Districts Are Supposed to Use Evidence to Improve Schools Under ESSA. Will They?

Districts Are Supposed to Use Evidence to Improve Schools Under ESSA. Will They?

Education Week logoThe Every Student Succeeds Act is supposed to bring about a big change in school improvement. The law says states and districts can use any kind of interventions they want in low-performing schools, as long as they have evidence to back them up.

But the provision has some experts worried. They’re concerned that there just aren’t enough strategies with a big research base behind them for schools to choose from. These experts also worried that district officials may not have the capacity or expertise to figure out which interventions will actually work.

Districts, they’ve said, may end up doing the same things they have before, and may end up getting the same results.

“My guess is, you’ll see a lot of people doing the things they were already doing,” said Terra Wallin, who worked as a career staffer at the federal Education Department on school turnaround issues and is now a consultant with Education First, a policy organization that is working with states on ESSA implementation. “You’ll see a lot of providers approaching schools or districts to say, ‘Look, we meet the evidence standard,'” Wallin said…

Read the full article here: May require an Education Week subscription.

DeVos gets pushback on attempt to preempt state consumer protection

DeVos gets pushback on attempt to preempt state consumer protection

By Charlene Crowell

Beginning with a controversial nomination that ended in a tie-breaking Senate confirmation vote and continuing throughout her tenure as Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos has faced unceasing criticism. While Administration officials would be inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt, many across the country would argue that she is not serving the public’s interests.

A recent interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes provided an opportunity to address the nonstop criticism before a national audience. Instead, it prompted a new wave of critiques from viewers and news outlets alike.

More important than these recent headlines, however, is the Department’s attempt to stop states from holding student loan servicers and collectors accountable. Claiming that state consumer protection laws “undermine” federal regulator requirements, a non-binding memo is yet another assault on the 44 million Americans who together struggle with a still-growing $1.5 trillion in student debt.

It was about this time last year that Secretary DeVos withdrew three memos that would have required loan servicers, in their renegotiated contracts, to provide more intensive “high touch” servicing for borrowers threatened with default. Then late in the summer of 2017, she withdrew inter-agency working agreements between the Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) commonly known as Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs). Prior to her joining the Education Department, these same MOUs led to a series of major enforcement actions against for-profit colleges like Corinthian and ITT Tech, as well as the nation’s largest student loan servicer, Navient.

With rollbacks in oversight and enforcement, the Education Secretary must think the department is doing a great job serving student loan borrowers that states should just butt out.  A new departmental memo claims as much.

In response, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Healey, who filed a lawsuit earlier this month that alleged overcharges to students by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency was just as direct as she was quick to speak up.

“Secretary DeVos can write as many love letters to the loan servicing industry as she wants, I won’t be shutting down my investigations or stand by while these companies rip off students and families,” Healey said in a statement to The Intercept. “The last thing we need is to give this industry a free pass while a million students a year are defaulting on federal loans.”

Thank goodness for state AGs like Healey. Federal enforcement of consumer protection is currently at a real low.

When Mick Mulvaney was named Acting CFPB Director, a change of direction from consumer enforcement to education and information was promptly announced with a series of more changes. In Mulvaney’s view, CFPB would no longer use aggressive enforcement to hold financial service providers accountable. On his watch, consumers have basically been told not to expect much from CFPB, while businesses have been catered to and even asked to advise Mulvaney and company of what appropriate regulation looks like.

So, if the Department of Education is not going to work with CFPB to resolve complaints and CFPB is not interested in consumer enforcement, why try to tie the hands of states who only seek to protect their own residents?

Whitney Barkley-Denney, a policy counsel with the Center for Responsible Lending, addressed the impacts to consumers of color.  “Due to racial disparities in income and wealth, the consumers hardest hit by these debts are consumers of color. While the federal government continues to find ways to placate these companies, states are ready and willing to serve the best interests of borrowers and taxpayers.”

The National Governors Association (NGA) agrees with Barkley-Denney.

In a related statement, the NGA said, “Last week’s declaration on student loan servicing from the U.S. Department of Education seeks to preempt bipartisan state laws, regulations and ‘borrower bills of rights’ currently in place and under consideration in more than 15 states…. States have stepped up to fill the void left, we believe, by the absence of federal protections for student loan borrowers, from potential abusive practices by companies servicing student loans.”

Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers was even more candid.

“With this move, she [Secretary DeVos] has castrated any state legislators and attorneys general from providing meaningful oversight of student loan services, yet she continues to fail to do so herself,” said Weingarten.

In 2017, a CFPB report showed that during the past five years, more than 50,000 student loan complaints were filed. Additionally, more than 10,000 other related debt collection complaints were filed on both private and federal student loans.

Where these complaints originate is equally eye-opening.  In just one year, from 2016 to 2017, the growth in the number of student loan complaints exceeded 100 percent in 11 states: Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington State and West Virginia.

It’s enough to make one wonder, ‘Who is our federal government actually serving?’

The post DeVos gets pushback on attempt to preempt state consumer protection appeared first on The Westside Gazette.

WASHINGTON: Inslee Signs Bill To Improve Basic Education Funding For Public Schools

WASHINGTON: Inslee Signs Bill To Improve Basic Education Funding For Public Schools

Posted on by Seattle Medium

Last week, Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill to create more equitable education opportunities for students in K-12 public schools, including changes to the way local districts fund their schools.

Washington State Governor, Jay Inslee

Washington State Governor, Jay Inslee

The changes are in response to the state Supreme Court’s McCleary decision, which determined that the state was not meeting its constitutional duty to fully fund basic education. Part of the decision found that schools were relying on local levies to pay for their basic needs, such as teacher salaries, a responsibility that should fall to state government.

“This is a big day in the state of Washington,” Inslee said. “For the first time in decades, we have a budget that fully funds education. Our work isn’t over, but we’ve met the constitutional and moral obligation to our students, and we’ve set the course for the future of education in Washington state.”

WASHINGTON: Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) 

WASHINGTON: Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) 

We Need Your Input- help shape our schools by commenting

What is ESSA and the Consolidated Plan?

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) replaced No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on December 10, 2015. It is the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). ESSA will be fully operational in school year 2017-18.

The ESSA Consolidated Plan draft is the planning document that outlines how Washington will implement the law. The plan outlines six core concepts in Washington’s plan to help every student succeed, and provides details on what we will do to ensure student and educator success.

  1. Long Term Goals and Measurement of Interim Progress looks at three key areas for students: academic achievement, graduation rate, and English language proficiency, and identifies the goals and steps necessary to achieve those goals.
  2. Consultation and Coordination describes how OSPI and other stakeholders, including the public, worked together to develop the Plan.
  3. Challenging Academic Standards and Academic Assessments illustrates the state education standards in mathematics, English language arts, and other disciplines. It shows the assessment systems used in Washington state and explains how our students will be career and college-ready through application of the standards and assessment processes.
  4. Accountability, Support, and Improvement for Schools defines key thresholds for schools – in academic achievement, graduation rates, English language proficiency, school quality, and other measures. It outlines the support that will be provided to schools when necessary.
  5. Supporting Excellent Educators defines what it takes to be an excellent educator and describes the professional development and other supports offered to educators in Washington state.
  6. Supporting All Students describes how all students in our state will have access to a fair, equitable, and high-quality education. It addresses the academic and non-academic needs of subgroups of students, and how the state will collect and use data to ensure a well-rounded and supportive education for all students.

To learn more about these six components, you can read the full text of the plan. We have also produced several summary documents that are available on our resources page.

Read a full list of the recommendations approved by State Superintendent Dorn that make up the Consolidated Plan.

How will ESSA change what we do already?

Washington’s schools are changing under the new law. The US Department of Education has provided an ESSA Transition FAQ, and below are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions.

Districts & Federal Programs Directors: Learn more about ESSA and it’s effect on various programs on our District Resources page.

Adequate Yearly Progress
AYP is no longer required by ESSA, and OSPI will not calculate AYP for the 2016-17 school year based on 2015-16 assessments.

2016-17:
Notice is not required for Supplemental Educational Services (SES), Public School Choice (PSC) and AYP.

Schools and districts will continue to implement existing improvement plans, with some exceptions. They do not need to update them for 2016-17. Please see the transition plan for more details.

For districts that did not meet AYP in 2015-16, OSPI has information on how they will provide support during the transition year.

Assessments
Federal law requires states to assess students, and requirements remain the same under ESSA.

Testing for state and federal accountability will continue as follows:

  • English & Math: Grades 3-8 & 11
  • Science: Grades 5, 8, & once in high school.

Our tests are aligned to the Washington State K-12 Learning Standards.

Ending Highly Qualified Teachers & Moving to Effective Educators
Districts no longer need to document “highly qualified teacher” (HQT) status for teachers hired after Dec. 10, 2015.

OSPI’s expectations for districts receiving Title II, Part A grant funds for 2015-16 can be found on our Title II, Part A page.

Title I Staffing Requirements for 2017-18—same as the 2016-17 School Year
ESSA requires all Title I teachers and paraeducators meet state certification and licensure requirements.

Teachers

All teachers charged to Title I, Part A funds meet applicable state certification and licensure requirements. The requirements must be met before the teacher can be charged to the grant. A teacher charged to Title I, Part A may be out-of-field or out-of-endorsement (i.e., teaching assignment does not match endorsement) for the 2017–18 school year, as long as the school board approved the placement (per WAC 181-82-110 or WAC 392-172A-002090). School board approval must be in place prior to the date the teacher is charged to Title I, Part A funds.

Paraeducators

ESSA removed the term “highly qualified” for paraeducators, just as it did for teachers. Instead, OSPI is tasked with developing our own minimum state standards. Information about current standards, guidelines, and support can be found on the paraeducators webpage.

Washington does not currently have certification and licensure requirements for paraeducators in state statute. Though the Washington Legislature authorized a Paraeducator Work Group to create recommendations for standards, it has not adopted them. Due to this, OSPI will maintain the paraeducator qualifications required under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) until such time that the Paraeducator Standards are adopted and funded by the Legislature. Information about the standards, guidelines, and support can be found on the paraeducators webpage.

How can I learn more about ESSA?

Visit our resources page which offers information on ESSA that can be used by district personnel, teachers, parents, and students. Our goal is to make the state’s transition process as open as possible, and to incorporate the views and advice of as many people as we can.

In November, OSPI went on a review tour to teach the public about ESSA and our draft Consolidated Plan. The tour is over, but our webinar presentation is still available in video and presentation format. For alternate formats, contact us.

One-page handouts

One-page handouts to help communicate ESSA

How do I make my voice heard?

We hope you will share your thoughts on our ESSA draft Consolidated Plan by taking our public comment survey. The public comment period will end February 15, 2017.

Who was involved in creating the Consolidated Plan?

OSPI created the ESSA draft Consolidated Plan alongside state leaders, district and school representatives, and professional organization representatives. Learn more about the workgroups who helped shape ESSA.

WASHINGTON: Elementary and Secondary Education Act

WASHINGTON: Elementary and Secondary Education Act

The federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), enacted in 1965, is the nation’s national education law and shows a longstanding commitment to equal opportunity for all students.

ESEA authorizes state-run programs for eligible schools and districts eager to raise the academic achievement of struggling learners and address the complex challenges that arise for students who live with disability, mobility problems, learning difficulties, poverty, or transience, or who need to learn English.

Every Student Succeeds Act
On December 10, 2015, President Obama reauthorized ESSA as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The new law builds on key areas of progress in recent years, made possible by the efforts of educators, communities, parents, and students across the country.

ESSA replaces the previous reauthorization of ESEA, known as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, enacted in 2002. ESSA will be fully operational in school year 2017-18, and a lot of work needs to be done between now and then as we make the transition.

Federal (ESEA) Programs for Schools & Districts
Title Programs
Title I, A Programs and services for struggling learners
Title I, C Migrant Education
Title I, D Institutional Education
Title I, G Advanced Placement
Title II, A Teacher & Principal Quality
Title III Limited English Proficient & Immigrant Students — Language Instruction
Title IV, B 21st Century Community Learning Centers
Title VI Rural Education Achievement Program
Title VII Indian, Native Hawaiian, Alaska Native Education
Title X Homeless Education (McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children & Youth Program)

Advanced Placement (AP) & International Baccalaureate (IB)
Advanced Placement (AP) AP/IB Test Fee Program

Career & Technical Education
Perkins Carl D. Perkins Act/Career & Technical Education Improvement

Discrimination, Section 504, Harassment
Equity & Civil Rights promotes the understanding of rights and responsibilities under civil rights laws, and monitors school district compliance with these laws.

Private Schools & Federal Programs
Private School & Non-profit Participation in federal programs, equitable services

School Safety
Gun-Free Schools Supports school safety and monitors/reports gun-related incidents

Monitoring & Compliance
Consolidated Program Review (CPR) is the monitoring arm of the ESEA, responsible for the review of all ESEA-funded and several state-funded programs. Our CPR team is focused on compliance with law and regulation as central to the positive potential in these programs to support high-quality interventions and lead to better student outcomes.

Federal Program Accountability
Federal Accountability Reports capture student data and information related to the performance of federal programs. OSPI submits these reports to the U.S. Department of Education.