Polk County Public Schools
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires states to develop an accountability plan that outlines how the state will determine that schools and school districts are making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).
The State of Florida’s Accountability Plan has established proficiency levels for Writing, Reading, and Mathematics that increase each year up until 2014, when it is expected that all students will be proficient in Writing, Reading, and Mathematics, as measured by the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT).
Proficiency levels must be met for the total group of students tested, and for each of the following subgroups in each subject area in order for a school or district to make AYP:
In addition, at least 95 percent of the students enrolled, in each subgroup, at the time of testing must be tested. For high schools, the graduation rate is a category that must meet the established proficiency criteria. In order to make AYP, schools must receive a school grade of a “C” or better.
This means that there are 29 possible factors that make up a school’s AYP status. If the school fails to meet even one of those, it does not make AYP.
If a Title I school fails to make AYP for two consecutive years, it is designated as a School In Need of Improvement (SINI). This designation only applies to Title I schools. Sanctions are applied, according to the number of years a school is identified as a SINI:
SINI-1 (The first year of designation, after two years of no AYP): The school must offer Supplemental Educational Services (SES), which is free tutoring from state-approved private providers, to students in the school who receive free/reduced-price meals. Students may choose CWT or SES but not both.
SINI-2: The school must continue to offer SES and must also offer all students in the school the opportunity to transfer to another school (Choice With Transfer or CWT) that is not SINI (a Title I school that is not SINI or any non-Title I school with a grade of “C” or better).
SINI-3: The school continues to offer CWT and SES and has some type of Corrective Action applied to it, as determined by the district.
SINI-4: The school continues to offer CWT and SES and begins planning for Restructuring the school the following year if AYP is not met.
SINI-5: The school implements its Restructuring Plan.
If a SINI makes AYP for two consecutive years, it is no longer identified as such.
In 2008-09, Florida was one of six states selected to implement a Differentiated Acountability Pilot Project (DAP). The purpose of this project is to merge the state grading system and AYP in order to more fairly implement interventions for schools not making AYP. The new categories are Prevent I, Prevent II, Correct I, Correct II, and Intervene.
The DAP assigns one of these categories to each SINI, based on their school grade, the percentage of AYP criteria met, and the number of years the school has not met AYP. The DAP also includes Title I and non-Title I schools that made a grade of "D" or "F".