California Department of Education
Executive Office
SBE-003 (REV. 09/2011)
dsib-amard-jan15item02

ITEM #02

CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
JANUARY 2015 AGENDA
SUBJECT
Elementary and Secondary Education Act: Proposed
Amendments to the Accountability Workbook for 2015.

Action
Information
Public Hearing

SUMMARY OF THE ISSUE(S)

Since 2004, the State Board of Education (SBE) has annually approved proposed
amendments to California’s Consolidated State Application Accountability Workbook
(hereafter referred to as the Accountability Workbook) and submitted them to the U.S.
Department of Education (ED).
RECOMMENDATION

The California Department of Education (CDE) recommends that the SBE approve
seven amendments to California’s Accountability Workbook. These amendments would
impact the 2015 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) determinations.
BRIEF HISTORY OF KEY ISSUES

The CDE is proposing amendments to the Accountability Workbook that would impact
the reporting of the 2015 AYP.
Four of the amendments are related to the establishment of California’s new statewide
student assessment system and its affects on existing elements within the
Accountability Workbook, such as removing all references to the former Standardized
Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program assessments; updating the grade levels under
Pair and Share; suspending the use of an alternate assessment for AYP calculations;
and using grade eleven Smarter Balanced assessment results rather than the grade ten
California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) results.
The fifth amendment requests suspending the requirement to meet the Annual
Measureable Objectives (AMOs) for the 2015 AYP only. The sixth amendment updates
the definition of socioeconomically disadvantaged (SED). The seventh and final
amendment replaces the Academic Performance Index (API) as the additional indicator
for AYP determinations with attendance rates for elementary and middle schools.
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Proposed Amendments to the Accountability Workbook
The proposed amendments to the current Accountability Workbook are listed in order of
the critical element. The page references are also included.
1. Add a Grade Level to Pair and Share (Workbook Critical Element 1.1, page 8)
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) requires that the CDE
produce an accountability report for every public school and local educational
agency (LEA) in the state. The current Accountability Workbook indicates that for
elementary schools with only kindergarten and/or grade one students, their AYP
reports will solely be based on grade two test results of schools with which they
are paired. Pairing is based on matriculation patterns.
Since the Smarter Balanced assessments are administered to students starting
at grade three, this critical element will need to be edited to reflect that pairing
and sharing will occur for elementary schools with only kindergarten, grade one,
and/or grade two students and will solely be based on grade three test results.
2. Replace STAR Program Assessments with Smarter Balanced Assessments for
Grades Three Through Eight (Workbook Critical Element 1.3, pages 12–13)
Upon enactment of Assembly Bill (AB) 484, a new assessment system, referred
to as the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress
(CAASPP) System, was established. The CAASPP System includes the Smarter
Balanced assessments which tests students in grades three through eight in
English-language arts (ELA) and mathematics from which proficiency results will
be used for AYP determinations. The Accountability Workbook will be updated to
reflect the use of these new assessments.
3. Suspend the Use of Alternate Assessments (Workbook Critical Element 1.3,
pages 12–13)
To date, the AYP includes results from students who take an alternate
assessment (e.g., the California Alternate Performance Assessment [CAPA]). In
spring 2015, an alternate assessment field test will be administered and the CDE
will not have alternate assessment results to use for the 2015 AYP calculations.
Roughly one percent of students statewide take the CAPA each year so
suspending the inclusion of the alternate assessment in the AYP will have a
minimal impact. Once the alternate assessment is fully implemented and
operational in 2015–16, the CDE will use these results for the 2016 AYP
calculations.
4. Suspend the AMOs for 2015 AYP (Workbook Critical Element 3.2, pages 27–28;
5.2, page 39)

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The ESEA requires that all schools and LEAs meet the AMOs as part of the AYP
determinations. For the 2014 AYP, the AMO targets reached 100 percent in ELA
and mathematics.
In 2015, AYP reports will be produced using the results of the first operational
Smarter Balanced assessments. California Education Code Section 52052(e)(2)
(F) prohibits the comparison of Smarter Balanced results to STAR Program
results. Therefore, safe harbor (a growth measure) cannot be used as an
alternative method for meeting AMO targets. Without safe harbor, schools and
LEAs will not have an opportunity to meet the AMO targets. The CDE
recommends that for the 2015 AYP only, the AMOs be reported, but not used to
make AYP determinations. Schools and LEAs would only be responsible for
meeting the participation rate and the additional indicator. In 2016, safe harbor
will be available for schools and LEAs to demonstrate growth from one year to
the next and they will be held responsible for meeting AMO targets.
5. Update the Definition of Socioeconomically Disadvantaged (Workbook Critical
Element 5.1, pages 37–38)
This is a technical amendment. Currently, a student is included in the SED
student group if the student is eligible for the Free and Reduced-Priced Meals
(FRPM) Program or if the highest level of education for both of the student’s
parents/guardians is less than a high school diploma. These data are obtained
from the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS).
LEAs are not required to submit an FRPM eligibility record in CALPADS for
migrant, foster youth, or homeless students because they are automatically
eligible. As a result, some of these students are not included in the SED student
group for accountability reporting. The CDE recommends adding these students
to more accurately report the performance of the SED student group.
6. Replace the Grade Ten CAHSEE with the Grade Eleven Smarter Balanced
Assessment (Critical Element 6.1, page 48)
In 2014–15, the Smarter Balanced assessments will be administered to students
in grade eleven in ELA and mathematics. Because all grade eleven students
statewide will take the same Smarter Balanced assessments in ELA and
mathematics, the CDE is proposing to use these results for the reporting of the
2015 AYP rather than continuing to use the grade ten CAHSEE results.
7. Replace the API with Attendance Rates as the Additional Indicator for Elementary
and Middle Schools (Workbook Critical Element 7.2, page 53)
Along with meeting percent proficient and participation rate targets, the ED
requires schools and LEAs to meet one additional indicator for AYP
determinations. The ED requires that the cohort graduation rate be the additional
indicator for high schools and allows each state to choose the additional indicator
for elementary and middle schools.
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Because the CDE cannot produce a 2015 Growth API, the CDE recommends
replacing the API with attendance rates (based on Average Daily Attendance
[ADA]) as the additional indicator for AYP determinations.
SUMMARY OF PREVIOUS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION DISCUSSION AND ACTION

The SBE has submitted amendments to California’s Accountability Workbook each year
since the initial submission in January 2003. Most amendments have been in response
to changes in California’s assessment system or to changes in federal requirements.
The most recent changes to the Accountability Workbook include:


For the 2014 AYP, the SBE and CDE submitted two amendments. The first
amendment added an extended-year (six-year) cohort graduation rate, and the
second amendment removed the API as an additional indicator for high schools.



For the 2013 AYP, the SBE and CDE submitted a technical amendment in
response to the ED requiring a change to the proposed calculation method used
for the five-year cohort graduation rate.



For the 2012 AYP, the SBE and CDE submitted three amendments. The first
amendment was in response to a previous Title I Monitoring Visit finding by the
ED. As a result, the CDE agreed to produce all LEA accountability report cards
and post them on the CDE Web site. The second amendment was a technical
change that revised the definition of the SED student group in the Accountability
Workbook to align with the definition on the student answer document. A third
amendment, approval of a five-year graduation rate, was not approved for 2012
AYP determinations.

FISCAL ANALYSIS (AS APPROPRIATE)

Fiscal impact will be minimal, as the AYP reports are generated by CDE staff and
posted on the CDE AYP Web page. All expenses are included in the Analysis,
Measurement, and Accountability Reporting Division’s budget.
ATTACHMENT(S)

None.

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