Revising High School Grading Requirements Revision of Rule 6A 09981, F. A. C

Revising High School Grading Requirements

Revision of Rule 6A-1.09981, F.A.C.

What is the Purpose of this Rule Change?

• 
  Senate Bill 1908 (2008 Legislative Session) requires a significant change to the way high schools are graded beginning with the 2009-10 School Year.
  
• 
  In addition to the vital foundation of assessment results in Grades 9, 10, and 11 (Science), the law requires an equal focus be placed on:
  

• 
  Access to rigorous, accelerated coursework, as well as performance in rigorous, accelerated coursework.
  
• 
  College Readiness
  
• 
  Graduation rates for all students as well as those academically at-risk.
  

Why Change the Way we Grade our High Schools?

• 
  Over the past decade, Florida has shown tremendous progress in the foundation skills of reading and mathematics proficiency through Grade 10
  
• 
  The percent of students achieving a level 3 or above on the FCAT Reading test was 47% in 2001 and 2002 and increased to 50% in 2003; to 52% in 2004; to 53% in 2005; to 57% in 2006; to 58% in 2007; to 60% in 2008; and to 61% in 2009. The percent of students achieving a level 1 on the FCAT Reading test was 32%in 2001and decreased to 31% in 2002; to 29% in 2003; to 27% in 2004; to 26% in 2005; to 22% in 2006; to 21% in 2007; to 20% in 2008; and to 18% in 2009.
  
• 
  The percent of students achieving a level 3 or above on the FCAT Math test was 50% in 2001 and increased to 51% in 2002; to 54% in 2003; to 56% in 2004; to 59% in 2005; to 61% in 2006; to 63% in 2007; to 65% in 2008; and to 67% in 2009. The percent of students achieving a level 1 on the FCAT Math test was 29%in 2001and decreased to 27% in 2002; to 24% in 2003; to 22% in 2004; to 20% in 2005; to 18% in 2006; to 17% in 2007; to 15% in 2008; and to 14% in 2009.
  

Why Change the Way we Grade our High Schools?

• 
  State and national expectations are rising for our high schools
  
• 
  In 2007, 54 percent of high school graduates who enrolled in community college required remediation in at least one subject.
  
• 
  The high school accountability system demands:
  

• 
  More rigorous standards and assessments
  
• 
  Alignment between high school and college readiness and high-skill/high-wage employment
  
• 
  Focus on access, rigor, and readiness
  

Timeline

New Component #1:
Graduation Rate

New Component #2A:
Participation in Accelerated Coursework

Proposed Calculation:

• 
  For a school to receive credit for participation in an accelerated course that ends in an exam (e.g., AP, IB, AICE), the student must take the exam.
  
• 
  For dual enrollment, a student must earn a grade in the course for a school to receive credit for participation.
  
• 
  For industry certification, a student must have taken an industry certification exam on the SBE approved “Industry Certification Funding List” for the year.
  

Acceleration Participation
In the formula, schools would earn weighted credit for the number of exams/courses a student takes. Below is the proposed weighting system to accommodate multiple exams or dual enrollment courses taken by students:

• 
  No cap is proposed for participation. That is, following the logic above, schools will earn an increasing amount of credit for those students who take increasing numbers of accelerated courses/exams. For example, the student who takes 7 exams/courses will be weighted at 1.6; a student who takes 8 will be weighted 1.7; and so on.
  

New Component #2B:
Performance in Accelerated Coursework

Proposed Calculation:

New Component #2B:
Performance in Accelerated Coursework

Weighting Proposal for Performance

• 
  Measure will be based on credits earned.
  

• 
  Depending on their score on AP, IB, and/or AICE, students will receive weight in the formula based on the number of postsecondary courses for which the student earns credit as determined by the Articulation Coordinating Committee’s Credit-by-Exam Equivalencies List. (http://www.fldoe.org/articulation/pdf/ACC-CBE.pdf)
  
• 
  Successful completion (a “C” or higher) of a Dual Enrollment course leads to students earning credit in one course.
  

• 
  Successful passage of an Industry Certification exam.
  

New Component #2B:
Performance in Accelerated Coursework

Successful Outcomes are defined as:

AP

IB

AICE

Dual Enrollment

Industry Certification

Acceleration Performance

• 
  No cap is proposed for performance. That is, following the logic above, schools will earn an increasing amount of credit for those students who successfully complete increasing amounts of accelerated coursework. For example, the student who earns 7 successful outcomes will be weighted at 1.6; a student who earns 8 will be weighted 1.7; and so on.
  

Acceleration Performance – EXAMPLE

New Component #3:
Postsecondary Readiness

Proposed Calculation

• 
  Separate Measures for Reading and Math.
  
• 
  If student takes multiple tests (ACT, SAT, or CPT), the student’s highest score by subtest is used.
  
• 
  The scores used to define “ready” are set in State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.0315, F.A.C.
  
• 
  This measure will be based on all on-time standard high school graduates beginning no later than 2011-12.
  

New Component #4:
Graduation Rate for At-Risk Students

• 
  Track the 4-year high school graduation rate of students who scored a Level 2 or lower on both FCAT Reading and Mathematics in 8^th Grade.
  
• 
  If a school does not have at least 10 students in that subgroup, the school’s overall graduation rate will be substituted for this measure.
  

New Component #5:
Growth or Decline in components

• 
  Schools earn an escalating number of points based on the magnitude of their improvement.
  
• 
  Additional points would be awarded based on the number of points the school improved (growth from prior year); up to 20 additional points.
  
• 
  Schools will lose 5 points if a component declines by at least 10 percentage points.
  

• 
  EXAMPLES
  
• 
  GROWTH: A school’s acceleration performance improves from 25% to 32%; the school earns an additional 7 points resulting in a total of 39 points (32 + 7).
  
• 
  DECLINE: A school’s acceleration performance declines from 30% to 20%; the school would lose an additional 5 points resulting in a total of 15 points (20 – 5).
  

Additional Requirement – At-Risk Graduation Rate

• 
  Law stipulates that in order for a school that earns enough points for an “A” to be awarded an “A”, the school’s at-risk graduation rate must meet a certain threshold to ensure “adequate progress.”
  
• 
  Recommended Threshold:
  

• 
  75%; or
  

• 
  1 percentage point improvement over the prior year if percentage is within 10 points of the target
  
• 
  5 percentage point improvement over the prior year if percentage is beyond 10 points of the target
  

• 
  This requirement is akin to the current learning gains requirement for the Low 25%.
  

New High School Grade

• 
  50% on FCAT Components
  

• 
  800 Points Possible
  

• 
  50% on New High School Components
  

• 
  800 Points Possible
  

• 
  TOTAL POINTS (FCAT + New High School Components)
  

• 
  1600 Points Possible
  
• 
  Grade Scale
  
• 
  A >= 1050
  
• 
  B 990 to 1049
  
• 
  C 870 to 989
  
• 
  D 790 to 869
  
• 
  F < 790
  

FCAT Components
(50% of the Grade)

New High School Components
NEW 50% (with points possible)

• 
  All components are percentages. Those components weighted twice as much as others reflect a calculated percentage that is doubled (e.g., School X has a 75% graduation rate – School X earns 150 points (75*2) for that component).
  
• 
  All component values are capped at their maximum values. That is, if a school earns points in excess of the total for a particular component – through the growth adjustment or the escalating weights in the acceleration components – the school will receive the maximum points for that component.
  

Sample New High School Grade Calculation

New High School Components: Graduation Rates – Sample School

New High School Components: Acceleration Participation –
Sample School

New High School Components: Acceleration Performance –
Sample School

New High School Components: Postsecondary Readiness –
Sample School

New High School Components
NEW 50% (with points possible) –Sample School

FCAT Components (50% of the Grade) –
Sample School

New High School Grade –
Sample School

• 
  50% on FCAT Components
  

• 
  485
  

• 
  50% on New High School Components
  

• 
  456
  

• 
  TOTAL POINTS
  

• 
  (FCAT + New High School Components)
  
• 
  941
  

• 
  Grade
  

• 
  A >= 1050
  
• 
  B 990 to 1049
  
• 
  C 870 to 989
  
• 
  D 790 to 869
  
• 
  F < 790
  

• 
  School Earns a “C”
  

Other Changes to
Rule 6A-1.09981

Other Changes to
Rule 6A-1.09981

• 
  Cell-size criteria for science and writing in School Grades
  
• 
  Updated procedure for determining percentage of students proficient in writing
  
• 
  Inclusion of Florida Alternate Assessment results for students with disabilities in calculating learning gains for reading and math
  

Cell-size criteria for science and writing in School Grades

• 
  The minimum cell-size for the writing and science components for school grades will be reduced from 30 students to 10 students.
  
• 
  If a school has fewer than 10 students with writing (or science) scores, the school will receive the district average for writing (or science).
  
• 
  Prior to this proposed rule change, schools with fewer than 30 students received the district average in writing and/or science in lieu of the school’s actual performance.
  
• 
  This will increase the number of schools whose actual writing and science performance will be reported as part of School Grades
  

Updated procedure for determining percentage of students proficient in writing

• 
  Beginning in 2009-10, FCAT writing essays at grades 4, 8, and 10 will be scored by one reader (as opposed to two, as was done in prior years).
  
• 
  A score of 3.5 in writing in grades 4, 8, and 10 will no longer be possible.
  
• 
  To accommodate this change, the average of the percentage of students scoring a 3 and above and the percentage of students scoring a 4 and above will be used for the writing component of school grades.
  

Inclusion of Florida Alternate Assessment results in calculating learning gains

• 
  Section 1008.34(3)(b)(1)b, Florida Statutes, requires that learning gains for students seeking a special diploma, as measured by an alternate assessment tool, shall be included in School Grades no later than the 2009-10 school year.
  
• 
  The Florida Alternate Assessment has nine separate performance levels, ranging from 1 to 9, with 4 or higher equaling proficient.
  
• 
  Propose defining a learning gain as an improvement in performance levels or the maintenance of a proficient level.