District Improvement Plan Provides Road Map

School districts that have not met the student achievement goals articulated by the state under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) are required to submit a plan detailing their strategies for improvement. The Rapid City Area Schools Board of Education will be asked to approve the District Improvement Plan at tonight’s meeting which will be held at Western Dakota Tech. The plan could have far-reaching consequences for students, educators and parents.

NCLB’s Goals: Transparency and Accountability

Transparency and accountability were intended to be the keys to No Child Left Behind’s strategy for improving education. By requiring districts to test students every year and publish the results of those tests, policymakers hoped that parents and community members would hold school boards, administrators and educators responsible for student achievement. The law also sought to force failing schools and districts to publicly outline a strategy for improvement. If schools do not improve, districts and states are required to give students and parents alternative ways to get the effective instruction they need and, ultimately, if the schools continue to fall short of the state standards, the state can even take control.

Although Rapid City made some significant gains in 2008-2009, student achievement, as measured by test scores still fell short of the state’s goals. In reading and math, an insufficient percentage of American Indian students and students with disabilities scored proficient or better on the annual Dakota STEP test last spring. Economically disadvantaged students in middle school also fell short of the state’s target in reading and elementary and middle school math. In fact, for all students, the percentages scoring proficient or better were either flat or declined from the spring 2008 test.

Plan Emphasizes Data Analysis, Teacher Training and Tutoring

The District Improvement Plan on the agenda tonight reflects a further revision of the plan the District has been working on for a number of years, and despite the fact that the Board is considering the plan tonight, implementation actually began when teachers returned to work last August. It starts with data analysis. Building Leadership Teams throughout the District pore over the Dakota STEP scores to identify patterns of weakness so that teachers and principals can strengthen curriculum and instruction to address those weaknesses. By the time students start class, these new strategies are already in the works.

Research overwhelmingly shows that the key to student achievement is effective teaching. Ongoing research in education also identifies new strategies for teaching specific curriculum and ways to meet the different learning styles of a variety of students. The District Improvement Plan highlights a variety of ways in which Rapid City will provide professional development to help teachers continually sharpen their skills. It also provides an overview of the District’s strategies for recruiting, mentoring and retaining highly qualified teachers and administrators.

To protect students and parents, No Child Left Behind mandates that when schools are not making the grade, students must be able to transfer to successful schools or receive additional tutoring at District expense. The District sends a letter to parents at the beginning of the school year letting them know how their school is doing and what options they have. Although Rapid City has been on school improvement for a number of years, the number of families taking advantage of the tutoring option has been minimal. This year, however, the District is making a major effort to reach out to parents and has increased the budget for tutoring services from $100,000 to nearly $900,000.

Student Achievement Goals for 2009-2010

The major elements in the District Improvement Plan that should drive spending and planning are the student achievement goals for 2009-2010.  With the specter of NCLB’s goal to have 100 percent of all students scoring proficient or better in both reading and math by 2014, this year’s goals for spring 2010 testing in Rapid City are ambitious, but also confusing because of differences between the way scores are reported and the way the State asks for goals:

• Reading K-8 – 86% of all students will score proficient or better (Actual in 2009: 74% for elementary; 71% for middle school);
• Math K-8 – 72% of all students will score proficient or better (Actual in 2009: 72% for elementary; 68% for middle school);
• Reading 9-12 – 77% of all students will score proficient or better (Actual in 2009: 71% ;
• Math 9-12 – 63% of all students will score proficient or better (Actual in 2009: 61%);
• Graduation rate – 80% (Actual in 2009: 84.65%);
• Attendance rate – 94% (Actual in 2008-2009: 94.55%).

For a copy of the draft District Improvement Plan click here: 09-10 DRAFT RCAS District Improvement Plan.

Tonight’s Board of Education meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. at Western Dakota Tech. A copy of the agenda is available here: Board agenda 121909