by News from NYSED | Nov 22, 2017 | K12 Education, New York
Dear Parents,
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and I’d like to take a moment to tell you how thankful I am for you and your work supporting schools and communities. I admire and appreciate your steadfast commitment to ensuring that the children of New York State receive a quality education . As parents, you make a real difference in your child’s learning — from reading with your child to helping your child with homework to spending time in your child’s classroom. It’s also National Family Week, a good time to recognize and support you and your families. I hope you will be able to spend time with your families this week and throughout the holiday season.
I’d like to share some updates from last week’s Board of Regents meeting, including NYSED’s partnership with the College Board and an announcement about the State Library’s summer reading program.
Last week, NYSED announced a partnership with the College Board to help students identify and prepare for a postsecondary program that best fits their needs. Through this partnership, NYSED will work with the College Board to expand student access to unique, personalized learning pathways, including free, Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy and Advanced Placement (AP) courses. The partnership builds upon the College Board’s ongoing work with school districts and BOCES across the state, including in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Yonkers, and New York City.
Also last week, NYSED announced that 2.2 million children statewide participated in the 2017 summer reading program , an increase of approximately 94,000 participants over last year’s program. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the State Library’s summer reading program. Learn more about the State Library’s summer reading program and how your children can participate in next year’s program.
Best wishes to you and your families for a healthy and happy holiday season. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Sincerely,
MaryEllen Elia
Commissioner
by News from NYSED | Nov 10, 2017 | ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), K12 Education, New York
Dear Parents,
Last weekend, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at the NYSPTA Annual Convention. Regent Collins also attended the convention and participated in the Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Caucus. I want to thank Kyle Belokopitsky, Executive Director at the NYSPTA, and her team for organizing and hosting the convention, which included many important discussions. As Commissioner of Education, I strive to stay connected to those closest to our students: their parents and families. I admire and appreciate the work you do to ensure a high-quality education for all our students.
Last week, the New York State Museum opened a new exhibition,
Votes for Women: Celebrating New York’s Suffrage Centennial . On display through May 13, 2018, the exhibition honors the centennial of women’s suffrage in New York State and raises awareness of the struggle for equal rights through the present day. The exhibition features more than 250 artifacts and images from the collections of the State Museum, State Archives, State Library, cultural institutions, and private lenders from across the state.
It’s important for everyone – especially our students – to fully understand this pivotal moment in our history. The women’s suffrage movement in New York isn’t just about the struggle for women’s rights; it also teaches us about cultural heritage, activism, democracy, and the struggle for equal rights for all. It’s up to us to inspire the next generation and show our children that they too can raise their voices and achieve great things. If you can, I encourage you to visit the State Museum with your children and see this exhibition.
In addition to exposing your children to educational experiences at the State Museum or other cultural institutions, you might also be helping them navigate the college application and admission process! If you have a student enrolling in college for the spring semester, Governor Cuomo announced that the Excelsior Scholarship application has reopened for students attending college this spring. The application is open through December 4 for students to attend SUNY or CUNY tuition free.
This week, NYSED announced that seven New York State mathematics and science teachers are state-level finalists for the 2016-17 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) at the secondary level (grades 7-12). The PAEMST is one of the highest honors in the nation for teachers of mathematics and science. The award recognizes outstanding teaching and leadership in science and mathematics education. The teachers being recognized here have become masters of their craft, and our students are lucky to have them and all the other teachers who do an outstanding job every day in our classrooms. For more information and the list of finalists, see our
PAEMST news release .
NYSED also recently announced that more than
95 percent of schools in receivership made demonstrable improvement in the 2016-17 school year. A total of 61 of 63 schools in receivership showed progress on performance indicators jointly selected by NYSED and the districts in which the schools are located. The two schools that did not make demonstrable improvement will now be placed under an independent receiver.
I have visited many of the schools in receivership, and I am seeing schools tackle their issues in new and positive ways, which is encouraging. At the same time, much work remains to be done in many of these schools to provide an even greater focus with more intensive interventions to ensure that progress in these schools accelerates and they improve their outcomes for students.
Finally, next week is American Education Week, a great opportunity to celebrate public education. As part of American Education Week, November 14 is Parents Day, and NYSED will join in the celebration by launching a campaign on social media. Be sure to follow NYSED on
Twitter and
Facebook to check out some ideas and tips for parents to help support your children in school.
Thank you for all you do to support strong family and community involvement in our schools. We have made it easier to
subscribe to our parent email list, so please spread the word in your communities and help us all stay connected!
Sincerely,
MaryEllen Elia
Commissioner
by News from NYSED | Sep 15, 2017 | ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), K12 Education, New York
Plan Will Be Submitted to USDE
Plan Emphasizes Fostering Equity in Education for All Students and Expands Measures for School Accountability & Student Success
Final Approval of the State’s ESSA Plan is Expected Early in 2018
September 11, 2017 — The Board of Regents today approved the New York Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan, which will be submitted to the United States Education Department (USDE) on September 18 for review and approval. It is anticipated that USDE will provide feedback to the Department in December 2017. Final approval of the state’s ESSA plan is expected early next year.
“Our ESSA plan is an action plan,” Board of Regents Chancellor Betty A. Rosa said. “The Regents and I are committed to ensuring that all students, regardless of background, zip code, first language or disability, get the help they need to succeed and thrive in school. Developing this plan has been an opportunity to incorporate the voices of communities, teachers and parents as we rethink how we look at accountability, equity and serving the whole child.”
“The ESSA plan we will now submit to USDE is responsive to the needs of students,” Commissioner MaryEllen Elia said. “This plan is the culmination of more than a year of collaboration with hundreds of stakeholders and members of the public who helped shape the plan throughout the process. And we’re not done. We will continue to engage with stakeholders to ensure everyone is given the opportunity to adjust to and feel comfortable with the new system as it’s implemented.”
The plan emphasizes fostering equity in education for New York’s students; expands measures for school support and accountability and student success; and requires school-level improvement plans for the lowest performing schools overall as well as schools with the lowest performance for certain student populations. The plan also includes strategies for supporting the professional growth of educators and ensuring that all students, including English language learners/Multilingual learners, immigrant students, migratory youth, homeless youth, and neglected and delinquent youth, have access to a well-rounded, culturally responsive education that supports their academic and social-emotional development.
The Department detailed highlights of the plan to the Board of Regents at its September meeting. Further, NYSED is developing summary documents for parents and teachers to explain the final ESSA plan, which is posted in full on the Department’s ESSA webpage.
Stakeholder Engagement
For the past year, NYSED has engaged diverse groups of stakeholders to solicit recommendations on how to craft an ESSA plan that best meets the needs of the state’s students, schools and communities. In support of these efforts, NYSED established an ESSA Think Tank with representatives from more than 100 organizations, including district leaders, teachers, parents, and community members. The Department also consulted with national education experts regarding ESSA, including Linda Darling-Hammond (Learning Policy Institute) and Scott F. Marion (National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment).
In addition, NYSED held more than 120 fall and winter regional in-person meetings across the state in coordination with the state’s 37 Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) and the superintendents of the state’s five largest City School Districts, which were attended by more than 4,000 students, parents, teachers, school and district leaders, school board members, and other stakeholders.
The Department received more than 800 written comments and 270 verbal comments at the meetings during public comment period. In addition to hosting 13 public hearings on the plan from May 11 through June 16, NYSED also held more than 120 stakeholder and public meetings between October 2016 and May 2017 to gather input to help inform the development of the draft plan.
Last month, NYSED released three ESSA waiver requests for public comment. The waivers, which will be submitted simultaneously with the draft ESSA plan, have been previously discussed with the Board of Regents and stakeholders. If approved these waivers will give New York additional flexibility in terms of the assessment of selected groups of middle level students who participate in Regents examinations, newly arrived ELLs/MLLs, and a small group of students with significant cognitive disabilities.
Next Steps
It is anticipated that USDE will provide feedback to the Department in December 2017. Final approval of the state’s ESSA plan is expected early next year. After the plan is approved by the USDE, the Department will work with BOCES District superintendents, superintendents, the ESSA Think Tank and other stakeholder groups to develop and provide guidance on implementing the ESSA plan.
by News from NYSED | Aug 25, 2017 | ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), K12 Education, New York
Dear Parents,
Earlier this week, the State Education Department released the results of the 2017 Grades 3-8 English language arts (ELA) and mathematics tests. Overall, there was a modest improvement in scores statewide, which means we’re moving in the right direction. In ELA this year, the percentage of students in grades 3-8 who scored at the proficient level (Levels 3 and 4) increased by 1.9 percentage points to 39.8, up from 37.9 in 2016. In math, the percentage of students who scored at the proficient level increased this year to 40.2, up 1.1 percentage point from 39.1 in 2016.
This progress is a result of the hard work and dedication of our teachers, students, and parents. Thank you for all you do.
The achievement gap between black and Hispanic students and their white peers also narrowed slightly statewide for both ELA and math. For ELA, black students saw a 2.8-percentage-point increase in those achieving proficiency while Hispanic students experienced a 2.4-percentage-point increase. In both cases, the increases were greater than those seen by white students, who saw a 1.1-percentage-point increase statewide.
Math scores tell a similar story with increases made by black and Hispanic students outpacing those made by white students. Proficiency rates in math for black and Hispanic students went up by 1.4 and 1.3 percentages points, respectively, while proficiency rates for white students increased by only 0.4 percentage points. While these improvements are encouraging, we know there is still more work to be done to close these gaps.
Every Big 5 City made progress this year, with New York City’s ELA proficiency rate (40.6) now slightly exceeding the statewide rate (39.8). Of the Big 5, Yonkers made the biggest gains in proficiency in ELA and math, with a 3.6-percentage-point increase in ELA and a 3.7-percentage-point increase in math.
Charter schools and students who received ELL services prior to, but not during, the 2016-17 school year (“Ever ELLs”) had some of the largest gains in proficiency this year. ELA proficiency rates for Ever ELLs rose 5.5 percentage points to 45.2 percent, more than 5 points higher than the statewide rate. In math, Ever ELL proficiency increased by 3.2 percentage points to 46.8 percent, nearly 7 points higher than the statewide rate. Statewide proficiency rates for charter schools in ELA and math are now 45-percent and 48.2-percent, respectively, also above the statewide rates.
Overall, this news is promising – our students are moving in the right direction. However, black and Hispanic student scores still trail those of white and Asian students, and the ELA and math proficiency rates for English Language Learners and students with disabilities, while up, are still far too low. Our work to diminish these troubling gaps will continue by expanding prevention, early warning, and intervention programs through My Brother’s Keeper; implementation of the state’s ESSA plan; and our equity initiative.
Still, it is clear we must do more. It is also clear that test results don’t give us the complete picture of how well our schools are doing. For that reason, our draft ESSA plan takes a more holistic approach to accountability and considers multiple measures of school and student success, not just test results. We developed our draft plan in a way that was deliberate, inclusive, and transparent, and we took the same approach in making changes to our standards and assessments.
The press release about the 2017 results has more information, including data on 2017 test refusals, which dropped by 2 percentage points. Additionally, a video of me discussing the results is available as well as district- and school-level results.
I hope you enjoy the rest of your summer vacation. Savor the remaining days as much as possible because the first day of school will be here very soon.
As always, thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
MaryEllen Elia
Commissioner
