More than a third of Mississippi’s voucher funds are not being used. A recent public records request revealed that more than a third of the funds that the Mississippi Legislature appropriated for private school vouchers last year was not spent. In fact, so few of the students who were assigned special needs vouchers were able […]
Mississippi Voucher Funds Go Unused Read More »
A couple of weeks ago, educators who work in K-1 and K-2 schools gathered at a Mississippi Association of School Administrators conference to discuss the challenges surrounding how lower elementary schools are rated. They shared their frustrations about the current system, which they say often yields: Low teacher morale Strained relationships with feeder schools Unfair distribution
Good News on the Accountability Front Read More »
Great things are happening in Mississippi classrooms! That’s the takeaway from the school and district ratings released today by the Mississippi Board of Education. Students demonstrated higher achievement in math, reading, science, and history, along with improvements in ACT scores and graduation rates. See the ratings for schools and school districts here. Accountability rating systems are not
2017 School and District Ratings Released Read More »
If your lower elementary school’s rating is not what you think it should be, I might have an explanation for you: its rating is based on test scores from another school. The feds require that all schools be rated. Mississippi’s state accountability testing begins in grade three. That creates a challenge when it comes to rating lower elementary
Lower Elementary School Ratings May Cause Heartburn Read More »
Diploma options for children with special needs are changing, and you have an opportunity to weigh in on how those changes unfold. Parents and teachers of students with special needs can submit comments to the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) by August 31 on its plan to change the diploma options available to students with disabilities.
Changes Pending Regarding Special Education Diploma Options Read More »
State Test Scores Released Today the Mississippi Board of Education voted on an amended recommendation from MDE to: • Reestablish the accountability rating baseline (cut) scores for 2016-2017 using the same percentile ranking that was used to determine school and district ratings (letter grades) last year• Publish two ratings for each school and district – one based
Mississippi Board of Ed Action Commendable, Not Perfect Read More »
The Mississippi Department of Education’s (MDE’s) Commission on School Accreditation (CSA) has recommended that new accountability cut scores be set and that percentile rankings be used again this year to determine school and school district ratings. MDE officials explained that the cut scores were set artificially high last year. Director of Assessment Walt Drane shared this analogy,
School Ratings: Percentile Rankings & New Cut Scores – Again Read More »
Ready for the best year yet! Mississippi public school teachers are welcoming students back to class, excited, focused, and ready to “raise the bar!” Our amazing teachers and administrators have worked hard through the summer, preparing to lead our children through another great year of growing and learning.Local businesses and churches are stepping up, donating
Next Sunday, July 16, is the deadline to give your feedback on Mississippi’s new plan for public education in our state: Mississippi Succeeds. Each state is required to submit a plan to the U.S. Department of Education explaining how it will comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, the replacement for No Child Left Behind).
New Assessment, Ambitious Goals in State Ed Plan Read More »
We have taken a close look at the EdBuild recommendations, and one thing is perfectly clear – changing any one of the dozens of variables in a small way has a big impact on individual school districts. The bottom line, though, appears to be less state funding for public schools than is now required by the
Less State Funding for Mississippi Schools? Read More »
