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Oakville
School District No. 400 |
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High School 360-273-5947 |
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October 3, 2008
Dear Parents/Guardians,
Washington's schools and school districts are dedicated to providing all students with the academic knowledge and critical thinking skills needed to succeed in school and beyond. Over the past several years, teachers have worked with other school officials, parents, community leaders and state education officials to develop a set of high academic standards called Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRS) basically a thorough list of skills and knowledge students should master as they progress through grade levels. These skills are being taught in more than 2,000 public schools, and our students take a test called the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) three times during their school careers 'in 4th, 7th and 10th grades' to see if they have mastered the academic standards that have been set.
In the past year, our schools have increased our accountability to students even more. The 2002 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, commonly referred to as No Child Left Behind, expands the federal government's role in ensuring that every student succeeds academically. This law requires all schools, school districts and states to show that all students are meeting achievement targets in reading and mathematics. Each state's achievement goals, and how they are measured, had to be approved by the federal government this year, and the goals rise each year until 2014, when 100 percent of public school children are expected to be proficient in reading and mathematics.
How is student achievement measured?
The state of Washington has established three ways to measure student achievement in order to meet this federal mandate:
1) Performance of 4th, 7th and 10th graders on the yearly WASL 2) The rate of unexcused absences for 1st through 8th graders 3) The graduation rate for high school students
Individual schools, school districts and the state as a whole are deemed to be making adequate yearly progress (AYP) if they meet the targets that have been established in each of those three categories. If schools, districts or the state do not make AYP for two years in a row, the federal government requires that specific action be taken, including giving parents the option to transfer their children to other public schools and providing extra tutoring and other academic services required to raise student achievement. Ultimately, consistent failure to meet AYP can result in a redistribution or loss of federal funds to schools with large populations of low-income students.
Our school was identified as one of those in the state not making AYP during the 2007-2008 school year.
Oakville Elementary School K-6 is in the 1st step of needed improvement in the area of mathematics.
For further information, the state report card can be viewed on OSPI's website by going to: http://reportcard.ospi.k12.wa.us/AYP
We take our achievement results seriously, and we will use all of the local, state and federal resources available to us to help all of our students meet Washington's Essential Academic Learning Requirements. Building and maintaining high-quality schools is a job for the entire community, and we need your assistance in reaching our academic achievement goals. We encourage you to become active participants in our school district improvement efforts. We have completed a school improvement plan and will continue to make necessary changes as needed. For more information, please contact me at 360-273-0171.
Sincerely,
Kathy Lorton, Superintendent Oakville School District
If you are interested in AYP: Additional Information is available. |
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