Schools in Need of Improvement Under NCLB

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No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is the name given to the Elemen-tary and

Secondary Education Act (originally established in 1965) when it was reauthorized

in 2001. In this new version, the law focuses on education reform and asks

schools to describe their successes in terms of student achievement. NCLB is

based on the philosophy that all children can learn and that it is the responsibility

of parents and educators to find the best ways to help them.

NCLB is a comprehensive law, but for this article we will only be focusing on

the following three elements: School Accoun-tability, School Choice, and

Supplemental Educational Services. Although all NH schools are accountable and

all students must be tested, the policies for Choice and Supplemental Services, as

well as for other school improvement requirements pertain primarily to

schools receiving Title I funds (federal aid to the socio-economically

disadvantaged).

1. School Accountability NCLB requires every state to set high standards for student academic

achievement and to increase those standards every year. To measure

student progress, schools in NH must test

children in Math, English, Science and

Language Arts in grades 3 through 8 and

once in high school. In NH, this is the

statewide New England Common

Assessment Program (NECAP) test. To

demonstrate that its students are

meeting the standard, it is not enough for

the school as a whole to improve. Each

sub-group of students—students with

disabilities, students who are just

learning English, and minority students,

for example—must also make enough

progress. Each school must then

combine student test scores and show “Adequate Yearly Progress” (AYP)

towards state-determined targets for each subject tested.

Each year the standards that every school must meet are increased, so

that by 2014 it is expected that almost all students can meet the standard of

“proficient” or higher. Because the bar is raised every year, what has

happened is that more and more schools are finding themselves missing AYP,

even if their students do just as well as—or even better than—in previous

years. What Happens When a School Misses AYP? A school that misses AYP in the same subject for 2 years in

a row is defined as a “school in need of improvement” beginning the following year. At that point, the school must

offer parents the choice to send their child to another school (see School Choice section below). If a school

misses AYP in that subject for a third year in a row, the following year the school must offer free tutoring (see

Supplemental Educational Services section below).

If the school continues to miss AYP, it must take corrective action, which may include changing personnel or

curricula, consulting outside experts, or restructuring. During this time School Choice and outside tutoring must

still be offered.

2. School Choice School districts are required to notify parents when schools are designated as

in need of improvement and to inform them about their options to send their child

to another school. If the district does not have enough options to offer all students

the chance to transfer, priority must be given to the lowest achieving, low-income

students. If more than one school is available, the local school district must offer

more than one choice to eligible students.

If no schools are available, the school must still notify parents that their

child’s school is in need of improvement and that the child is eligible for choice,

but that no choices are currently available. If it is not possible for a school district to offer choice, school districts are

allowed to offer Supplemental Educational Services instead in the first year

that a school is in need of improvement (see below). You can ask your Title I

Director, or school principal, if this is an option for your child.

Parents may also transfer their child to a non-Title I school, if available,

whether or not that school is in need of improvement. The school district must pay

for, or provide, transportation to the new school. For NH Dept. of Education

guidance, see http://www.nhpirc.org/files/NHPSchoice.pdf.

3. Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Under No Child Left Behind, low-income parents can get free after-school

or weekend tutoring for their children when their school has not met "Adequate

Yearly Progress" goals for three or more years in a row.

The school or school district must let you know if your children are eligible

for this program. The notice should give you a list and descriptions of all the

accredited tutoring programs near where you live. The programs on this list

have to be approved by the state.

If you want supplemental services for your child, the school district will

make the arrangements at no cost to you. If

your child does begin a tutoring program, the

program must work closely with the school

and with you to make sure that it is helping

your child with the specific difficulties he or she

is having in school.

If the school's level of funding is insufficient

to provide SES to each student whose parents

request these services, the school district must

give priority to providing services to the lowest achieving students first.

For more information, visit www.nhpirc.org/NCLB.shtml.

The NH Parents Make the Difference website is a collaboration between the Parent Information Center of NH and the NH Department of Education. This website is supported with funding from the US Department of Education through the NH State PIRC grant of the Natonal PIRC program.