Request to Amend Accountability Plan – Texas – NCLB Policy Letters to States
August 3, 2010
The Honorable Robert Scott
Commissioner
Texas Education Agency
1701 North Congress
Austin, Texas 78701
Dear Commissioner Scott:
I am writing in response to Texas’ request to amend its state accountability plan under Title I of the ESEA. Following discussions between the Department and your staff, Texas made changes to its accountability plan, which are now included in the amended plan that Texas submitted to the Department on July 14, 2010. I am pleased to approve Texas’ amended plan, which we will post on the Department’s website. A summary of Texas’ requested amendments is enclosed with this letter. As you know, any further requests to amend Texas’ accountability plan must be submitted to the Department for review and approval as required by section 1111(f)(2) of Title I of the ESEA.
Please also be aware that approval of Texas’ accountability plan for Title I, including the amendments approved herein, does not indicate that the plan complies with Federal civil rights requirements, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
I am confident that Texas will continue to advance its efforts to hold schools and school districts accountable for the achievement of all students. If you need any additional assistance to implement the standards, assessment, and accountability provisions of the ESEA, please do not hesitate to contact (Vicki.Robinson@ed.gov) or (Grace.Ross@ed.gov) of my staff.
Sincerely,
Thelma Meléndez de Santa Ana, Ph.D.
Enclosure
cc: Governor Rick Perry
Criss Cloudt
Amendments to Texas’ Accountability Plan
The following is a summary of Texas’ amendment requests. Please refer to the Department’s website (www.ed.govhttps://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplans03/index.html) for Texas’ complete accountability plan.
Including all schools and districts in adequate yearly progress (AYP) determinations (Element 1.2, 1.6, 4.1, 5.2)
Revision: Texas removed from its accountability workbook the hurricane provisions under the waiver that applied only to 2008-2009 adequate yearly progress (AYP) determinations.
Use of one and two percent cap (Element 3.1, 5.3)
Revision: Beginning with the 2009-2010 school year, AYP results from the alternate assessments will include proficient, projected to be proficient based on the Texas Projection Measure (TPM), or on track to proficiency based on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills-Alternate (TAKS-Alt) growth measure. For 2010 AYP, growth measure are available in reading/English language arts and mathematics at all grades for TAKS-Alternate and at grades 4, 7, and 10 for TAKS-M. For the alternate assessments, the percent proficient, projected to be proficient based on the TPM, or on track to meet standard based on the TAKS-Alt growth measure for each district and campus will be subject to the one percent cap for students with significant cognitive disabilities and the two percent cap for students assessed using modified assessments.
Including all the required student subgroups in AYP (Element 5.1)
Revision: Texas updated its accountability workbook to include other performance measures for limited English Proficient (LEP) students for the AYP graduation rate indicator. LEP status is reported on the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) attendance record. For the attendance rate indicator, a student reported as LEP in any six-week reporting period is considered LEP. For the AYP graduation rate indicator, a student reported as LEP at any time while attending grades 9-12 in Texas public schools is considered LEP.
