Three districts meet Adequate Yearly Progress

By Carrie Frillman - cfrillman@daily-chronicle.com

Betty Thuestad, an art instructor at Shabbona Elementary School, directs second-grader Will Clucas, 8, on where to place his finished abstract self-portrait Thursday afternoon. ROB WINNER | rwinner@daily-chronicle.com

The bar raises every year.

And it’s one DeKalb County school administrators know well.

This year, the bar is at 62.5 percent — a number school districts recognize as the 2008 benchmark for meeting reading and mathematics Adequate Yearly Progress requirements outlined in the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Benchmarks are measured by performance on state-mandated exams; the most recent tests were given in the spring.

Students in three of the eight public school districts in DeKalb County — Hiawatha, Hinckley-Big Rock and Indian Creek — met the benchmark, according to the State Board of Education. Statewide, the ISBE has identified 101 schools and 23 districts as “struggling to make significant improvement.”

Five DeKalb County districts did not meet the benchmarks: DeKalb, Genoa-Kingston, Sandwich, Somonauk and Sycamore. Neither did the Kaneland School District, which is in Kane County but some students who live in the eastern portion of the county attend schools in that district.

All six districts in the Sycamore School District did have at least 62.5 percent of students meeting or exceeding standards. But schools must meet AYP requirements for two consecutive years to be categorized as passing, and Sycamore Middle School did not meet requirements in 2007.

“We are very proud that all six of our schools did make AYP,” Sycamore Schools Superintendent Wayne Riesen said. “It’s becoming increasingly difficult, and it’s probably not going to be a surprise over the next several years when schools don’t make AYP, because those benchmarks are going to continue marching up.”

High expectations

The percentage of students who must meet or exceed state standards increases every year: In 2007, it was 55 percent. By 2014, the benchmark will be 100 percent.

Test results are broken up into several groups of students, including white, black, Hispanic, American Indian, students with disabilities and the economically disadvantaged. A school does not meet AYP if any group fails to meet benchmarks.

Riesen said he isn’t focusing on Sycamore’s classification as not meeting AYP for 2008 because he knows that academic improvements have been made.

Some districts set even higher goals than the state. The 870 students in the Indian Creek School District are taught to strive for what Schools Superintendent Pamela Rockwood refers to as the “90-30 initiative.”

“That means we want 90 percent of students to meet or exceed the state standards, with 30 percent of those in the exceeds category,” she said. “And we’re making it. We are making AYP, and we are meeting our own goals, too.”

At both Shabbona and Waterman elementary schools, 90 percent of students met and exceeded state standards, according to the ISBE, and nearly 92 percent of all students in the district’s four schools met 2008 benchmarks.

The district holds faculty study groups for curriculum, analyzes both social and academic data, and tries to engage parents in their children’s education to continue reaching goals, Rockwood said.

Making improvements

The practices described by Rockwood are being implemented in schools throughout the county. The DeKalb School District, for instance, uses data-driven curriculum, has bilingual programs for students and offers multiple professional development opportunities for staff.

Yet five of the district’s 12 schools failed to meet AYP standards this year. DeKalb High School failed for the fourth year in a row and Clinton Rosette Middle School for the second. Chesebro, Jefferson and Littlejohn elementary schools missed for the first time since 2001, when AYP benchmarks were first set.

DeKalb missed some benchmarks in part because all students, regardless of whether their native language is English, are required to take the same test.

The five DeKalb schools that failed to make AYP have high populations of Spanish-speaking students enrolled, Becky McCabe said last week during a meeting of the DeKalb School Board.

McCabe, a former ISBE employee, is the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. She stressed that the results are not a reflection of the district’s bilingual program.

A district-wide improvement plan is being developed to address AYP standards, Schools Superintendent Jim Briscoe said Thursday.

“Every single building is fully aware of the targets that need to be met,” he said. “What we need to do and what we are doing is looking at the whole pre-K- through-12 curriculum.”

Schools throughout the county will continue to work toward more students meeting benchmarks, superintendents said, but it’s going to become increasingly challenging.

“People can look at one day of testing and classify a school as a failing school,” Riesen said. “That is not my mindset, but that’s the day in which we live.”

Adequate Yearly Progress

What is AYP?

AYP stands for Adequate Yearly Progress. It represents the annual academic performance targets in reading and math that the state, districts and schools must reach to be considered on track for 100 percent proficiency by school year 2013-14.

Why does AYP exist?

As required by the Federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, “Sec. 1111 (b)(F), each state shall establish a timeline for adequate yearly progress. The timeline shall ensure that not later than 12 years after the 2001-2002 school year, all students ... will meet or exceed the state’s standards.”

Who has to make AYP?

The state public school districts and individual public schools must make AYP. All students and subgroups of 45 or more students are calculated for AYP.

The subgroups required by NCLB are: Racial/Ethnic: whites, blacks, Hispanics, Native American, Asian/Pacific Islander, and multi-ethnic; economically disadvantaged: students on free or reduced lunch; students with disabilities: students with IEPs; and Limited English Proficient students.

What happens if a Title I school or a school district doesn’t make AYP?

Nothing after one year. However, Title I schools that fail to make AYP for two consecutive years are placed on School Improvement. Title I earmarks federal funds for schools where at least 40 percent of the children are considered to be from low-income families.

In year one of school improvement, the school must develop an improvement plan and offer students a choice of which school to attend.

In year two, the school must offer supplemental services in addition to school choice.

In year three, the school district must implement one or more of a list of corrective actions.

Who made Adequate Yearly Progress?

DeKalb School District

DeKalb High     No

Huntley Middle     Yes

Chesebro Elementary    No

Jefferson Elementary    No

Lincoln Elementary    Yes

Littlejohn Elementary    No

Tyler Elementary    Yes

Cortland Elementary    Yes

Clinton Rosette Elementary    No

Gwendolyn Brooks Elementary    Yes

Malta Elementary    Yes

Paul T. Wright Elementary    Yes

Entire District    No    

Genoa-Kingston School District

Genoa-Kingston High     No

Genoa-Kingston Middle    No

Kingston Elementary     Yes

Genoa Elementary     Yes

Entire district    No

Hiawatha School District

Hiawatha Jr. and Sr. High     Yes

Hiawatha Elementary    Yes

Entire District    Yes

Hinckley-Big Rock School District

Hinckley-Big Rock High    Yes

Hinckley-Big Rock Middle    Yes

Hinckley-Big Rock Elementary    Yes

Entire District    Yes

Indian Creek School District       

Indian Creek High      Yes

Indian Creek Middle     Yes

Waterman Elementary    Yes

Shabbona Elementary    Yes

Entire District    Yes

Kaneland School District

Kaneland Senior High School    No

Kaneland Middle School    Yes

John Shields Elementary    Yes

John Stewart Elementary    Yes

Blackberry Elementary    Yes

McDole Elementary    Yes

Entire District    No

Somonauk School District

Somonauk High     No

Somonauk Middle    Yes

James R. Wood Elementary    Yes

Entire District    No

Sandwich School District

Sandwich Community High     No

Sandwich Middle    No

Lynn G. Haskin Elementary    Yes

W. W. Woodbury Elementary    Yes

Prairie View Elementary    Yes

Herman E. Dummer Elementary    Yes

Entire District    No

Sycamore School District

Sycamore High     Yes

Sycamore Middle     Yes

North Elementary    Yes

Southeast Elementary    Yes

West Elementary    Yes

South Elementary    Yes

Entire District    No