District/School Administration Administration
Board in Brief - Tuesday, September 26, 2000

Special Meeting

Competency Determination Implementation Plan for the Class of 2003, Including Re-testing Opportunities, Appeals, & Local Certificates

At the special meeting and continuing the next day at the regular meeting, the Board began considering several issues relating to the Competency Determination. Starting with the class of 2003, students must pass the English Language Arts and Mathematics grade 10 MCAS tests (the Competency Determination) as a condition for graduating from high school. Among the issues the Board discussed were re-testing opportunities, appeals, and the possibility of school districts awarding local certificates to students who do not meet the standard for the high school diploma. Chairman James A. Peyser stated that this is a preliminary discussion, and after further review and opportunity for public comment, the Board will make decisions on these issues by the spring of 2001. No votes were taken.

Commissioner Driscoll presented a tentative re-testing schedule under which students would have four more opportunities, after the initial administration of the MCAS test in grade 10, to take and pass the test before their scheduled graduation date. Board members discussed the advantages and disadvantages of using a focused test for at least two of the re-test opportunities. Assessment Director Jeff Nellhaus explained that the standard MCAS test serves multiple purposes, including measuring a range of performance over four levels, Failing, Needs Improvement, Proficient and Advanced. In a focused test, the items are focused on the content knowledge and skills required to measure student performance around the passing threshold (220, the first step of the Needs Improvement level). The content knowledge and skills needed to meet the 220 scaled score passing standard would be identical to those required for the standard MCAS test.

Commissioner Driscoll noted that while a focused test will be challenging, it is designed solely to determine whether a student has met the minimum passing standard to earn a Competency Determination. "I think it's the right thing for those students," he said. "The goal is to get every student to score in the Proficient and Advanced categories of the MCAS. I would hope that students who pass the focused test would go on to take the standard MCAS, to show they can achieve at even higher levels." Board members asked the Commissioner to review and report back on several questions, including the cost of focused tests, policies relating to transfer students, and the possibility of state-endorsed local certificates. The Commissioner agreed that he will explore these issues with local educators and other interested parties and report back to the Board.

The Board also received a brief presentation on a new professional development tool that the Department will be sending to every school this fall: a CD-ROM called "Scoring MCAS Compositions: NCS Mentor for Massachusetts." The CD-ROM contains a program that simulates the training that teachers who attend the Department-sponsored summer scoring institutes in writing have received. Teachers report that the scoring exercises are excellent, and help them to help students improve their writing skills. The Department's distribution of the CD-ROM will enable teachers throughout Massachusetts to have the benefit of this training. Commissioner Driscoll also reported that the results of the spring 2000 MCAS will be released in November.

Regular Meeting

Chairman Peyser opened the regular Board meeting by thanking the Legislature for its work on reform of school building assistance and special education and the lifting of the charter school cap. He also commended the publisher of the Concord Review, a journal of research papers by high school students. He announced that on October 17 the Board and the Department will present a forum in Malden on "Effective Schools and Effective Leaders in Urban Districts," featuring school principals from Massachusetts and across the country. Another forum will be held on November 14 in Boston on state interventions to improve schools and districts.

Presentation by Lieutenant Governor Jane Swift

Lieutenant Governor Jane Swift presented an initiative that is part of an action plan for Project 2003. She asked the Board to require all school districts seeking academic support services grant funding to establish an individual student success plan for each student who scores below 220 on the MCAS in English or mathematics. Lt. Gov. Swift said, "We believe these student success plans should be required for students at all grade levels. In order to improve the educational program for individual students, we need to intervene at the earliest sign of trouble. MCAS is a terrific diagnostic tool to identify both strengths and weaknesses in a particular student's performance."

Chairman Peyser said he endorses the proposal for student success plans. "This isn't just about passing the test or meeting the graduation requirement, it's about improving the quality of learning," he said.

Special Education: Adoption of Emergency Special Education Regulations (603 CMR 18.00 & 28.00)

The Board unanimously approved emergency amendments to the Special Education Regulations. The Legislature made significant changes to the Massachusetts special education law through about 50 outside sections of the FY 2001 state budget, some of which require changes to the Special Education Regulations that the Board adopted earlier this year. Because the statutory changes are in effect now, the Board adopted the regulatory amendments on an emergency basis. Under the Administrative Procedure Act, the amendments take effect immediately, and will be in effect for up to three months while the Department solicits public comment. After the public comment period, the Board will review and take final action on the regulations at the December meeting.

School Building Assistance: Grants, Amended Priority List, Proposed Amendments to Regulations (603 CMR 38.00) and Other Matters

Commissioner Driscoll and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Wulfson briefed the Board on recently enacted changes to the School Building Assistance Act. The Board voted on several matters including approval of SBA grants covering 46 capital construction projects, an amended priority list, and a supplemental budget request for administration of the SBA program. The Board also voted to solicit public comment on proposed amendments to the SBA regulations that are needed to conform to the new School Building Assistance Act. It is expected that the Board will take a final vote on the regulations in November or December.

Charter Schools: Update and Proposed Amendments to Charter School Regulations (603 CMR 1.00)

The Board received information on the recent amendment to the charter school statute, which increases to 120 the number of public school charters that may be granted in Massachusetts. The Board gave initial approval to proposed amendments to the Charter School Regulations, to clarify and update the regulations in accordance with the changes to the statute. The proposed regulatory amendments are now out for public comment. At its October meeting the Board will consider an additional amendment to the regulations, concerning designation of employee organizations for collective bargaining at certain charter schools. The Board is expected to take final action on the Charter School Regulations at its December meeting. Also, the Board deferred action on a request from the Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School to amend its charter.

Educator Certification: Regulations on Temporary Certificates, Renewal of the Provisional Certificate with Advanced Standing, and "Critical Shortage" (603 CMR 7.00)

The Board approved two amendments to the Certification Regulations on an emergency basis, to implement two new provisions of state law. The first one allows the Commissioner to grant a one-year non-renewable "temporary certificate" to a person who holds a valid certificate from another state, and who has been employed under the certificate for at least three years, but has not yet taken the Massachusetts Educator Certification Test. A person who has failed any part of the certification test is not eligible for a temporary certificate. The second statutory and regulatory amendment allows the Commissioner to renew the "provisional with advanced standing" certificate, which otherwise would expire after five years of employment. Commissioner Driscoll said the renewal option allows the Department to implement alternatives to the master's degree for standard certification. Each of these regulations takes effect immediately, subject to a public comment period and final action by the Board within three months. On a related matter, the Board gave initial approval to a proposed regulation to define "critical shortage," for implementation of the provision of the new statute that permits a retired teacher to return to teaching in an area of critical shortage. Public comment is invited on all three of the regulatory amendments. The Board expects to take final action on the amendments at its November meeting, when it scheduled to vote on new Certification/Licensure Regulations.

FY 2002 Budget Proposal and Legislative Package

The Board had an initial discussion on its FY 2002 budget proposal and legislative package. On the budget, Chairman Peyser suggested that the Board seek new or additional state funding for research and program evaluation, assessment, development of new teachers and school leaders, academic excellence programs such as Advanced Placement, and administrative funding for School Building Assistance and special education. The Chairman suggested that the Board consider several legislative initiatives including bilingual education, a system for reconstitution of schools and districts, and Chapter 70 reform. The Board is expected to discuss and vote on its FY 2002 budget proposal and its proposed legislative package at the October meeting.

Approval of Grants

The Board approved $3,985,744 in state and federal grants for Safe and Drug-Free Schools, PALMS (mathematics and science), School Breakfast, Technology Literacy, Transition Planning for Full-Day Kindergarten, Nutrition Training, the Gay/Straight Alliance Mentoring program, and the Refugee Children School Impact grant program.

Next Meeting

The next Board meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 24, 2000, at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education in Malden.