity to assert responsibility and authority for improving student achievement.

These new models capitalize on recent state-led reforms to adopt accountability systems that better promote college- and career-readiness for all students and schools.

These models build upon NCLB accountability systems that have introduced important practices, but move beyond such systems to more tightly integrate across the system's components. The focus of the Roadmap is on school and district accountability, with recognition that accountability must be aligned across all elements of the system including emerging teacher and leader evaluation systems and other capacity-building reforms.

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The Taskforce is composed of roughly 20 state chiefs and SEA leaders.

The Taskforce has participated in robust meetings and discussions to develop a framework for next-generation state accountability systems.

In engaging in this work, the Taskforce has relied on its members' experiences in implementing accountability systems over the past two decades along with the knowledge of various experts and the latest research.

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Roadmap for Next-Generation State Accountability Systems

Statement of Principles

Federal legislative language

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For each state to advance the goals of college- and career-readiness, we have to establish accountability systems that meet several core principles including the following:

Alignment of accountability with college- and career-readiness

Annual accountability determinations

Determinations focused on student academic outcomes (status & growth)

Continued disaggregation of student data in order to address achievement gaps

Transparent reporting of information in a timely and actionable manner

Diagnostic reviews of schools and districts that inform meaningful supports and interventions

Interventions targeted to the lowest-performing schools & districts

Continuous system evaluation and innovation

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Purpose:

Provide a statement of state leadership in developing more robust, meaningful accountability systems.

Provide a guide for state action in developing and implementing next-generation accountability systems.

Identify recommendations for federal law, especially during this significant period of transition.

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Cycle of Accountability

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Current Systems Next-Generation SystemsGoal of student "proficiency" Minimum goal of college and career readiness

Focus on proficiency only, with no regard to growth or to advancement beyond proficiency

Focus on proficiency and growth as well as growth beyond college and career readiness

Belief that measuring and reporting improve student learning

Recognition that measuring and reporting must be tightly linked to requisite actions, supports, and interventions

Schools and districts receive basic "pass" or "fail" labels without clear context

Annual determinations and deeper analysis through diagnostic review provides meaningful information about performance

System components are not purposefully linked

Systems' elements are purposefully integrated

Incentivize action only at the margins of pass/fail

Provide incentives for achievement and growth at all levels of performance

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Current Systems Next-Generation SystemsUnrelated to other education reforms Connect with and balanced by other reforms

including educator evaluation systems and capacity-building efforts

Primarily focus on the state to school relationship without regard to capacity issues

Recognize district to school relationship and seek to build district capacity

Not enough effective attention to lowest-performing schools

Particular and meaningful focus to lowest-performing schools and districts

Disjointed from practice of teaching and learning

Place students at center by promoting high-quality instruction and teaching practice

Ignore potential for systems' motivational effects

Recognize that motivation is a strong component of success

Do not exemplify the basics of best educational practice

Are dynamic, promoting innovation and improvement

Goals of Next-Generation Accountability Systems

The goals of next-generation state accountability systems are integrated and mutually-reinforcing.

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The framework is composed of elements that individually and collectively are needed for the accountability systems to meet their goals.

These elements link to a vision of accountability that significantly improves student achievement.

Within each element are the following components:

"Shoulds" – state actions necessary to ensure system integrity

"Coulds" – actions a state might take depending on its particular context

Key issues to address

State exemplars

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Based on the research and work of CCSSO, among others, the Taskforce has agreed on the following framework for next-generation accountability systems.

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Performance objectives must support the goal of ensuring all students are college and career-ready.

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Measures focus on student performance outcomes (status & growth) on standardized assessments and graduation rates and are results are disaggregated by student subgroup.

Should… Make annual determinations for all schools and districts and set a high bar for

achievement and improvement for all students Be valid, reliable, and make meaningful distinctions between and within low-

performing and high-performing groups and through the identification of underperforming subgroups

Be clear to stakeholders and the public Value status and progress of schools and districts

Could… Hold schools and districts to same annual standard or vary standard based on unique

starting points as long as all are on track to meet same ultimate performance objectives

Key Issues… Weighting of various measures in calculating the overall determination Compensatory or conjunctive? Exceptions to the rule and recognizing nuances

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Determinations must characterize and differentiate between schools and districts based on student achievement outcomes (status & growth).

Should… Communicate goals of system along with context in which school and district results

can be interpreted by parents and the public Present data in a timely manner Utilizing the latest technology, present data in a variety of accessible ways for

multiple stakeholders Provide stakeholders with actionable data

Could… Include data from the school and classroom level Report data beyond the measures and metrics used for determinations Publish data for "families of schools" for comparison purposes

Key Issues… Balancing validity with transparency Protecting student privacy Balancing timeliness with accuracy Interpreting data

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Results of determinations and diagnostic reviews must be transparently reported in clear, meaningful, and timely ways.

Should…

Should… Incorporate key quality standards with outcome determinations to gain a complete picture

of strengths and areas for improvement Be timed in order to inform supports and interventions Be required at least for low-performing schools (including those with significant

achievement gaps)

Could… Utilize existing accreditation procedures/practices that focus on outcomes and processes used to

achieve those outcomes Employ independent, third-party reviewers Include relevant state and federal monitoring requirements Inform classifications Expand scope to encompass examination of early learning opportunities and other community-

based supports

Key Issues… Building state and district capacity Utilizing external reviewers Incorporating data and instructional improvement systems

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Diagnostic reviews ensure comprehensive analysis of school and district performance through review of both student achievement outcomes and processes to more meaningfully target supports and interventions.

Should… Identify at least the lowest-performing schools, both by overall student

performance and greatest gaps in performance among students Identify highest-performing schools for recognition and best practices

replication

Signal the degree to which state will intervene and mandate a response

Could…

Delineate classifications for the whole range of schools

Key Issues…

Balancing accuracy and clarity

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Classifications differentiate schools and districts to inform the provision of supports & interventions.

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Supports and interventions reinforce or redirect school and district efforts to produce college- and career-ready students based on the student achievement outcomes and the results of the diagnostic review.

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States must continuously evaluate and improve the elements of the next-generation accountability system to best drive student achievement and determine the degree of congruence between the accountability system's end goal of college and career readiness and the means used to achieve that goal.

Federal law should… Codify where appropriate the broad requirements discussed above but

otherwise leave specific design authority to the states. Encourage innovation along with evaluation and cross-state communication to

establish proof points and drive continuous improvement. Establish a process of rigorous, interactive peer review for proposed state

accountability systems. Afford significant flexibility to states in transitioning assessment and

accountability systems as they adopt college- and career-ready standards.

Meanwhile to inform reauthorization and if ESEA is delayed, states should exercise their express waiver authority, and the federal government should approve states' education reform proposals that are educationally sound, consistent with this Roadmap.

We further recommend that ESEA waiver authority be amended and peer review improved to adopt a "state innovation authority" to approve new policy models in assessment, accountability, supports and interventions, and the like.

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The federal government should support state-led efforts to design and execute next-generation accountability systems.