Miss. accountability plan targets achievement gaps in state schools

Bracey Harris | Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Show Caption Hide Caption 7 Education Stories to Watch in 2017 There's a lot going on with Mississippi's education system, and 2017 could be a year where these developing stories shift the future of the state's schools.

Mississippi, long ranked at the bottom of national education rankings, is taking an ambitious route in its new accountability plan required by federal education officials as part of the Every Student Succeeds Act.

If the draft proposal outlined Friday by the state Department of Education goes according to plan, 70 percent of the state’s students will have reached proficiency in English and math by 2025.

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With just over a third of students reaching proficiency in those subjects on state assessments, Mississippi will have to beat the odds — the number of students scoring above grade level in math and English would have to more than double in less than 10 years — to make that goal happen.

But the state Board of Education is willing to take that shot.

The board approved the draft plan at its meeting Friday.

“We are focused on outcomes, and this is not business as usual. School improvement is a significant part of the state’s strategic plan as reflected in the board’s goals,” said Carey Wright, state superintendent of education.

In addition to setting high benchmarks, the 131-page document also details the state’s plan for closing the achievement gap between different student groups and improving low-performing schools.

Under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, which replaces the No Child Left Behind Act, states have to identify schools in need of comprehensive support and improvement and target support and improvement.

Nathan Oakley, who has coordinated the state’s ESSA plan, estimated Mississippi would receive $10 million to $12 million to distribute to low-performing schools.

That pot of money, according to Oakley, is likely enough for 50 schools.

He told the board the funds would be limited to evidence-based interventions that are in compliance with federal law.

A hallmark of the ESSA plan is it shifts more control to the state and local level.

Under No Child Left Behind, schools faced punitive consequences, including closure, if they failed to meet their annual testing goals.

ESSA still requires students to take standardized tests, but in contrast to No Child Left Behind, the new federal law now allows states to determine the response or sanctions for schools that don’t meet their targets.

Board member Charles McCllelland, however, expressed concerns that the new emphasis on local control could result in the most vulnerable students being left behind.

“It concerns me that some of the low-performing and failing schools, they can’t do it (improve their schools) now,” he said. “It seems to me that we’re going to be pushing them further into the corner rather than giving them help.”

“We’re going to help; we can’t do the work for them,” Oakley responded. “We are there to support and advise them in that effort.”

A 30-day comment period on the proposal ends July 16.

The final version of the plan will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Education in September.

Contact Bracey Harris at 601-961-7248 or bharris2@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter.