Key National Education Indicators Workshop Summary (2012) / Chapter Skim
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3 Indicators for K-12 Education
3 Indicators for K-12 Education
Pages 21-32
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From page 21... ...
The federal share is less than ten percent of the cost, though the federal government exerts significant authority over education through legislation and regulation. As with other publicly provided goods, the "output" and efficiency of public education are challenging to define and measure.
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From page 22... ...
KEY NATIONAL EDUCATION INDICATORS TABLE 3-1 Indicators Suggested for K-12 Education CHARACTERISTICS OF INSTITUTIONS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, AND RESOURCES SCHOOLS Surveys of safety and orderliness of the school climate School culture related to college and career aspirations, including : o percentage of students who go on to two- and four-year colleges and full time employment o surveys of students' expectations and their schools' approach to preparation for college and career Collaborative school community focused on student learning, using surveys of teachers, parents, and students Surveys of parent satisfaction High school completion rates Grade retention rates through 8th grade Teacher-student ratio TEACHERS Proportion of teachers whose evaluations distinguish them from a basic standard, using measures of their contributions to student achievement and their professional practice Teachers with mastery-level and current knowledge of content they are teaching Teachers with mastery-level and contemporary knowledge of child and adolescent development Teacher-student interactions that demonstrate high levels and qualities of involvement, stimulation, and expansion of thinking and cognition, and sensitivity to students' perspectives, individual experiences, and backgrounds Teacher-student interactions that foster relationships with and among students Teachers providing challenging opportunities to learn in the classroom INDIVIDUAL OUTCOMES School attendance by age College readiness levels by age and grade Voter registration rate of 18- to 21-year-olds Command of core content, using NAEP scores CONTEXT K-12 education spending as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) K-12 spending per student Percentage of K-12 education funding spent on research and development Opportunity to learn 22
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From page 23... ...
Doing so might also encourage collaboration across school levels, as systems consider the elements that foster preparedness even in elementary and middle school. Collaborative School Community Focused on Student Learning The degree to which school leaders, teachers, and parents collaborate has consistently been found to be among the strongest predictors of school improvement, school safety, and student learning gains (see, e.g., Literacy Collaborative, 2009)
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From page 24... ...
High School Completion Rates High school completion rates "can't be overlooked," noted Rob Warren. There are fewer and fewer jobs for people without high school diplomas, he noted, and failing to complete high school is a robust predictor of many economic and social difficulties, including poverty, delinquency and crime, and civic disengagement.
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From page 25... ...
The ratio has declined steadily since 1960, when it was one teacher for every 25 students, to the current level of one teacher for every 15 students. However, Dynarksi cautioned that these figures include specialist teachers, such as reading and special education faculty who play a range of roles, so the class size likely has not declined as significantly as the ratio might suggest.
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From page 26... ...
. In Gill's view, one concern about evaluation systems that hold teachers accountable for their students' gains on standardized tests is that they can create incentives for teachers to "game the system," taking steps designed to boost scores rather than to improve student learning.
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These are classrooms, he added, "in which children are trending higher" even on standardized assessments. These teacher behaviors, he suggested, also show an association with lower dropout rates and rates of social and behavioral problems (Gates Foundation, 2012)
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From page 28... ...
College Readiness Levels by Age and Grade Allensworth proposed an indicator of college readiness. Although it may seem difficult to measure, colleges have long used systems based on high school grades and test scores, and grades have been found highly predictive of both college performance and later earnings.
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From page 29... ...
This ratio can be calculated using GDP data and separately collected public expenditure data. Spending per Student It is also important, Dynarski added, to consider that if the number of students has increased significantly, expenditures per-pupil may actually decline even while the 19 The cut scores for NAEP are determined through a judgment -based process in which a panel of educators and public members reach consensus about descriptions of the sorts of skill and knowledge students should demonstrate to meet performance levels.
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From page 30... ...
New technologies that have been described as revolutionary, he suggested, have not changed the core of classroom instruction. Gill believes that there is reason for cautious optimism about the potential in educational technologies that are now being developed, but that dramatic increases in productivity will require both large additional investments in research and development and a willingness on the part of school systems to allow new technologies to disrupt longstanding institutional practices This effort should include investment in research into ways to better measure student achievement and evaluate the effects of interventions, in Gill's view.
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From page 31... ...
Broader Goals? Several discussants also wondered whether the indicators suggested reflected a sufficiently ambitious vision of what public education can accomplish.
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From page 32... ...
It is difficult to address equity issues with national indicators, Mark Dynarski noted, because national statistics may disguise significant variation. For example, steady growth in per pupil spending, on average, may result because affluent school districts are increasing their spending a considerable amount while poorer districts are not.
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