No Child Left Behind

AYP Results, 2002-2003

Focusing on results

On August 20, 2003 the State of Alaska released a report on the progress our schools are making toward achieving proficiency for 100 percent of our students. The report identifies whether schools have made “Adequate Yearly Progress” — a simple “yes or no” grade based on a complex set of measurements.

To make AYP, a school must achieve 30 targets: three areas of test participation and performance measured across 10 sets of students. In addition, schools must meet graduation rates or attendance targets. Miss just one target and your entire school does not meet AYP.

As you can see from the table, many good schools have not made AYP. That doesn't mean they're not successful. AYP is an all or nothing proposition, but student achievement is not. Academic success is measured in many ways, including classroom tests, teacher observations, report cards, homework, and standardized tests. AYP focuses only on state tests. Entire schools can miss the AYP target if too many students are absent on test day, or if students that are still learning English miss the reading and writing goals.

I am firmly committed to achieving our goal of success for every child and I recognize that we must continually improve. Our schools are filled with outstanding teachers, principals and support staff. They regularly update their skills and participate in training to help them meet the special challenges our students face. Children of all ages are learning and making daily progress in our schools as one visit to any classroom in this district will illustrate. No child is being “left behind.”

I urge you to look closely at the progress our schools are making, examine the data, and join me in addressing our challenges and applauding the great work students and staff are doing in classrooms throughout the district.

As always, I welcome your comments, suggestions and involvement in our schools.

Most sincerely,
Carol Comeau, Superintendent