Profile
General Information:
This is general information such as number of schools, name of school/system, and grades served, which is taken from the Tennessee School Directory of Public Schools for the school year. In addition, information regarding the number of teachers and administrators, SACS, and Safe School status is included.
Membership:
The unique count of students enrolled as of October 1. For the current year Report Card, the membership count is as of October 1, of the previous year.
Note:
Prior to 2007-2008, the TN Department of Education used net enrollment instead of membership for (1) student counts by gender and race/ethnicity, (2) as the denominator of the percent of Title I and Limited English Proficient (LEP) students, and (3) as the denominator of the dropout rate and discipline rates. Net enrollment produces higher numbers than membership because it is a cumulative count of students who enrolled throughout the school year. As a result of changing from net enrollment to membership, the 2007-2008 and all future years student gender and race/ethnicity counts may be lower than previous years and the Title I, LEP, dropout, and discipline rates may be higher (because the denominator has decreased).
Demographics:
Demographics are a description (actual numbers and percentage) of the student body based on membership by race/ethnicity as well as other federally required subgroup information.
Limited English Proficient Students Exempt from the Reading/Language Arts Assessment:
English Language Learners whose enrollment in a U.S.school was fewer than 365 days prior to testing are exempt from one administration of the Reading/Language Arts Assessment. They are, however, assessed with the English Language Proficiency assessment.
Financial:
Expenditures per student provide a comparison among school systems of different sizes which illustrate school systems’ annual financial reports, expenditures by the state on behalf of school systems and the value of commodities provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for school food service programs. These numbers are based on Average Daily Attendance (ADAs). Tennessee public schools receive funding from three primary sources: local, state and federal. The BEP is the primary source of state funds for local school systems. Local funds for education are raised from two primary sources: property taxes and the local option sales tax. All federal funds are earmarked for specific purposes, such as Career-Technical Education, etc.
No Child Left Behind (NCLB | AYP)
NCLB Status:
NCLB was implemented during the 2002-2003 school year. It requires schools to have 100 percent proficiency among students in math, reading and language arts by 2014. They must also meet graduation and attendance standards. A target school/school system is one that missed a federal benchmark in at least one area for the first year. There are no sanctions/penalties for target schools/systems. The Department of Education offers technical assistance to help keep target schools/systems from becoming high priority schools/systems. A high priority school/school system is one that has missed the same federal benchmark for more than one consecutive year. The different levels of high priority schools/systems are: School Improvement 1, School Improvement 2, Corrective Action, Restructuring 1, Restructuring 2 and SEA/LEA Reconstitution Plan.
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Summary:
Adequate Yearly Progress is required by No Child Left Behind as a measure of all schools, school systems, and the state in meeting required federal benchmarks. Each benchmark has individually determined standards or targets which must be met for Below Proficient, Proficient, and Advanced to be calculated. Some indicators meet AYP via appeals, confidence intervals, safe harbor, or additional methods as defined in the accountability workbook. While some percentages on the report card may be below a given benchmark, the additional method used to make AYP will not be evident. However, the AYP Summary displaying the + and x values does depict the final result of each cell.
AYP Indicators:
No Child Left Behind requires a disaggregation or separation of student achievement data by content area (Math and Reading/Language Plus Writing) which identifies Below Proficient, Proficient, and Advanced percentages. AYP must also be met for an additional indicator which is the attendance rate for Elementary/Middle Schools and the graduation rate for High Schools. (The attendance rate used for AYP calculations is derived from student data collected for reporting periods 2, 3, 6 & 7 and is not based on the end of year attendance rate shown. The graduation rate used for NCLB is the prior year’s rate.)
Achievement
Academic Achievement:
Academic Achievement refrerences three year averages for CRT achievement in the areas of math, reading, language, social studies, and science and writing in grades 5, 8, and 11. Criterion referenced tests measure an individual student’s performance against a predetermined set of standards which are established based on the curriculum. Tennessee administered both NRT and CRT tests in the spring of 2004. Since each student took both tests, this has enabled an equating of the two tests such that previous NRT test data can be mapped onto the CRT scale. After mapping onto the CRT scale, the data were converted into state normal curve equivalents (NCE) using the 1998 data as a base. If a school has an NCE of 50, then that school's mean achievement score would be equal to the state average in 1998.
Writing:
The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) Writing Assessment requires students to write a rough draft essay in response to an assigned prompt (topic) within a limited time period. Fifth graders respond to a narrative prompt. Eighth graders respond to an expository prompt. Eleventh grade students respond to a persuasive prompt. A score of at least four(4) on a six (6) point scale must be obtained to satisfy Proficiency requirements for No Child Left Behind.
ACT:
The ACT is America's most widely accepted college entrance exam. It assesses high school students' general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work. The ACT is not an aptitude or an IQ test. The multiple-choice tests cover four skill are: English, mathematics, reading and science. The highest possible score is 36.
Additional Academic Achievement Data:
Additional Academic Achievement Data references TCAP Grades 3-8, Gateway and End of Course information for all test takers specific to subject, grade, subgroup and testing results.
Value Added
K-8 Value Added:
Value-added measures student progress within a grade and subject, which demonstrated the influence of in-school factors on the student’s achievement. This diagnostic tool is designed to improve educational opportunities for students in various achievement levels. Tennessee has transitioned from using a norm referenced test to a criterion referenced test and scores have been back mapped for correlation purposes to 1998 to assure consistency in scales.
9-12 Value Added:
Value-added measures student progress within a grade and subject and for high school a prediction formula is used based on a student’s previous academic performance for ACT, Gateways and End of Course assessments and Writing. This diagnostic tool is designed to improve educational opportunities for students in various achievement levels.
Observed Score:
A student’s observed score is the score reported for the student when he or she was tested
Predicted Score:
A student's predicted score is an expected score, based on his or her performance on previous tests, assuming the student is in the average school in the state.
Status:
Above
means that students in this school made significantly more progress in this subject than students in the average school in the state.
Below
means that students in this school made significantly less progress in this subject than students in the average school in the state.
NDD
means that the progress of students in this school was Not Detectably Different from the progress of students in the average school in the state.
Attendance and Graduation
Attendance:
The Attendance Rate is calculated using the Average Daily Attendance (ADA) by district or school divided by the Average Daily Membership (ADM) by district or school as reported by the Local School System at the end of the school year.
Promotion:
Promotion Rate = Students Promoted (K-8) / (Students Promoted (K-8) + Students Retained (K-8)).
Dropout:
Tennessee defines a dropout as an individual who: (1) was enrolled in school at some time during the previous school year; (2) was not enrolled at the beginning of the current school year by July 1st; (3) has not graduated from high school or completed a state- or district-approved education program and; (4) does not meet any of the following exclusionary conditions: (i) transfer to another public school, district, private school, or state- or district-approved education program; (ii) temporary absence due to suspension or illness; or (iii) death. (This is the definition of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Tennessee also uses methodology developed by NCES to project a dropout rate. )
Cohort Rate
is the percentage of an entering 9th grade class which has dropped out by the end of 12th grade. The cohort rate measures what happens to a single group, or cohort, of students over a period of time. Cohort rates are important because they reveal how many students starting in a specific grade drop out over time. Now, with four years of dropout data for all systems, Tennessee can calculate the cohort rate.
Graduation Rate:
The Graduation Rate is a federally required benchmark which calculates the percent of on-time graduates with a regular high school diploma. GED and Special Education diplomas are not allowed to count as a regular high school diploma under regulations from the U.S. Department of Education. Formula for calculating the graduation rate: Regular on-time graduates / Regular on-time graduates + regular late graduates + special education diplomas + certificates of attendance + GEDs + cohort dropouts (12th grade current year, 11th, 10th, and 9th grades in prior years included in current year's cohort).
Completion Rate:
The Completion Rate is the percentage of students who receive a completion document at anytime after entering high school. Formula for calculating the completion rate: All Graduates & Completers / All Graduates & Completers + Cohort Dropouts.
Discipline
Suspension:
The Suspension rate is the percentage of students suspended in a given school year. Suspension rates are broken down by race and gender. For each sub group Suspension Rate = # of students suspended (K-12) / Membership (K-12).
Expulsion:
The expulsion rate is the percentage of students expelled in a given school year. Expulsion rates are broken down by race and gender. For each sub group Expulsion Rate = # of students expelled (K-12) / Membership (K-12)
Teacher Quality
Highly Qualified (HQ):
All school systems identify teachers within their systems that are designated to be highly qualified. Under NCLB, there are core academic classes that are required to be taught by a highly qualified teacher. This percentage is a reflection of the match between NCLB classes and the teacher actually teaching them who is identified as highly qualified. It is self-reported information of school systems’ efforts to submit proof of highly qualified status in advance of the deadline. For highly qualified requirements or more detailed information, visit our No Child Left Behind site.
Under NCLB there are core academic classes that are required to be taught by highly qualified teachers. This count reflects the classes taught by a highly qualified teacher as reported by school system.
Credentials:
Count of licensed personnel classified as Teachers or Administrators.
Permits:
The holder of a Permit is a degreed person who does not have a valid teacher license. The superintendent/director of schools must verify the intent to employ an individual to fill a teaching vacancy when a licensed educator cannot be found.
Waivers:
Employment Standard Waiver: Rule 0520-1-2-.03 Employment Standards states a teacher or principal shall hold a valid Tennessee teacher license with an endorsement covering the work assignment. If a system or school is unable to find a properly licensed and appropriately endorsed person for the position, an employment standards waiver may be requested. An employment standards waiver is requested when (a) a person qualified for the assignment is not available, and (b) a teacher does not have the endorsement to teach the assignment (c) and is enrolled at a University and has a work study on file with the School Approval Office outlining hours needed to add the requested waiver endorsement. The district can request a second year waiver for a teacher if he/she completes hours toward endorsement in the given year of issuance of waiver. A third year waiver is only issued to Special Education.
