Strategizing with Safe Harbor

Carissa Moffat Miller, PhD Deputy Superintendent, Assessment

cmiller@sde.idaho.gov

Roger Quarles Superintendent, Caldwell District

rquarles@caldwellschools.org

Overview• Calculating safe harbor • Safe harbor as your “saving grace” • How to handle data to target safe harbor (or other

appeals)• District and school use of safe harbor  • Examples of schools making AYP with safe harbor • How safe harbor has changed instruction/focus within

schools

Calculating Safe Harbor Two separate requirements -- each must be satisfied to meet AYP

First step: a 10% decrease in not proficient students over last year.

% of not proficient students, year 1 - % of not proficient students, year 2% of not proficient students, year 1

If first requirement is not made, group does not make AYP and 2nd calculation is not required

Calculating Safe Harbor

Step 1 Example:White Reading 2008-09 = 60% not proficient

White Reading 2009-10 = 50% not proficient

60% of not proficient students(08-09) - 50% of not proficient students (09-10)

60% of not proficient students (08-09)

16.67% decrease in not proficient students

Calculating Safe Harbor

Step 2:

Did subgroup make third Indicator (Language Usage) target?

If target is made, group makes AYP For Reading

Calculating Safe Harbor Step 3 (if needed):

If Language Usage target is not made: Was the % of students who are proficient or advanced equal to

or higher than previous year?

Example:LU 2009-10 = 63% Proficient

LU 2008-09 = 57% Proficient63%-57% = 6% increase in Third Indicator

Safe Harbor satisfied = make AYP in Reading

Safe Harbor as your “saving grace”Indexing-Idaho’s Partial Proficiency Weighted Model

Percent "Proficient or Higher" Required to Meet AYP

 

2008-092009-10

2010-11 2011-12

2012-13 2013-14

Reading 85.6 90.4 95.2 100

Mathematics 83.0 88.7 94.3 100

Language Usage 75.1 83.4 91.7 100

Safe Harbor as your “saving grace”

Text in slide • Text in slide

Safe Harbor as your “saving grace”

• Export to Excel function

• Use auto filter

• Sort students who are included in the proficiency calculations

• Sort by the category of student

• Ensuring the data is correct

• Viewing data for areas of concentration

District Perspective

Caldwell School District

Safe Harbor as your “saving grace”

1. There is more than one way to make it

2. Gives districts an opportunity to improve

3. Focuses the conversation around continuous improvement and accountability

District and School Use of Safe Harbor

• Instructional coaches at each school track progress and goals.

• Caldwell High made AYP for the first time. Instructional coaches like Rose Rettig are in all 10 of our buildings.

Schools using Safe Harbor

• Five of eight Caldwell schools making AYP used Safe Harbor.

• Principals and teachers focused instruction on each child’s needs.

Safe Harbor and Instruction

• Van Buren Elementary teachers collaborate daily within grade levels and discuss each student’s needs and progress. Van Buren third graders have scored 100 percent proficient in math.

Know your kids

Examine records to make sure all demographic information is accurate.

Know the rules, do the math and identify a “go-to” person

• Data flows from the district, to DRC, to the SDE and back. Make sure you replicate the math from your original data and compare it with what comes back to you. Appeal if the findings don’t match up.

Contact Us

Carissa Miller332-6901cmiller@sde.idaho.gov

Roger Quarles455-3300rquarles@caldwellschools.org