Message: New Version

New Version
New Version

From | Barbour, Robin | Date Wednesday, September 27, 2017 12:36 PM

To | Neale, Chris
Cc |
Subject | New Version

Preis Letterhead.pdf (233 Kb )

    Administrative Memo    Date:     September 27, 2017  To:  School Administrators  From:  Stacey Preis, Deputy Commissioner, Division of Learning Services
     Blaine Henningsen, Assistant Commissioner, Office of College and Career Readiness   Chris Neale, Assistant Commissioner, Office of Quality Schools  Subjects: LS -17-002   Modifications to the 2017 Annual Performance Report (APR)
     APR Release Schedule   Sunshine Law Request   Algebra I and English II Verification Process   Moving Forward     Thank you for your patience as we have worked to reach a resolution regarding 2016-2017  assessments in Algebra I and English II. We have included several pieces of information in this  update.
      I. Modifications to the 2017 APR    The adjustments outlined below will be incorporated into the 2017 APR. Due to the removal of  the Algebra I and English II data, Standard 1 Academic Achievement, Standard 2 Subgroup  Achievement and Standard 3 High School Readiness will be calculated in the following manner:
    A.  English Language Arts and Mathematics Assessment Hold Harmless
    Standard Applicable: Standards 1 and 2 – English language arts (ELA) and Mathematics  Updated Policy due to exclusion of Algebra I and English II data: The 2017 APR will be  calculated using existing 2015 and 2016 data plus 2017 data with Algebra I and English  II removed. The points earned in Standard 1 and 2 will be compared to the points earned  in 2016 using this methodology. The district or charter local education agency (LEA) will  receive the higher of 2016 or 2017 points for the APR. The same calculation process will  be followed for Standard 1 Academic Achievement and Standard 2 Subgroup  Achievement.
    Example – A district or charter LEA receives 12 points in Standard 1 ELA in  2016, but earns 16 points in 2017 (with Algebra I and English II data  excluded). The 16 points for 2017 would be used in the APR calculation.  The opposite is also true; if a district or charter LEA earned 16 points in  2016, but only 12 in 2017, 16 points from 2016 would be used for the  APR calculation.

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    Participation in Algebra I and English II during the 2017 administration window  satisfies the participation rate requirement. Districts and charter LEAs will  not receive a level not determined (LND) for students who took Algebra I  and English II assessments in the 2016-17 school year.
      B. High School Readiness – Removal of Algebra I Scores
    Standard Applicable: Standard 3 High School Readiness   Updated Policy: The results from the 2017 End-of-Course assessments (EOCs) in  Algebra I and English II do not produce year-to-year comparable results. For purposes of  the 2017 APR, if a student was assessed on the Algebra I EOC, DESE will substitute a  student’s qualifying proficient score on the prior year 7
    th grade mathematics assessment.
    (After analysis of the 2017 assessment data, it was determined that K-8 districts did not  administer the English II EOC).     II. APR Release Schedule    Date Description Notes
    September 29 (5:00) Algebra I and English II  corrections deadline COB  Secure Mode
    October 4 Public hearing – changes to
    the Comprehensive Guide for  the Missouri School  Improvement Program
    Governor’s Office Building  Room 450  Jefferson City, MO  8:30-10:30 a.m.
    October 6 (5:00 p.m.) Data freeze for preliminary  APR  Secure Mode
    October 20 APR preview (excluding
    Algebra I and English II)  Secure Mode
    October 20 – October 27 Appeals Window Standards 3-5 only
    October 27 (5:00 p.m.) Data freeze for Final APR Freeze  November 8 Final APR (Excluding
    Algebra I and English II)  behind secure login
    Secure Mode
    November 13 Embargoed data available to
    press
    Embargoed
    November 15 Final APR release (Excluding
    Algebra I and English II)  Public
      The following data were available for school districts and charter LEAs beginning September 22,  2017:
     MAP Student Achievement Level    MAP Participation Invalidation   MAP Scale Score Summary      MAP Student Demographics

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    III. Sunshine Law Request
    DESE has received a Sunshine Law request regarding the 2017 EOC results in Algebra I and  English II. We must honor this request.
    The data will be provided with the following caveats:
    A. The Missouri Assessment Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) made up of nationally  recognized assessment experts recommended that the data not be reported.  B. DESE agreed with the TAC recommendation and will not publish the data on our website  for these two tests.  C. Districts and charter LEAs are provided time to verify data sets (i.e., to make any needed
    corrections to the data and to appeal test scores). Since these data were not to be reported  by DESE, districts and charter LEAs may not have certified the data for these two tests.  This means that, aside from the year-to-year comparability issues, the data could  inaccurately reflect the performance of a particular district or charter LEA in other  capacities as well.
    In short, we believe that it would be irresponsible to publicly report data obtained by DESE in its  current form. Should someone contact you about these data, please refer to the above caveats.
    IV. Algebra I and English II Verification Process    Consistent with past practice, prior to producing public reports based on accountability data,  districts and charter LEAs have the opportunity to verify and/or correct the related data. In light  of the Sunshine Law request, information related to the administration of Algebra I and English  II will be provided to school districts and charter LEAs for review. Districts and charter LEAs  will have an opportunity to make corrections to the 2017 Algebra I and English II data. Please  remember that Algebra I and English II data will not be used in the calculations of the 2017  APR. DESE does not believe that the public release of these data is advisable.
    V. Moving Forward
    Once again, we want to convey that we share your frustration around spring 2017 assessments in  Algebra I and English II. We expect more from our assessment vendors. The EOC vendor,  Questar, has recently been purchased by Educational Testing Services (ETS), and we are able to  share with you key elements of the resolution we reached. In addition to state compensation,  districts and charter LEAs will not be billed for 2017-18 EOCs in Algebra I and English II, up to  the amount paid for those assessments in 2016-17.
    Second, for the remainder of the contract year, DESE will require the following additional  assurances regarding the 2017-18 EOCs, and Questar has agreed to fulfill these obligations:
    A. Engage the psychometrics services of its parent company, ETS, to review the  preliminary aggregate analysis, provide consultative services to the Missouri  Assessment TAC on the program status, and perform a psychometric quality audit of  the overall program

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    B. Establish a process to verify bandwidth requirements and the allocation of bandwidth  for as many as 50,000 users prior to the beginning of each assessment window  C. Provide daily reports to DESE during each assessment window which include the  number of students tested that day in each course, cumulative test totals, cumulative
    percent of the number of students anticipated during the test window, a brief narrative  summary of test issues encountered during the day, and available test administration  analytics   D. Provide preliminary reports to DESE regarding test completion throughout each  assessment window
    The fall American Government and American History EOC operational test window opens on  Thursday, October 5 for districts who have submitted precode files.  Student records will appear  in Nextera by Wednesday, October 4.
    For additional questions regarding accountability and APR production, please contact staff in our  School Improvement section:    Jocelyn Strand jocelyn.strand@dese.mo.gov 573-751-4104
    Kevin Freeman kevin.freeman@dese.mo.gov 573-751-4426
    Amanda Cash amanda.cash@dese.mo.gov    573-526-4886
    For additional questions regarding 2017-18 assessments, please contact staff in our Assessment  section:    Lisa Sireno or Shaun Bates assessment@dese.mo.gov 573-751-3545