Vision 2015: Seaford is National Leader in Energy Savings

Seaford School District Recognized as National Leader in Energy Performance

The Seaford School District has been named an ENERGY STAR success story for the second consecutive year, placing the district among the top 11 percent in energy performance nationwide. Seaford has cost-effectively achieved continuous, measurable improvements in the energy efficiency of its six K-12 school buildings by following a comprehensive energy-saving program.

Coverage by The News Journal, “Seaford schools teach green lessons,” references the LEAD Committee's cost-efficiency study, which identifies between $3 million and $5 million (of the $28 million total cost of energy) that could be saved and reallocated annually through better efforts to manage energy across Delaware school districts.

Delaware is a Major Voice in Reforming Student Assessments

States should be given the right to design student assessments under No Child Left Behind that more accurately document how well schools are doing in improving the achievement of all their students. That was the strong message of a Commentary in the May 20 issue of Education Week, “Fixing the Flaw in the Growth Model,” written by David Sokola, Delaware state senator; Howard Weinberg, DSEA executive director; Dr. Robert J. Andrzejewski, superintendent of the Red Clay Consolidated School District; and Nancy A. Doorey, of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League.

Based on the work of the Delaware Statewide Academic Growth Assessment Pilot, a coalition of Delaware educators and others, the editorial recommends that the reauthorization of NCLB include permission for states to incorporate a computer-assisted, fully adaptive student performance assessment, which is currently prohibited by the law. Instead of focusing on grade-level questions as currently required by NCLB, the adaptive assessment would draw on questions from multiple grade levels, adjusting to student responses.

By adjusting questions to student proficiency regardless of grade level, the fully adaptive assessments can capture more accurately the progress of students who start out well below or above grade level, the authors say. For example, a 2007 study commissioned by the Delaware Statewide Academic Growth Assessment Pilot found a fully adaptive assessment to be more accurate than the regular state assessment in measuring whether a student starting the year well below grade level would be on track to reach proficiency within four years.

“For those who like the federal law the way it is, this change would have minimal impact. States could still use their current grade-level assessments to measure student growth,” the authors say. “But for those who believe that NCLB is a work in progress, permitting the use of fully adaptive assessments would enable the law to realize its goal of increasing and determining the pace of student achievement.”

The following Vision 2015 recommendations and core ideas support the implementation of this new student assessment system:

Offering online adaptive tests that measure individual student performance.
Implementing assessments that measure how individual students perform over time.
Increasing the usefulness, availability, and transparency of assessment information.
Enabling the public to view Delaware’s progress in comparison to the United States' progress and beyond.
Making the system cost effective.

VISION-aries

"Education is a garden that we planted for our children years ago... but that garden became overgrown... because of Vision 2015, all of those weeds that made it seem impossible to get back to the children are now possible again. We are weeding... we are feeding... we are seeding...And our goal is to make one beautiful, well-tended garden... We are digging in; we are getting our hands dirty together. And that is Vision 2015."

--MOT Middle School Principal, Elaine Elston, speaking at Vision 2015 reception on May 21.

Did You Know?

For the 2007-2008 school year, Delaware began to require more course credits to earn a standard diploma than the average state in each of the following subjects: mathematics, English/language arts, science, history/social studies, and electives. For more information on Delaware’s requirements for earning a high school diploma, read Education Week’s 2008 graduation brief on Delaware.

June 13, 2008

Attention Educators!

Do you want to continue to receive the Vision 2015 newsletter throughout the summer months?

Please send your summer email address to us at info@vision2015delaware.org.

Research

Twenty-four Students Lost Each Day by Delaware High Schools

The 2008 Diplomas Count—a comprehensive analysis of U.S. public high school graduation rates by Education Week and the Editorial Projects in Education (EPE) Research Center—included a wake-up call for Delaware. Using the Cumulative Promotion Index (CPI) method, the report revealed that:

Delaware’s high school graduation rate fell 4.2 percent between 2001 and 2005—in contrast to an increase of 2.6 percent for the nation as a whole.
Approximately 60% of Delaware students graduated in 2005 (with 24 students lost each day from the graduation pipeline), compared to 64% in 2001.
About 71 percent of all U.S. public high school students graduated from high school with a regular diploma in the class of 2005.

Vision Network Schools to Focus on 21st Century Skills

Employers list communication skills, a strong work ethic, teamwork skills, initiative, and interpersonal skills, in that order, as the top characteristics they seek in new hires, according to the Job Outlook 2008 survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges & Employers. Schools are responding to the demand by incorporating “soft” –or “applied” –skills, such as oral communication and team collaboration, into academic subjects and assignments, according to a June 2007 article in Education Week.

Five Vision Network schools have developed instructional focus areas that address critical thinking, a “soft skill” for which employers have expressed a need. These instructional focus areas were developed through data examination to address student needs. Developing students’ ability to think critically will help them prepare for assignments that require them to solve problems independently and assume broad responsibilities.

Spotlight

The Delaware Parent Leadership Institute (DPLI) trains parents to better understand school achievement data so they can assist educators to make improvements based on that data. The idea is to go beyond parents’ traditional roles (bake sales and homework help) to focus on parents’ potential for helping improve student achievement. Just as expectations for teachers and students have been raised by higher academic standards, accountability and testing, expectations for parents have been raised as well.

Operated by the Rodel Foundation of Delaware for 4 years, DPLI is open to parents and caregivers of Delaware public school students who have demonstrated leadership potential and are interested in improving schools. Since 2004, more than 106 parent leaders have graduated from the Institute and are now implementing projects that assist educators in raising student achievement.

How does it work?

At the school level, parent understanding of school achievement data is needed so parents can assist educators to make improvements based on that data. DPLI is designed to empower parents by providing them with the information and tools they need to become effective advocates for an improved state education system. Once parents have been selected, they will attend six day-long and two evening sessions over the course of three months.

During the training sessions, parents work together to develop new skills and to improve their knowledge of their children’s public schools and Delaware’s education system. Upon completion of the training, participants commit to at least one project in a school or their community that primarily focuses on improving student achievement. The projects must involve other parents and be sustainable. Parent-initiated projects have creatively focused on strategies to improve students' skills in math, reading, college readiness, and transitions to other schools.