Northwest Regional Comprehensive Center
Hot Topics
SEA Rapid Response
The Northwest Regional Comprehensive Center provides responses to questions posed by state department of education staff. As part of our online web services, the answers to those requests are posted on this site as hot topics. Additionally, the NWRCC highlights topics of interest to educators in our region. To make a SEA request contact the state coordinator for your state.
Secondary Reform Initiatives
The resources listed in the following PDF document is a sampling review of other state education agency (SEA) approaches to high school reform, as well as links to best practice findings and information from the National High School Center and other organizations involved in the area of high school reform.
Support For Small Rural Schools/Districts
The documents and websites in this section are the result of a search of policy and practices in state educational agencies and a review of documents produced by organizations and agencies that research and report on issues relevant to rural schools. The search was further limited to issues pertaining to rural schools/districts and implementing No Child Left Behind.
Evaluating State Accountability Systems
The documents and websites for this section come from Marianne Perie and Brian Gong at the Center for Assessment (http://www.nciea.org/). Marianne has done an extensive literature review of the topic and recommended these publications to review for standard criteria for evaluating accountability systems. Brian added this note in an email message to the NWRCC .....
Examples Of State Accountability Systems
The documents and websites in this section are the result of a search of policy and practices in state educational agencies and a review of documents produced by organizations and agencies that review and conduct research on accountability models that states have implemented. This search strategy was chosen in response to the request for examples of what other states have done. While the search included attention to research findings on accountability systems, no such studies were found.
Statewide Professional Development Models
The documents and websites in this section are the result of a search of policy and practices in state educational agencies and a review of documents produced by organizations and agencies that review and conduct research on professional development models that states have implemented. This search strategy was chosen in response to the request for examples of what other states have done. Documents and references were selected to represent different models and frameworks found across a variety states.
Response To Intervention (RTI)
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 authorized local education agencies to use Response to Intervention (RTI) models. RTI is an itegrated approach that includes general, remedial, and special education. It is based on a three-tiered model that monitors student progress with different levels of intervention intensity. By providing scientifically-based intervention to students, monitoring progress on interventions, and using this information to determine who is in need of more intensive services, RTI also builds on the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).
Growth Model Pilot
The U.S. Department of Education has announced a pilot program where interested and qualified states can submit proposals for developing growth models that follow the bright-line principles of No Child Left Behind. As part of the pilot, the Department will approve no more than 10 high-quality growth models in 2005-06. The purpose of the pilot programs is to evaluate how these growth models might help schools meet the NCLB proficiency goals and close the achievement gap as well as provide the Department and other States useful information to improve the quality of data, assessment, and accountability systems. Consistent with the particular model a State is proposing, a State proposal must show how it meets a set of core principles, detailed below and in the enclosure, thus ensuring that its growth model aligns with NCLB and that its standards and assessment system contains necessary foundational elements.
Growth Models: Flexibility and Accountability Factsheet
http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/growthmodel/factsheet.html
USDOE Letter to the Chief State School Officers
This letter outlines what a state needs to do if interested in being one of ten pilot program for the growth model.
http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/secletter/051121.html
Policymakers' Guide to Growth Models for School Accountability:
How do Accountability Models Differ?
This paper commissioned by the Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), addresses many questions that educators may have about the differences between status models and growth models.
http://www.ccsso.org/content/pdfs/Growth%20Models%20Policymaker%20Guide%202005.pdf
States Test Limits of Federal AYP Flexibility
This report is based on the Center on Education Policy's review of changes to state accountability plans as
posted on the U.S. Department of Education's web site.
http://www.cep-dc.org/fededprograms/FederalAYPFlexibility/StateAccountabilityPlanReport.pdf