Majority of Norwalk Schools "In Need of Improvement"

Hundreds of Connecticut schools, including a dozen in Norwalk, have failed to meet meet the performance standards required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

WSHU, an NPR affiliate, has the story

12 of Norwalk's 17 public schools are "In Need of Improvement," because they did not make adequate yearly progress (AYP) on the Connecticut Mastery Test. The Norwalk school district itself is classified as "In Need of Improvement."

No Child Left Behind requires states to measure "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) for schools receiving Title I funds with the goal of all students reaching the proficient level on reading/language arts and mathematics tests by the 2013-2014 school year. States must define minimum levels of improvement as measured by standardized tests chosen by the state. If a school receiving Title I funding fails to meet its AYP target for two or more consecutive years (described as Year I), the school is designated "in need of improvement" and faces specific consequences.

The Norwalk schools that are in Need of Improvement are:

High School
Norwalk High School, Year IV
Brien McMahon, Year IV
Briggs,Year VI

Middle School
Nathan Hale,Year IV
Ponus Ridge,Year II
Roton,Year III
West Rocks,Year III

Elementary School
Cranbury Elementary School,Year II
Fox Run, Year I
Jefferson, Year III
Silvermine, Year III
Tracey, Year II

When a Title I school fails to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for two or more consecutive years (Year I), parents of chidren in that school have the choice to transfer their children to schools which are not identified as "in need of improvement" A district cannot deny school choice to eligible students due to lack of capacity.

When a Title I school fails to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for three or more consecutive years (Year II), students are eligible for state-approved supplemental educational services, which include tutoring or other extra education services that provide academic aid to students.

In addition to these services, parents continue to have school transfer options

When a Title I school fails to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for four consecutive years (Year III), the district must implement at least one of the following corrective actions: replace school staff; implement new curriculum; decrease the authority of school-level administration; appoint outside experts to advise the school; extend the school year or school day; and/or restructure the internal organization of the school.

When a Title I school fails to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for five (Year IV) consecutive years, the district must prepare a plan to restructure the school. The restructuring plan must include one of the following alternative governance arrangements: reopen the school as a public charter school; replace all or most of the school staff, including the principal; enter into a contract to have an outside entity operate the school; arrange for the state to take over operation of the school; or any other major restructuring of the school's governance arrangement.

When a Title I school fails to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for six consecutive years, the district must implement the plan developed in the previous year to restructure the school.

I have a call into Dr. Papallo to find out exactly what corrective and restructuring actions will be taking place as a result of these new results.

UPDATE:

According to Assistant Superintendent Tony Daddona,
"Sanctions’ only apply to Title I schools. Jefferson and Silvermine are the only two schools who require corrective action. These two schools have Executive Coaches. They work with the building Principal developing a School Improvement Plan and in the implementation of the School Improvement Plan. These schools also have received a plan for service of 5 days on CALI assistance... "

CALI is the Connecticut Accountability for Learning Initiative, a program by the State Department of Education to help schools devise a plan improvement to increase student performance.

The Title 1 schools that are in need of improvement are Cranbury, Fox Run, Jefferson, Silvermine and Tracey.

As one of the comments indicates Cranbury, Roton and Silvermine are "on hold," meaning if they make AYP next year they'll be off of the "needs improvement" list.

UPDATE 2:
If you'd like to access the NCLB data go the State Dept of Ed website:

http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2662&Q=322372