CNA Education Update May 2015
A division of CNA Corporation's Institute for Public Research, CNA Education helps policymakers and practitioners improve the quality of public education by providing critical decision-making support. Our approach combines objective scientific methods, evidence-based analysis, on-the-ground field experience, and absolute data integrity.
ESEA Reauthorization
On April 16, 2015, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions approved the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 by a unanimous 22-0 vote. If the act passes into law, it will be the eighth reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), first passed in 1965 to address economic disparities in education as part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty.

The last reauthorization of the ESEA, No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2002, significantly affected public schools receiving federal funds. Among NCLB's mandates were annual math and reading testing between grades 3 and 8, plus testing between grades 10 and 12; that by 2014 all students be grade-level "proficient" in math and reading, as defined by states; that schools implement "average yearly progress" (AYP) benchmarks toward proficiency goals; that failure to comply with AYP benchmarks result in federal sanctions; and that teachers demonstrate proficiency in their subject area.

As passed by the Committee, Every Child Achieves would maintain certain of NCLB's features, such as annual testing, but allow states more autonomy. Instead of requiring that AYP benchmarks be met by a certain date, the act would allow states to create their own accountability systems and would remove mandated sanctions against non-compliant schools. It also would remove mandatory teacher certification and allow states to define "highly qualified teacher."


To a certain degree, state-created accountability plans already exist. Since 2012, some 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have been granted waivers on reaching AYP benchmarks on schedule by the Obama administration, in exchange for state-created plans to ensure progress toward college-ready student populations.

Such weakened federal oversight might allow for school performance standards that reflect local education needs. However, as educator and blogger Nancy Bailey points out, if the ACT and the SAT are aligning with the Common Core State Standards, states may be inclined to adopt those college and career readiness standards rather than their own. Additionally, while Committee member Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts voted yes, she argued the current version allows states to take federal funds without any assurances to serve low-income students, undermining the ESEA's original intent. This is one of the issues that CNA Education is watching closely.

Dr. Steve Lee, Research Analyst, CNA Education
Florida College and Career Readiness Initiative: Feedback from the First Two Years of Implementation
The Florida College and Career Readiness Initiative (FCCRI) mandates college placement testing to 11th graders who meet high school graduation criteria but are unlikely to meet college-readiness criteria. Students who score below "college-ready" are required to take math and English college readiness and success (CRS) courses in grade 12.

As part of our ongoing program evaluation, CNA provided feedback to the Florida Department of Education about FCCRI's first two years of implementation. Analyzing interview and survey data from students, CRS teachers, district administrators, and college staff, we found that while teachers identify some impediments in the way the reform was implemented, they support its purpose. They also believe FCCRI generally is effective, particularly for the college-bound students scoring just below college-ready that FCCRI was intended for.

Other questions we investigated include:
  • What do FCCRI college readiness and success courses look like in practice?
  • What do students believe could be done to better prepare them for post-high school plans?
  • How do K-12 and postsecondary institutions collaborate around FCCRI?

Read a synopsis of our findings
Read the full report
Of Interest
Events

REL Appalachia Webinar

  "Principles of Innovation Configuration Mapping," May 28, 2015, 1:00-2:30 p.m. EDT

REL Appalachia Workshops   
  � "Principal Leadership Strategies for Promoting Teacher Data Use," June 9, 2015, 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Nashville, TN
 
 "Understanding the West Virginia Growth Model," June 16, 2015, 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Morgantown, WV

 "Improving Teaching and Learning through Action Research," June 19, 2015, 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon. Hazard, KY

 "Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners,"
July 22, 2015, 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Erlanger, KY

 "Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners," July 23, 2015, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Louisville, KY

 
"Principal Leadership for Effective Use of PGES Data," July 29, 2015, 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Louisville, KY 


News

CNA Education will be hosting a series of professional development forums for the Florida College and Career Readiness Initiative this summer. The forums will bring together educators from high schools, districts, and state colleges to discuss issues surrounding college readiness.
 June 8, Miami, FL
 August 4, Tallahassee, FL
 August 19, Jacksonville, FL 

Careers

Openings Now for Researchers and Others
  �  
For details, visit www.cna.org/careers
About CNA Education
We focus on:

Making Effective Use of Data
 
Teacher Quality

K-12 Program Effectiveness
 
Transitions from Secondary School
 
College and Career Readiness / Workforce Development

We provide: 

Applied Research

Program
Evaluation
 
Policy Analysis
 
Technical Assistance

Join Our Mailing List
Keep up-to-date on CNA Education's current projects, findings, products, and activities; read our bi-monthly newsletter, the CNA Education Update.


Current and past issues of the Update are always available online on the CNA website.
Contact Us
For the latest on CNA Education's capabilities and services, or to speak with one of our experts: [email protected] www.cna.org/centers/education
FCCRI Findings Infographic

Career and Technical Education (CTE) to Meet Job Market Needs
More U.S. students are graduating from high school and enrolling in college than ever before. However, almost half of recent high school graduates who enroll in community college do not graduate with a credential within eight years. Recent studies using data from the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor find that the college credits these non-completers do accrue hold little value in the labor market over a high school diploma alone. In response, practitioners and policymakers are increasingly paying attention to the role that secondary and postsecondary career and technical education (CTE) plays in both improving students' postsecondary outcomes and ensuring that graduates' skills are directly aligned with labor market needs.

Historically, CTE has had a somewhat tarnished reputation. Some practitioners and researchers viewed it as a low curriculum track that, at best, offered mediocre instructional programs to low-performing students, and at worst, severely limited the opportunities for students who were advised to take CTE courses by misguided teachers and counselors who believed they were not ready for college-preparatory coursework.

Arguably, CTE courses do vary in quality. As a 2011 CNA analysis of the availability of CTE in Tennessee and other research demonstrate, programs are not always well-aligned with local labor market needs or careers that pay a good wage. However, the assumption that CTE is synonymous with discriminatory tracking appears fundamentally flawed and obscures the work that practitioners and policymakers have undertaken to increase the rigor of CTE.

One engine of that effort is federal CTE legislation. The Carl D. Perkins Act requires high schools and postsecondary institutions receiving federal dollars to (a) implement rigorous programs of study, career pathway programs that align the curricular content of secondary and postsecondary CTE programs; (b) incorporate rigorous content aligned with both state academic standards and industry standards; (c) potentially provide opportunities for dual enrollment for high school students; and (d) result in an industry-recognized credential that has currency in the labor market.

Researchers at the Center on Education and the Workforce forecast that between now and 2020, 65 million jobs will require education beyond high school. Of those, more than half will require credentials of more than a high school diploma but less than a bachelor's degree. Effectively implemented CTE programs that meet the Perkins criteria have a positive impact on students' graduation rates, postsecondary enrollment, and preparation both for those middle-skill jobs and for pathways to baccalaureate degrees.

Juliana Pearson, Associate Research Analyst, CNA Education

3003 Washington Boulevard
Arlington, VA 22201