K-PREP Results Released for Henderson County Schools Unbridled Learning 2014

HENDERSON, Ky. —The results from the 2013-14 state accountability system have been released.

• The Henderson County School District is considered Distinguished.
• Henderson County High School is Proficient and is a Focus School.
• South Middle School is Distinguished/Progressing and is a School of Distinction.
• North Middle School is Proficient/Progressing and is a Focus School.
• The elementary schools have various classifications:
• A.B. Chandler is Distinguished/Progressing and a High Performing School.
• Bend Gate Elementary School is Needs Improvement.
• Cairo Elementary is Proficient/Progressing.
• East Heights Elementary is Distinguished/Progressing and is a School of Distinction.
• Jefferson Elementary is Needs Improvement/Progressing.
• Niagara Elementary is Distinguished/Progressing and is a School of Distinction.
• South Heights Elementary is Distinguished/Progressing and is a School of Distinction/High Progress.
• Spottsville Elementary is Distinguished/Progressing and is a High Performing School.

This is the first time the Henderson County School District has achieved a Distinguished rating and is one of only 39 out of the 173 school districts in the Commonwealth to be classified as such. Additionally six schools are at the Distinguished level which means their overall scores are at the 90th percentile and above.

Three schools are at the Proficient levels which means their overall accountability score was in the 70th to 89th percentile statewide. For the two schools whose score was below the 70th percentile, their designation is Needs Improvement.

Nine of the eleven schools are considered Progressing, which represents an increase of two schools over last year’s data. Progressing means the school met the Annual Measureable Objective that was set in 2013. If a school was considered Proficient or Distinguished 2013, the AMO was .5 point. If a school was considered Needs Improvement in 2013, the AMO was 1 point. Schools considered Progressing are: A.B. Chandler Elementary, Cairo Elementary, East Heights Elementary, North Middle School, South Middle School, Jefferson Elementary, Niagara Elementary, South Heights Elementary and Spottsville Elementary.

In addition to classifications, several schools were placed in rewards categories:

For the first time ever four schools were named Schools of Distinction. To receive this honor a school had to meet its Annual Measureable Objective that was set in 2013, student participation rate and have an overall accountability score at the 95th percentile or higher. Schools to attain this are South Middle School, East Heights Elementary, Niagara Elementary and South Heights Elementary. South Heights is also a High Progress school which means it has an improvement score indicating it is in the top 10 percent of improvement.

Spottsville Elementary is a High Performing School which indicates it met the AMO, participation rate and had scores between the 90th and 94th percentile.

Henderson County School Superintendent Marganna Stanley commented, “We are seeing the product of the hard work and dedication of our staff and our students as we work together to improve outcomes throughout the district. As excited as we are about the results of Unbridled Learning 2014, we know we must continue the level of rigor to achieve the standard of excellence that every child in this community deserves.”

Test Design

As required by Senate Bill 1 (2009), the Kentucky Board of Education developed a new, balanced accountability model, Unbridled Learning: College/Career-Readiness for All. The model took effect in the 2011-12 school year. It incorporates all aspects of school and district work and is organized around the KBE’s four strategic priorities: Next-Generation Learners, Next-Generation Professionals, Next-Generation Instructional Programs and Support Systems, and Next-Generation Schools and Districts. The first two years of reporting include Next- Generation Learners; 2013-14 includes Next-Generation Learners and Next-Generation Instructional Programs and Support Systems (Program Reviews). Next-Generation Professionals and additional Program Review areas are scheduled to enter the model in future years. All data for the assessment and accountability system are publicly available in the Kentucky School Report Card on the Kentucky Department of Education website.

In February 2012, the U.S. Department of Education granted Kentucky flexibility under the No Child Left Behind Act. This allows Kentucky to use the Unbridled Learning model to report both state and federal level accountability measures.

Starting in spring of 2012, Kentucky public school students in grades 3-8 completed tests collectively named the Kentucky Performance Rating for Educational Progress, in five content areas: reading, mathematics, science, social studies and writing. With the exception of reading and mathematics, not all subjects are tested at every grade. In addition, students (primarily at the high school level) complete End-of-Course exams in Algebra II, English II, Biology and U.S. History. High school students also complete a writing test and language mechanics test (part of ACT PLAN) in grade 10 and a writing test in grade 11. Students receive reports that place their performance in each content area into the categories of Novice, Apprentice, Proficient and Distinguished.

The Unbridled Learning accountability model includes annual public reporting of student performance disaggregated by various student groups.

The Next-Generation Learners portion of the Unbridled Learning Accountability Model includes student achievement growth measures with emphasis on college- and career-readiness, high school graduation rates, student achievement in the five content areas, and increased focus on closing achievement gaps. Additionally, the accountability model holds all schools and districts accountable for improving student performance and providing quality learning opportunities in a variety of program areas (Program Reviews). Schools, districts and the state are placed in one of three performance classifications: Distinguished, Proficient or Needs Improvement. Based on their classifications and overall scores, schools and districts are placed in categories for the determination of recognition, support and consequences.

Note: The 2013 data in the 2014 School Report Card has been updated based on data review changes made after the 2013 public release.

In 2014 the overall accountability scores are a combination of Next-Generation Learners scores and Next-Generation Instructional Programs and Support scores. Since this is the first year of adding Program Review scores, prior year scores from 2012 and 2013 cannot be compared to the 2014 scores.

Next-Generation Learners scores come from the K-PREP tests, End of Course tests, EPAS tests (EXPLORE, PLAN, ACT), career readiness measures and graduation rates. Next-Generation Instructional Programs and Support scores come from the Program Reviews. In order to determine the overall score, the Kentucky Department of Education weighs Next-Generation Learners scores at 77 percent and Next-Generation Instructional Programs and Support scores at 23 percent.

For Next-Generation Learners, point totals from the five components are reported and then weighted to achieve a Next-Generation Learners score. The components are:

• Achievement (Content areas are reading, mathematics, science, social studies and writing);
• Gap (percentage of proficient and distinguished) for the Non-Duplicated Gap Group for all five content areas. Gap group students are those considered African American, Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native, as well as students with disabilities, students who receive free/reduced-price meals and students who are Limited English Proficient;
• Growth in reading and mathematics (percentage of students at typical or higher levels of growth as compared to their academic peers);
• College Readiness as measured by the percentage of students meeting benchmarks in three content areas on ACT EXPLORE at middle school and by ACT benchmarks, college placement tests and career measures at high school; and
• Graduation Rate. Starting in 2014, the graduation rate uses a five-year adjusted Cohort graduation formula for the 20 percent calculation of Next-Generation Learners. However, the four-year cohort graduation rates are used to determine whether a school/district met its graduation rate goal.

For Next Generation Instructional Programs and Support, the Program Review scores were added to the overall 2014 scores. A program review is an evaluation of the instructional program in each school over the subjects of Writing; Arts and Humanities; and Practical Living/Career Studies.

They are rated on four standards: (1) Curriculum and Instruction, (2) Formative and Summative Assessment, (3) Professional Learning and (4) Administrative/ Leadership Support. Each standard is then broken into demonstrators and characteristics. These demonstrators are judged using a rubric as a scoring guide. The scores range from 0-3 which mean: 0 – Non-Existent; 1 – Needs Improvement; 2 – Proficient; 3 – Distinguished. For a total score, the four standard scores are added resulting in a single number ranging between 0-12 for each Program Review. Below 8 is Needs Improvement, 8-10.7 is Proficient and 10.8 or higher is Distinguished.

Scores on a scale of 0-12 from each program (Arts and Humanities, Practical Living/Career Studies, and Writing) are combined for the program review total points. The total points are divided by 24 (proficient (8) x 3 areas=24) and rounded to 1 digit to create the Program Review Total Score.

Based on the Overall Score and Percentile Rank, schools and districts will receive various classifications such as Distinguished, Proficient, Needs Improvement or Progressing. In addition to classifications, schools can also qualify for rewards and assistance categories including School of Distinction, Highest Performing, High Progress and Focus. The Focus designation is given to schools that have non-duplicated gap groups scoring in the bottom 10% or have an individual group of students scoring significantly low.

District Actions

Parents/guardians will receive individual reports for their children at a later. Results for schools and districts will be made available at the Kentucky Department of Education website www.education.ky.gov on Oct. 3, 2014.

In looking at the data and upon reviewing practices put in place, school and district leaders will next determine strengths of the district and create a plan of action for improvement. This plan will be the basis of the 2014-15 School and District Improvement Plans.

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