DISTRICT AND SCHOOL
ACCOUNTABILITY ON THE SBAC
The District/School NCLB Accountability mandate begins this spring with the receipt of results from the statewide administration of the SBAC in English Language Arts and Math to all students in grades 3-8 and 10, of the ISAT Science Test in grades 5 and 7, and of End of Course Assessments in Biology or Chemistry in 10th grade.
Just as was the case for NCLB with the ISAT, districts and schools will be held accountable for results of the SBAC and Science tests under the NCLB waiver. And, to be sure, just as they did on the ISAT, districts and schools will make improvements in the percentage of "college-ready" or "on the path to college" students.
Just as was the case for NCLB with the ISAT, districts and schools will be held accountable for results of the SBAC and Science tests under the NCLB waiver. And, to be sure, just as they did on the ISAT, districts and schools will make improvements in the percentage of "college-ready" or "on the path to college" students.
But one thing is clear - the percentage of "proficient" students will be far lower on the SBAC than it was on the ISAT. Estimates from the pilot of the SBAC last spring are that, in the SBAC Consortium of 21 states, between 38 and 41 percent of students were proficient in English Language Arts (depending on the grade level), and between 33 and 39 percent were proficient in Math.
It has been evident for several years that a "college-ready" standard is far higher than that of the old ISAT, on which, in 2013, 89% of students were "proficient" in Reading and 76% were proficient in math. So "proficient" performance on the ISAT is much different than "proficient" on the SBAC.
It's important to note that these new, lower percentages of proficiency will occur with any new assessment that is aligned to the Common Core standards. The "college ready" standard in assessment is part of the movement to upgrade rigor and preparation among students across the country.
In fact, school and district performance on the SBAC will likely be more comparable to performance on the SAT or the NAEP. On the 2013 Idaho statewide administration of the SAT (to juniors), 38% of students met the SAT "college-ready" standard in Reading, and 36% met the standard in math. The SAT "college-ready" standard is a score of 500 (total scale 200-800) on the Reading subtest and 500 on the Math subtest.
The SBAC cut scores would appear to have the potential of increasing the number of students missing the cut score for "college readiness". But the consequences for individual students will be even more concerning if a proposed high school graduation rule from the Idaho State Board of Education goes into effect with the class of 2019 (current 8th graders). More on the individual student accountability mandate in the next Data Points post.
It has been evident for several years that a "college-ready" standard is far higher than that of the old ISAT, on which, in 2013, 89% of students were "proficient" in Reading and 76% were proficient in math. So "proficient" performance on the ISAT is much different than "proficient" on the SBAC.
It's important to note that these new, lower percentages of proficiency will occur with any new assessment that is aligned to the Common Core standards. The "college ready" standard in assessment is part of the movement to upgrade rigor and preparation among students across the country.
In fact, school and district performance on the SBAC will likely be more comparable to performance on the SAT or the NAEP. On the 2013 Idaho statewide administration of the SAT (to juniors), 38% of students met the SAT "college-ready" standard in Reading, and 36% met the standard in math. The SAT "college-ready" standard is a score of 500 (total scale 200-800) on the Reading subtest and 500 on the Math subtest.
The SBAC cut scores would appear to have the potential of increasing the number of students missing the cut score for "college readiness". But the consequences for individual students will be even more concerning if a proposed high school graduation rule from the Idaho State Board of Education goes into effect with the class of 2019 (current 8th graders). More on the individual student accountability mandate in the next Data Points post.
