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EDUCATION OVERSIGHT BOARD ESTABLISHES NEW PERFORMANCE BENCHMARK AND COMMENDS HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOLS. OFFICE OF ACCOUNTABILITY RELEASES LATEST SCHOOL REPORT CARDS, DISTRICT REPORTS AND STATE REPORT. OKLAHOMA SCHOOL PERFORMANCE REVIEW PROGRAM TAKING OFF.
Contact: Robert Buswell or Jeff Wallace     
(405) 225-9470
June 2, 2008

 
OKLAHOMA CITY - The Education Oversight Board (EOB) announces that it has established a new performance benchmark for schools which will be reflected in the newest version of the popular School Report Cards released by the Office of Accountability. "The new performance benchmark is a rigorous one that identifies the top schools across the state," said Susan Field, Chairman of the Education Oversight Board (See attached list of schools). "The new mark is in addition to an earlier benchmark and identifies those schools where 70% of the students score Satisfactory or above and where 25% of the students score Advanced on every subject tested at a given grade level," explained Field. The benchmark applies to the results of the 2007 Oklahoma School Testing Program (OSTP) for Regular Education students, grades 3rd through 8th, that have attended the same school for a full academic year. "The Board commends the fifty-two (52) schools that met the EOB's new benchmark. These schools showed very high performance and they will receive one or more stars on their School Report Cards," said Field.

"The time was right for a new benchmark," said Kathleen Wilcoxson, Co-Chairman of the Senate Education Committee. "A number of years ago when the Board established the original 70% Performance Benchmark, there were only a few schools that met the challenge and received a checkmark; but now, most schools get the checkmark." explained Wilcoxson. "Students, teachers, and administrators have all worked very hard to improve performance on Oklahoma's standardized tests but realignment of test rigor, reclassification of students, and adjusting of cut-scores has also worked to move student scores higher," commented Wilcoxson. "We reached the point where even the state average warranted a check mark at every grade level so the new 25% Advanced Performance Benchmark re-establishes the Education Oversight Board's desire to recognize the state's top performing schools."

The Oklahoma Educational Indicators Program issues the Profiles series of reports that include three components; the State Report, the District Report, and the School Report Cards. The Profiles 2007 State Report contains tables, graphs, maps, and accompanying text covering state-level educational issues. The two-volume Profiles 2007 District Report looks at each of Oklahoma's 540 public school districts and reports over 100 data elements for each. It presents demographic data, educational process statistics and figures on student performance. The 2007 School Report Cards cover similar information on each of Oklahoma's 1,713 public school sites. The Profiles reports aid parents and school patrons in monitoring the effectiveness of their local district and schools and fulfills a reporting requirement under state law.

"School principals are suppose to be sending the School Report Cards home to every parent but the Office of Accountability now logs over 1 million web-based downloads of the School Report Cards per year and consistently has over 100,000 documents downloaded each month. People are interested in the performance of their public schools and our website is a one-stop shop for their data needs," remarked Robert Buswell, Executive Director of the Office of Accountability. With the addition of Profiles 2007 there will be 11 years worth of Educational Indicator data available on the Office of Accountability's website. "These documents are the most comprehensive and consistent source of educational data in the state. Oklahomans in general, and parents in particular, should look to these documents when assessing the efforts and achievements of their local school system," said Buswell.

"These documents should be used by parents and the community as means of establishing dialogue with teachers, administrators and their local board of education. Parents and patrons should complement the school system on things it has done well and also work with them on strategies to address any areas of weakness."

The Office of Accountability has been producing report cards and statistical reports for over 12 years and the district report is the office's most comprehensive work. Senator Judy Eason McIntyre, Co-Chair of the Senate Education Committee, stated, "One of the most important parts of the District Report is the community grouping model. It allows districts to compare their performance against that of their peers." The grouping model considers both a district's enrollment and the socio-economic status of its students when categorizing districts into one of 16 possible groups. Eason McIntyre explained, "School officials can look to other districts that are in similar circumstances and identify those that have figured out how to excel in teaching, say, third grade math, or Algebra I. They can then make contact with those districts and try to understand what they are doing differently and then adapt those strategies to their own district."

Oklahoma School Performance Review (OSPR) is another program administered by the Office of Accountability. OSPR was created in 2001 and is designed to help school districts make operations more efficient and effective which can then lead to improved student performance. As a part of each review, educational and management consultants conduct onsite evaluations, study district data, interview stakeholders, and hold public meetings. The consultants then produce a report evaluating the following areas; 1) District Organization, Management, and Personnel, 2) Instructional Delivery, 3) Business Operations, 4) Facility Use and Management, and 5) Support Services (technology, food services, and transportation). Each report includes commendations, recommendations, and estimates of savings or costs in each of these areas.

"I have been impressed with the growth of this program. Over the past year the Office of Accountability has presented School Performance Reviews to the boards of education in Broken Bow, Idabel, Frederick, Wynnewood, Springer, Felt, Wetumka, Weleetka, Justice, and Sasakwa; they are in the process of completing reviews for Okmulgee, Mounds, Cement and Tipton; and they are getting ready to release an RFP for the review of two other school districts. That makes a total of twenty-four districts that will have received reviews, and the feedback that we have received from the superintendents and local board members has been very good," said Tad Jones, Chairman of the Education Committee of the House. "The process allows the school districts to showcase their successes but the consultants also provide detailed strategies to solve problems. The districts are free to utilize the provided strategy, modify it to their own liking, or come up with a solution of their own to tackle the problem. I am very pleased to be working with the Office of Accountability and helping to improve public education across Oklahoma."

School Performance Reviews take approximately eight to ten months to complete and are contracted out to review teams under the supervision of the Office of Accountability staff. Review teams are selected for the credentials of their team members, the quality of the work plan, the experience of the team members, and the value for the price. If a district's Academic Performance Index (API) is below the state average then the Office of Accountability may fund 100% of the cost of a review. Those districts with an API at or above the state average pay 25% of the review cost. Costs of the reviews vary depending upon the size of the district and the number of districts being packaged together under one contract.

For more information about the Oklahoma Educational Indicators program or the Oklahoma School Performance Review program contact the Office of Accountability at (405) 225-9470, visit www.SchoolReportCard.org, or look for the Profiles 2007 reports in your local library.

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Lists of Schools Meeting Education Oversight Board's 25% Advanced Performance Benchmark:
(70% Scoring Satisfactory or Above and 25% Scoring Advanced on All Subjects Tested in that Grade)