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AYP report shows continual progress for Fulton schools

The release of 2003-2004 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) reports from the Georgia Department of Education shows a continuing positive achievement trend for Fulton County schools.Ê Among the data highlights from the report prepared by the state:

• 88 percent, or 73 schools, made AYP.Ê This is up from 75 percent in 2002-2003.

• All elementary schools made AYP.

• 10 schools that did not make AYP in 2002-2003 met the AYP goals in 2003-2004.

• Three schools (Love T. Nolan, Palmetto and Evoline C. West elementary schools) previously on the Needs Improvement list have now been removed from that category.

• With the exception of one alternative school, all schools met the 95% participation rate.Ê Last year, nine schools failed to meet this criterion.

• One school, Conley Hills Elementary, was named by the Georgia Department of Education as an Outstanding Achievement School based on dramatic improvement in the percentage of students meeting and exceeding standards on the CRCT.Ê Conley Hills registered a 32 percent gain.

“There is much to celebrate in this year’s AYP report,” says Superintendent Michael Vanairsdale.Ê “I am particularly pleased with our elementary schools and with the tremendous gains we have made with our special education students.Ê We must meet the needs of all students, and this is validation that we are heading in the right direction.”

Ten Fulton County schools Ð seven middle and three high Ð did not make AYP, as defined by the state.Ê This number is down from 20 schools that did not meet the AYP targets in 2002-2003.Ê In reviewing the data, four of these seven middle schools actually met the state’s Annual Measurable Objective.Ê This means that the school as a whole and all identified subgroups met or exceeded the percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on state assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Math.Ê

However, Fulton’s middle schools this year, like the majority of the state, saw declines in the Georgia Middle Grades Writing Assessment (MGWA).Ê In Fulton, the MGWA is used as an Additional Indicator to determine AYP.Ê Had it not been for this testing anomaly with the MGWA, Bear Creek, Camp Creek, McNair, and Woodland middle schools would have met AYP.Ê

“It is important for parents to understand the reasons why a school may not have made AYP,” says Vanairsdale.Ê “It is not an indication of overall performance, but shows specific areas that need improvement.”

Under state and federal guidelines, schools that go two or more years in a row without making AYP in the same subject area are identified as a Needs Improvement school. These schools must provide parents the opportunity to transfer their child to a school that is not in Needs Improvement status.Ê In order to come off the Needs Improvement list schools must make AYP for two consecutive years.

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is one of the cornerstones of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act.Ê It is a measure of year-to-year student achievement on statewide assessments.Ê

To meet AYP, each school and system must meet the following criteria:

• 95% Participation: Each school, as a whole, and all student groups with at least 40 members* must have a participation rate of 95% or above on selected state assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Math.Ê All Fulton schools, with the exception of the two alternative schools, met this criteria.

• Annual Measurable Objective: Each school, as a whole, and each student subgroup with at least 40 members* must meet or exceed the State’s Annual Measurable Objective (AMO) regarding the percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on State assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Math.Ê All but seven of Fulton’s 83 schools met this criterion.

•Additional Indicator: Each school must meet the standard or show progress on an additional indicator.Ê Fulton uses attendance as the additional indicator at the elementary level, the MGWA at the middle school level and graduation rate at the high school level.Ê All elementary schools met the additional indicator.Ê Five middle schools did not meet goals on the MGWA and three high schools did not meet the graduation rate goals.

In order to be counted as part of AYP, a school must have at least 40 students in a subgroup. The subgroups identified by NCLB are

• Race (American Indian/Alaskan Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, Hispanic, Multiracial, White)

• Disability

• Limited English Speaking

• Socioeconomic status