Colorado's new accountability system rates schools' academics
By Jeremy P. Meyer The Denver Post
Posted: 11/04/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT
The first look at Colorado's newly developed school accountability system shows two-thirds of the state's schools are getting top grades, but 5 percent are in academic trouble.
Using data from test scores and student academic improvement, the state assigned each Colorado school to one of four "plans."
Top-performing programs landed in "performance" plans, meaning they hit all of the academic measures and need to figure out how to keep up the good work. A total of 1,292 school programs out of 2,080 statewide ranked in this category. The worst performers fell into the "turnaround" category, meaning they've got five years to make serious improvements or face closure.
The other categories are "improvement" and "priority
Extras
Search the list of the CDE's preliminary findings. improvement."
On Wednesday, the state board of education approved the designations for the schools based on student test performance, academic growth, narrowing of achievement gaps and how well students are prepared when they leave high school.
Schools have until Jan. 15 to develop annual improvement plans. In all, 230 school programs need "priority improvement" or "turnaround" plans. They will require some level of state support or oversight.
State officials have called the new School Performance Framework a national model.
"It is intended to build a communal understanding of the performance of schools and to build a planning process on how to improve schools," said Colorado Associate Commissioner Richard Wenning.
The School Performance Framework's big reveal isn't supposed to be for another month, when state officials are planning an event that will include the governor, unveil a new online tool for parents and provide every school a detailed scorecard.
The new system is born out of the 2009 Education Accountability Act.
Jefferson County, the state's largest school district, had 133 schools with "performance" ratings and 41 schools in the "improvement" plan.
Denver Public Schools, the second-largest district in the state, had the most schools with "turnaround" plans, at 18, but also had the second- most "performance" plans with 85.
Read more: Colorado's new accountability system rates schools' academics - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_16517802#ixzz14pDw8tJE
