Educational Accountability
Public schools in South Carolina are evaluated each year by both state and federal accountability systems. The state accountability system issues state report cards that indicate school performance based primarily on state tests. Schools and districts are given ratings that indicate how well students performed during a given year and how well they improved over the previous year. The state accountability system expects that student achievement will be in the top half of states nationally by the year 2010.
The federal accountability system, known as No Child Left Behind, evaluates schools based on something called Adequate Yearly Progress or AYP. This system measures how well schools are performing toward the goal of having 100 percent of students scoring Proficient on state tests by the year 2014, regardless of special needs or ability to speak English.
State Report Cards
Each fall, all schools and school districts are issued a state report card by the South Carolina Department of Education. The report card provides parents and the public with a look at school and district performance. In addition, it provides lots of other statistical information about the school in comparison to other state schools similar in size and demographics. The information in the report card helps to begin conversations about the strengths and weaknesses within school programs.
Each school and school district will receive one of five academic ratings for two areas - performance level and improvement rate. The five academic ratings are Excellent, Good, Average, Below Average, and Unsatisfactory.
The Absolute rating is based on student performance during the school year. The Improvement rating is based on the academic gains of matched students from one year to the next. The criteria used to calculate a school's rating depend upon the grade levels within a school. For elementary and middle schools, the criterion used to calculate the ratings is student performance on the Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test (PACT). For high schools, the criteria used are student performance on the exit exam, the percentage of students who pass End-of-Course tests and graduation rates. For primary schools, the criteria include student attendance rate,
pupil-teacher ratios, parent involvement, external early childhood accreditation, and the use of professional development.
For more information on district and school ratings, ask at your school.
Academic Learning Plans
According to state regulations in the 1998 South Carolina Education Accountability Act, students who are not working at grade level must have an Academic Learning Plan (ALP). These plans are developed and discussed at the Personalized Learning Conference in the fall.
Here are guidelines for ALPs:
- Students in grades 3-8 who are not performing on grade level must have an ALP. This includes students who score in the lowest quartile of a norm-referenced test; those who score Below Basic on the PACT; those who did not pass their grade last year; or those identified as needing assistance.
- A conference must be held to design an ALP. Parents and students will receive notification in the mail at least seven days prior to a conference. Students whose parent/guardian does not participate in a conference will be assigned a mentor by the school. The school will make and document attempts to meet with parents.
- Parents/guardians and students will actively participate in the conference and will be asked to commit to actions they will take to improve student achievement.
- Copies of the ALP become a part of the student's permanent record. Parents receive a copy of the plan and if not present at the conference, will be mailed a copy.
- Toward the end of the school year, a conference will be held to review the student's progress to determine if the APL was successful. If the student is still not performing on grade level or did not meet the terms of the ALP, he/she may be held in the current grade or be required to attend summer school. If the student shows enough improvement in summer school, he/she may be promoted to the next grade.
- Students who score Below Basic on PACT must attend remediation in programs offered before school, after school, or during the summer.
- Parents may appeal mandatory remediation and retention. To do so, contact the school your child attends about how to make an appeal.
- PACT results are one indicator of student performance. Students are not retained based on PACT results alone.
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) is a federal law that defines criteria for accountability for public schools in America. It sets standards for curriculum, student testing, school accountability systems, teacher quality, and school safety. It measures school and district performance through Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) which measures how much growth occurred in one year toward meeting the goal of having all students score Proficient on state tests. Schools and the district have numerous goals in subgroups for ethnicity, economics, disabilities and limited ability to speak English. AYP is an “all or nothing” accountability system. If one subgroup did not meet its target for performance on state tests, then the entire school or district would not make AYP. Some very high performing schools are unable to meet AYP.
For more information, visit www.ed.gov/nclb.
Title I in Horry County Schools
Title I is a federal program that provides additional resources in schools where the majority of students are on free- and reduced-priced meals. These additional resources are used to provide for expanded services to help students meet academic goals. Title I gives schools flexibility in making decisions about how to best serve students, but with this new flexibility comes greater responsibility for student achievement. Each Title I school has a plan on how it will serve students who need additional support. These plans are monitored throughout the year and are open to input from parents, teachers, and community members. If you would like to review
the Title I plan of a school, contact the principal of the school. Parental involvement is an integral part of the Title I program. A strong connection between the home and the school is a key to student success. Materials, strategies, and help from teachers are available to all parents of Title I schools. Parent participation is encouraged through open house, parent workshops, school-parent compacts, home visitation, parent-teacher organizations, conferences, monthly newsletters, and more. Parents have the right to know the professional qualifications of classroom teachers and teacher assistants. You have the right to ask the teacher's area of certification, academic major, and degree earned. To receive this information, please contact the school principal.
Title I Schools
Myrtle Beach Primary School, Daisy Elementary School, Green Sea Floyds Elementary School, Green Sea Floyds High School, Homewood Elementary School, Loris Elementary School, Myrtle Beach Elementary School, Pee Dee Elementary School, Socastee Elementary School, South Conway Elementary School, Waccamaw Elementary School, Loris Middle School, and Whittemore Park Middle School.
Parents' Right to Know Requirement
The local school district must disseminate a blanket statement that any parent can request information about any teacher of their child. Under federal law, parents have the right to know:
- whether a teacher has met state qualification and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subject areas in which the teacher provides instruction;
- whether a teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status through which state qualification or licensing criteria have been waived;
- the baccalaureate degree major of a teacher and any other graduate certification or degree held by the teacher, and the field of discipline of the certification or degree;
Teacher qualifications can be accessed at Educator Qualification Search.
AYP Transfers
Students who attend Title I schools that have not met federal benchmarks for Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two years in a row may choose to attend a nearby school that has met federal benchmarks for AYP. Transportation is provided for students transferring under these conditions.
South Carolina Department of Education Complaint Resolution Procedures
The State Department of Education (SDE) has the authority to hear complaints and appeals regarding certain federal programs. Complaints and appeals must be made in writing and must indicate the alleged violation, relative facts that support the complaint, and the requirement of the law or regulation the complainant believes to be violated. Complaints/appeals must be filed with the State Superintendent of Education at the SC Department of Education, 1429 Senate Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29201.
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