FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 14, 2007                                                                     

 

Contacts:                                           

Joseph Mittiga                                                                         Luke Gordy

Government/Public Affairs Officer                                          Executive Director

Little Rock School District                                                      Arkansans for Education                                                                                                                                                                 (501) 447-1028                                                                        Reform Foundation

(501) 461-8181

 

 

 

ACHIEVEMENT CHALLENGE PROJECT PAYS DIVIDENDS FOR STUDENTS, TEACHERS AND STAFF

 

 

 

Principals, teachers and staff members of five Little Rock School District elementary schools are sharing in $242,507 earned through the district’s Achievement Challenge Pilot Project, a program begun in the 2004-2005 school year in conjunction with the Public Education Foundation of Little Rock.  The Achievement Challenge project directly provides incentive payments for principals, teachers and school employees for academic gains that exceeded a typical year of progress made by students on a standardized test.

 

Overall, four of the five schools reported above average achievement gains in a nationally normed test ranging from 8.5 percent to 0.1 percent.  The fifth school saw gains in some individual classes but the school average score dropped by 4.1 percent.  The five schools are Meadowcliff, Wakefield, Mabelvale, Romine and Geyer Springs.

 

Dr. Roy Brooks, Superintendent of Schools, Little Rock School District, says that the value of the Achievement Challenge Pilot Project extends beyond the rewards for students and their teachers.  “The Challenge Project is generating important data that the University of Arkansas is using to evaluate the effectiveness of this program,” says Dr. Brooks.  “What we learn here may be of value to other schools and districts that are interested in performance pay programs such as Governor Beebe’s Reward Excellence in Education Program that was adopted by the Arkansas Legislature this year.”

 

The academic achievement gains are determined by comparing the normal curve equivalent (NCE) scores of individual students on nationally normed tests.  The students are tested twice.  The achievement of the Meadowcliff students was based on the results of the SAT-10 administered in the fall of 2006 and in the spring of 2007. The achievement of students at Wakefield, Mabelvale, Romine and Geyer Springs was based on the results of the state’s nationally normed test, the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), administered across the state in the spring of 2006 and the spring of 2007.  Individual teachers earned cash awards based on the improvement of their students on those tests.  A student whose test score increases from the first to the second test exhibits more academic growth than the national norm.  A student whose test score decreases from the first to the second test has not grown as much academically as the national norm.  A student whose test score shows no change between the first and second test has exhibited academic growth equal to the national norm.  School principals and school staff members are rewarded based on the average gains earned by all students at their schools.

 

The Achievement Challenge Pilot Project began at Meadowcliff Elementary School in the 2004-2005 school year funded by a grant from the Hussman Foundation through the Public Education Foundation of Little Rock.  For 2005-2006, the project was expanded to include Wakefield Elementary School and was funded by the Hussman Foundation. The Little Rock School District funded the cost of the incentives at Meadowcliff Elementary in the second year of the project there.

 

Three more elementary schools – Mabelvale, Romine and Geyer Springs – were added for the 2006-2007 school year.  The Achievement Challenge project for these three schools was funded by the Public Education Foundation of Little Rock with grants from the Hussman Foundation, the Walton Foundation and the Brown Foundation.  The Little Rock School District is funding the incentives for both Meadowcliff and Wakefield.

 

Individual School Results

 

Geyer Springs Elementary students recorded an average NCE score gain of 8.5 percent, the highest average gain of any of the five schools, meaning the average level of student academic growth based on the ITBS test exceeded the academic growth of the national norm over the same time period.  When translating NCE scores to a national ranking, Geyer Springs students advanced from the 28^th percentile nationally to the 34^th.  As a result, the principal, teachers, educational coaches and staff members are sharing in an incentive totaling $64,530. Eleven of the 12 classroom teachers earned bonuses ranging from $350 to $7,600, with three of the teachers earning $6,000 or more. The principal earned a bonus of $5,000. Other full time certified support staff and full time employees earned bonuses ranging from $250 to $2,500.

 

Meadowcliff Elementary students recorded an average NCE score gain of 6.9 percent, meaning the average level of student academic growth based on the SAT-10 test exceeded the academic growth of the national norm over the same time period. Nationally, Meadowcliff students advanced from the 28^th percentile to the 33^rd.   As a result, the principal, teachers, educational coaches and staff members are sharing in an incentive totaling $83,465.  All 15 of the classroom teachers earned bonuses ranging from $1,100 to $5,100, with 10 of the teachers earning bonuses of $3,000 or more. The principal earned a bonus of $5,000, and other full time certified and non-certified staff members earned bonuses ranging from $500 to $2,000.   Meadowcliff’s methodology differs in that students were tested in the fall and in the spring using a SAT-10 assessment and a payment schedule that was established in the initial 2004-2005 school year.     

 

Wakefield Elementary students recorded an average NCE score gain of 0.1 percent, meaning the average level of student academic growth based on the ITBS test slightly exceeded the academic growth of the national norm over the same time period.  Nationally, Wakefield students advanced only slightly to the 29^th percentile.  As a result, the principal, teachers, educational coaches and staff members are sharing in an incentive totaling $42,513. Ten of the 21 teachers earned bonuses ranging from $300 to $7,600, with two teachers earning over $7,000. All other full time certified and non-certified staff members earned bonuses ranging from $125 to $1,250, and the principal earned a bonus of $2,500.   

 

Mabelvale Elementary students recorded an average NCE score gain of 3.8 percent, meaning the average level of student academic growth based on the ITBS test exceeded the academic growth of the national norm over the same time period.  Nationally, Mabelvale students advanced from the 30^th percentile to the 33^rd.   As a result, the principal, teachers, educational coaches and staff members are sharing in an incentive totaling $39,550. Of the 16 classroom teachers, nine earned bonuses ranging from $450 to $6,400. The principal earned a $2,500 bonus, with other certified and non-certified staff members earning bonuses ranging from $125 and $1,250.  

 

Romine Elementary students recorded an average NCE score decrease of 4.1 percent, meaning the average level of student academic growth based on the ITBS test was less than the academic growth of the national norm over the same time period.  Nationally, Romine students moved from the 39^th percentile to the 36^th.  While the school average declined, gains were reported in several individual classes.  As a result, several teachers are sharing in an incentive totaling $12,450 based on academic gains made in their classrooms. Four of the 15 classroom teachers earned bonuses ranging from $450 to $5,200.  Because the school average did not increase, however, an award was not made to the principal and other staff members.

 

Dr. Gary Ritter, Department of Education Reform, University of Arkansas, is completing the second year of a two-year evaluation of the Achievement Challenge Pilot Project and will provide a detailed presentation to the Little Rock School Board in coming weeks.

 

The 2006-2007 school year marked the first time that ITBS tests were used as part of the Achievement Challenge project.  Most schools in the Little Rock School District recorded flat scores – minimal gains and minimal declines compared to the previous year – in 2006-2007 testing.  Test scores that show no change from one year to the next indicate a level of academic growth equal to the national norm.

 

 

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