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North Carolina Education News
February 2008
Copyright © 2008 Queue, Inc.
IN THIS ISSUE:
Teacher Bonuses and Teacher Retention in
Low-Performing Schools
State Dropout Rate Increases In 2006-07
Mapping Educational Progress 2008
Between
2001 and 2004, the state of North Carolina gave an annual salary
bonus of $1,800 to certified math, science, and special education
teachers in a set of low-performing and/or high-poverty secondary
schools. Eligible teachers were to continue receiving the bonus as
long as they continued in the school. In a survey of teachers and
principals, the authors find evidence that school personnel favor
the use of monetary incentives to increase the attractiveness of
their workplace but were skeptical that the amount of the bonus
would be sufficient to reduce the high turnover rates in their
schools. Preliminary evidence on turnover rates supports this
skepticism. Given that the survey evidence reveals widespread
misunderstanding of the retention incentives incorporated into the
program, the authors conclude that the bonus program was hampered by
a series of flaws in design and implementation.
Full
study:
http://pfr.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/36/1/63
Efforts
Underway to Address At-Risk Students' Needs
A
total of 23,550 students - or 5.24 percent of the students in grades nine
through 12 - dropped out of school in the 2006-07 school year, according to the
"Annual Dropout Event Report for School Year 2006-07" today presented
to the State Board of Education. The dropout rate in 2005-06 was 5.04 percent
or 22,180 students.
Forty-three
percent of North Carolina's 115 school districts reported a decrease in dropout
events with Washington, Clay and Camden counties showing the largest rate
decreases - approximately 50 percent decreases in each case. Large increases in
a handful of school districts pushed up the state average.
Efforts
to Improve High Schools
The
issue of high school dropouts has prompted significant work recently to improve
middle and high schools so that students are better engaged and supported in
their learning. Specific efforts expected to affect the dropout rate include:
Literacy
Coaches. The 2007 session of the General Assembly approved 100 additional
literacy coaches for middle schools, increasing the total number to 200.
Learn
and Earn Early College High Schools. By the end of 2008, 76 Learn and Earn
Early College high schools should be operational or in planning across the
state. These schools provide students, particularly non-traditional college
students or students who could be first-generation college students, the
opportunity to earn an Associate's Degree at no cost while still under the
supervision and support of high school faculties. Early results of these
schools are promising. For 2005-06, the 12 Learn and Earn high schools in
operation that year had a combined ninth grade promotion rate of 96 percent,
while the statewide average promotion rate for that grade was 85 percent. Five
of the Learn and Earn high schools promoted 100 percent of their ninth graders.
Dropout
Prevention Grants. The Joint Legislative Commission on Dropout Prevention and
High School Graduation awarded 60 groups (school systems, schools, agencies and
nonprofits) across the state grants totaling $7 million to help them in their
efforts to reduce drop outs. The Commission will evaluate the programs and
decide whether expanding or replicating them will improve graduation rates in
the state.
High
School Transformation. Two years ago, the Department of Public Instruction and
State Board of Education began serious work in partnership with the state's
chronically low-performing high schools to provide the support they need for
systemic change and improvement. NCDPI now has 35 schools in High School
Turnaround and 54 schools in High School Turnaround Assessment, the first step
toward improving each school.
North
Carolina Virtual Public School. The goal of the North Carolina Virtual Public
School is to provide students with courses that are unavailable to them at
their traditional schools or scheduled at times that students are not able to
access traditional brick-and-mortar courses.
Learn
and Earn Online. Learn and Earn Online enables students to register and take
online courses through any community college or through the University of North
Carolina at Greensboro iSchool at no cost to the student or their family.
EARN
Scholarships. The EARN Scholarship provides incentives for students and enables
Early College high school students who are at or below 200 percent of the
poverty level and who complete an Associate's Degree with an acceptable grade
point average, to qualify to earn their baccalaureate degree debt-free at one
of North Carolina's public universities.
Other
Report Findings
Data
analysis found that almost one-third (32 percent) of all dropout events
continue to occur during the ninth grade year with 25 percent of dropouts
leaving in 10th grade and 22 percent of them dropping out in 11th grade.
Dropout rates increase in frequency as students reach 16 years of age.
Seventy-eight percent of dropout events occurred between the ages of 16 and 18.
Although
the dropout rates for Black (6.16 percent), Multiracial (5.23 percent) and
White (4.52 percent) students increased in 2006-07, the dropout rate for American
Indian students (7.71 percent) fell to its lowest level in the last four years.
The dropout rate for Asian students declined (2.41 percent). The dropout rate
for Hispanic students (7.66 percent) also declined - despite a large increase
in dropout events. This is attributed to a rapidly increasing Hispanic student
population.
The
2006-07 school year also saw a slight decrease (59.4 percent from 59.9 percent)
in the number of male students dropping out although they continue to be much
more likely to drop out than females.
State
law requires school officials to record the reason for a student's decision to
drop out of school. In 2006-07, 51 percent of the dropout events listed
attendance issues as the reason for the student's decision to drop out. Although
schools are only to use this reason code for students who drop out due to
excessive absences that caused the student to become ineligible or in jeopardy
of becoming ineligible to receive course credits, there are concerns that this
code also is used to cover other reasons that may be uncertain or unknown.
There will be an "unknown" code added to the 2007-08 report, which
should address this issue. Other common reasons reported by schools include
enrollment in a community college (13.6 percent) followed by moved, school
status unknown (10.6 percent) and academic problems (7.1 percent).
Dropout
data have been collected each year since 1988-89, although specific reporting
methods changed in 1991 to conform to new federal guidelines and in 1999
because of changes in the state's definition of a dropout.
For
the annual dropout rate calculation, a dropout is defined as a student who:
á
was
enrolled in school at some time during the previous school year, which is the
reporting year;
á
was
not enrolled on Day 20 of the current school year;
á
has
not graduated from high school or completed a state or district approved
educational program; and
á
does
not meet any of the following reporting exclusions:
transferred to another public school district,
private school, home school or state/district approved educational program;
temporarily absent due to suspension or
school-approved illness; or death.
North
Carolina also collects a four-year cohort graduation rate each year. This rate
indicates the percentage of first-time ninth graders who graduated from high
school four years later.
The
complete dropout report and district level numbers are available online at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/research/dropout/reports.
EdweekÕs
Editorial Projects in Education Research Center States awarded overall letter
grades based on ratings across six areas of performance and policy:
chance-for-success; K-12 achievement; standards, assessments, and
accountability; transitions and alignment; the teaching profession; and school
finance.
|
Quality
Counts 2008 Grading Summary |
|
North
Carolina |
|
|
Chance
for success |
C+ |
|
K-12
achievement |
D+ |
|
Standards,
assessments, and accountability |
B+ |
|
Transitions
and alignment |
D+ |
|
The
teaching profession |
B |
|
School
finance |
C- |
OVERALL GRADE: C
Full
North Carolina
Report:
http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/qc/2008/18shr.nc.h27.pdf
The
national Report is here:
http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/qc/2008/18shr.us.h27.pdf
State
Reports are here:
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/01/10/18shr.h27.html
Data
on student achievement in reading and math, high school graduation rates,
schools making adequate yearly progress, highly qualified teachers, parents
taking advantage of tutoring and choice options, state participation in
flexibility options, and more.
National
Report:
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/accountability/results/progress/nation.html
North
Carolina Report:
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/accountability/results/progress/northcarolina.pdf
When
it comes to school funding, too many states still provide the least to school districts
serving students with the greatest needs, according to a report released by The
Education Trust.
The
seventh in a series of annual reports, The Funding Gap includes state-by-state
analyses of funding trends from 1999 to 2005, comparing the
resources available to school districts serving the highest percentages of
low-income students and students of color to the resources available to
districts serving the lowest percentages of such students. For the first
time, the report also compares funding available to school districts serving
the high percentages of English language learners (ELL) to that available to
districts serving the lowest percentages of ELL. Using data for the
eight states with the highest percentages of English learners, the report finds
that high-ELL districts generally receive less financial support than do
districts with few or no ELL students.
The
Bad News
In
1999, IllinoisÕ
funding gap was the second-largest in the nation. By 2005, the Illinois
gap was still the second-largest, and had actually gotten worse. Illinois
is joined by Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New
Hampshire, North
Carolina,
South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin at the top of
the list of states in which the funding gap between high- and low-poverty
districts grew between 1999 and 2005.
Full
report:
http://www2.edtrust.org/NR/rdonlyres/5AF8F288-949D-4677-82CF-5A867A8E9153/0/FundingGap2007.pdf
Forty-eight North Carolina public schools were recently
designated 2007-08 Super Safe Schools in recognition of their
exemplary efforts in providing a safe working and learning environment for
educators and students. Representatives of these schools received their awards
during a luncheon ceremony held last week at the 2008 Safe Schools and
Character Education Conference in Greensboro.
The Department of Public Instruction's School Safety and
Climate Division established the Super Safe Schools
awards program to recognize schools for "decreasing the incidence of
school crime and violence, and implementing strategies for maintaining safe,
orderly and caring schools as evidenced by school data." To receive
recognition as a Super Safe School, schools voluntarily submit
a portfolio documenting the safety processes they have in place. The portfolios
are evaluated and the scores received determine which schools are recognized.
The following schools received a plaque in recognition
of their honor as 2007-08 Super Safe Schools:
Bladenboro Primary, Bladen County Schools
South Brunswick Middle, Brunswick County Schools
Langdon C. Kerr Elementary, Clinton City Schools
Clinton High, Clinton City Schools
Chowan Middle, Edenton-Chowan Schools
D.F. Walker Elementary, Edenton-Chowan Schools
White Oak Elementary, Edenton-Chowan Schools
Northeastern High, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public
Schools
Greene Central High, Greene County Schools
Greene County Middle, Greene County Schools
Snow Hill Primary, Greene County Schools
West Greene Elementary, Greene County Schools
Viewmont Elementary, Hickory City Schools
Sandy Grove Elementary, Hoke County Schools
West Iredell High, Iredell-Statesville Schools
South Lenoir High, Lenoir County Schools
Dixon Middle, Onslow County Schools
Hunters Creek Middle, Onslow County Schools
Jacksonville Commons Middle, Onslow County Schools
New Bridge Middle, Onslow County Schools
Silverdale Elementary, Onslow County Schools
Southwest High, Onslow County Schools
Southwest Middle, Onslow County Schools
Swansboro Middle, Onslow County Schools
Perquimans Central, Perquimans County Schools
Perquimans County Middle, Perquimans County Schools
Phoenix Academy Charter, Guilford County
Monroe Avenue Elementary, Richmond County Schools
Richmond Primary, Richmond County Schools
East Robeson Primary, Public Schools of Robeson County
Littlefield Middle, Public Schools of Robeson County
Long Branch Elementary, Public Schools of Robeson County
Rosenwald Elementary, Public Schools of Robeson County
Oxendine Elementary, Public Schools of Robeson County
Rowland Middle, Public Schools of Robeson County
Orrum Middle, Public Schools of Robeson County
Rowland–Norment Elementary, Public Schools of
Robeson County
Running Creek Elementary, Stanly County Schools
Rosman Elementary, Transylvania County Schools
Monroe High, Union County Schools
Piedmont Middle, Union County Schools
Walter Bickett Elementary, Union County Schools
Weddington Middle, Union County Schools
Reedy Creek Middle, Wake County Schools
Vandora Springs Elementary, Wake County Schools
Forbush High, Yadkin County Schools
Yadkin Success Academy, Yadkin County Schools