School Quality and Student Success Indicators

Ark. Code Ann. § 6-15-2108(b) and (c) specify that the school performance system shall

consider without limitation at least one or more school quality and/or student success

indicators provided those indicators allow for meaningful differentiation of schools and

are valid, reliable, comparable and applicable statewide. Stakeholders communicated a

desire to have multiple measures included in this indicator as soon as possible.

The Arkansas Department of Education created a student-focused aggregation of

indicators that meet these requirements. The measures for this indicator focus on each

student meeting important educational milestones (such as reading proficiently),

important readiness criteria (minimum ACT score of 19 for Arkansas Academic

Challenge Scholarship), and important postsecondary success indicators (attainment of

AP, IB, concurrent credits). In essence, the school quality and student success indicator

combines measures of engagement, access, readiness, completion, and success

criteria. To calculate this indicator a student level table is constructed to include the

indicators listed in the table below

School Quality and Student Success Indicators

Indicator

Grade Level or Cohort

for Points Available

Points for Student

Student Engagement

Grades K -11

Point based on Chronic Absence (CA) risk level:

CA<5% = 1.0 Point

5< =CA < 10% = 0.5 Point

CA >=10% = 0.0 Point

Science Achievement

Grades 3 – 10

Ready or Exceeds = 1.0 Point

Close or Not Ready = 0.0 Point

Science Growth

Grades 4 – 10

Using ACT Aspire Science Value-Added Score

Percentile Rate

VAS PR ≥ 75 = 1.0 Point

25 ≤ VAS PR < 75 = 0.5 Point

VAS PR ≤ 25 = 0.0 Point

Reading at Grade Level

Grades 3 – 10

Ready or Exceeds = 1.0 Point

Close or Not Ready = 0.0 Point

ACT

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

Best ACT Composite Score ≥ 19 = 1.0 Point

Use best ACT score from prior 3 years.

ACT Readiness

Benchmark

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

ACT Reading ≥ 22 = 0.5 point

ACT Math ≥ 22 = 0.5 point

ACT Science ≥ 23 = 0.5 point

Use best ACT score from prior 3 years for each

subject.

GPA 2.8 or better on

4.0 scale

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

High school final GPA ≥ 2.8 = 1.0 Point

Community Service

Learning Credits

Earned

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

1 or more SL credits earned = 1.0 Point

Act 648 of 1993 course #496010 or other state

approved courses

Credits earned at any time during grades 9 - 12

On-time Credits

Grades 9 -11

Grade 9 completed ≥ 5.5 credit = 1.0 Point

Grade 10 completed ≥ 11.0 credits = 1.0 Point

Grade 11 completed ≥ 16.5 credits = 1.0 Point

Computer Science

Course Credits Earned

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

Credits earned ≥ 1 = 1.0 Point

Credits earned at any time during grades 9 - 12

Advanced

Placement/International

Baccalaureate or

Concurrent Credit

Courses (ACE

included)

Grade 12 Cycle 7

Enrollment

Credits earned ≥ 1 = 1.0 Point

Credits earned at any time during grades 9 - 12

To communicate the focus on student access, readiness, and success for this indicator,

and to ensure comparability across schools and grade spans the school quality and

student success indicator is calculated first at the student level.

Each student has a score that is the percentage of points earned out of points possible

to earn. These student-level scores are aggregated to the school level. This student-

level focus is necessary first because it aligns with the goals of the Vision and second

because schools will have different grade configurations and students in different

grades will have different points possible. The mean percentage of points earned per

student is used to calculate a school-level statistic which represents the average earned

points per student based on each student’s possible points. The following steps were

taken to model this student-focused school quality and student success indicator.

1. A student-level table was constructed that included two columns per indicator:

points possible and points earned. If an indicator listed in the table above applied

to the student the points possible were set equal to one. If the indicator did not

apply, the points possible were set to a null value to exclude them from the total

points possible for the student.

2. When a student’s data record indicated he/she earned a full or partial point the

point/partial point was added to the student row for that indicator. If a student’s

data record showed the student did not meet the criteria to earn a point for the

indicator, a zero was assigned for points earned for that particular indicator.

3. Students’ possible points were summed across all indicators (indicators with a null

value did not apply and thus were not included in possible points).

4. Students’ earned points were summed across all applicable indicators.

5. The percentage of points earned out of possible points was calculated for each

student.

6. School means were calculated for the percentage of points earned per student to

produce the school-level school quality and student success indicator.