DOCUMENT RESUME ED 361 910 EA 025 310 TITLE Oregon Report Card. An Annual Report on Public Education to the Citizens of Oregon. INSTITUTION Oregon State Dept. of Education, Salem. PUB DATE 93 NOTE 115p. PUB TYPE Reports Evaluative/Feasibility (142) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC05 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Educational Assessment; *Educational Change; *Educational Improvement; Elementary Secondary Education; Excellence in Education; *Public Schools; School Restructuring; *State Action; State Legislation; *State Programs; Statewide Planning IDENTIFIERS *Oregon; Oregon Education Act for the 21st Century 1991 ABSTRACT This second annual report card on the status of Oregon public education describes the implementation of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. Information is presented in the following areas--school finance, staff characteristics and salaries, student demographics and achievement, student participation in programs and services, and Oregon's progress toward the National Education Goals. The first section highlights major activities of the 1992-93 year and discusses their implications and developing trends. Two themes emerge--school reform and school finance. The second section provides a historical context for the Oregon report card. Provisions of the Oregon school reform plan are described in section 3. Two reforms in particular take the public school system deeper into the realm of social.change: early childhood education and comprehensive health and social services for children and families. The remaining six sections offer detailed information on the six areas listed above. Contacts for more information and 24 figures are included. (LMI) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. * *********************************************************************** J U.S. DEPANTNIENT Of EDUCATION Office of EdutationsI Research end Imorovrmnerd EDUCKNONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Occumont nes Owl rdproducod as pi;#1:s from the person or otaemzehon weaved ongrnatmg to Imptove 0 Afinor cnandAS nave boon mac* reprodschOn QuehtY statPS rn thre Ppnts of stow or oprnons docr.r mient do not nikossaoly loptelont <Acne OERI podfion or poky "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)" FOREWORD We had a good year last year. In spite of obstacles, and there were a few, we began the implementation of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century, the most far ranging educational reform program ever undertaken by a state school system. We brought together teachers, administrators and other school staff members, parents, school board mem- bers and community and business representatives to assist us in developing programs and in establishing criteria for: non-graded primary classes public school choice middle grade levels employment of minors Certificates of Initial Mastery site councils Certificates of Advanced Mastery integration of social services alternative learning environments extended school year The Board received the reports of the task forces and in January of this year presented to the Legislature our blueprint for action. The Board found these common themes within the reports: Oregon's reform effort is comprehensive and systemwide, brkiging the gap between education and the workforce and requiring an integration of health and social services with education. The reform effort is a shift in attitude toward and within schools that reflects the changes in families, the growing number of poor children, the increasing diversity in society and the escalating chal- lenges of global economics and technological innovation. It requires broad-based partnerships that allow our schools to expand traditional classroom bound- aries by bringing in the help of families, businesses and social and health care representatives. It is a reform program that will be judged by how well student performance improves rather than by how well intended practices are implemented. It connects with other indicators of progress such as the state education benchmarks established by the Oregon Progress Board, and the National Goals for Education implemented by former President Bush and the National Conference of Governors. This year President Clinton re-emphasized these goals as a national priority. These are vast undertakings. We know that to bring about successful change, we need an informed public helping us. The Board members, Department staff and I took our message to more than 300 groups throughout Oregon. We explained how our children's education would change beginning in their earliest days until their final days in school. We will continue to invite these groups and others to join us in actively bringing about these changes. We created the organizational structures to allow wider, more direct participation by those outside the education field. We created a Committee on Ethnic Diversity to advise us on the rapidly changing ethnic population in Oregon. Minority students are increasing at three times the rate of other students and now make up 12.5 percent of our total school population. Foreword We created Parents Plus, a group of volunteer parents and grandparents, to help us advocate for children and their education, promote student success through family and community involvement in education and assist in informing Oregonians about the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. We consider early childhood education and professional/technical education the cornerstone and capstone of our reform efforts; site-based decision making and staff development are the bricks and mortar. Site-based decision making depends on two things for success: a 21st Century Schools Council of educators and com- munity members at every school to help make school decisions and a trained staff capable of carrying out the reforms mandated by 11B 3565. Because staff development is absolutely essential to the success of Oregon's reform efforts, the Department has sent specialists into the schools to offer technical assistance in high priority areas such as non-graded primary and middle level programs. For those innovative programs to succeed, teachers must understand how children grow, develop and learn. Department staff are also assisting school site councils and helping schools in other areas of reform. And we are encouraging schools to seek waivers of state rules that impede necessary changes at the local level. In just a few days after this report card is published, we plan to bring together hundreds of parents, grand- parents and other community members for a statewide workshop. These school supporters will become local contacts for their schools and school districts. They will help the State Board and Department of Education move the blueprint for reform into reality. Schools are at a critical juncture. We face stronger challenges than ever before. The revenue roller coaster that schools are riding is sapping strength and energy from the system. Oregonians must fund a stable and predictable method of paying for their children's education. With or without that stability, we will continue to lead and guide the system. With the help of teachers, administrators, parents, business community and social service leaders, I fully expect to meet the challenges and continue to shape our reforms for the future. What follows in this Second Annual Report Card is a description of how we began implementing the Reform Act. It is a success story. I am proud of it and of those members of the Department staff who made it happen. Please study our report and let us know what you think about what we've been doing. Sincerely, CLI Norma Paulus Superintendent of Public Instruction TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page HIGHLIGHTS I. v II. BACKGROUND 1 III. OREGON SCHOOL REFORM PLAN 7 Certificate of Initial Mastery Certificate of Advanced Mastery IV. SCHOOL FINANCE 19 V. STUDENT DEMOGRAPHICS 23 VI. STAFF CHARACTERISTICS 27 VII. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT 33 VIII. STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN PROGRAMS/SERV10ES 53 Regular and Advanced Programs Special Education Programs Oregon Prekindergarten Program Early Childhood Education Compensatory Education Programs Alternative Learning Environments Talented and Gifted Education Professional/Technical Education Programs Counseling and Guidance Libraries and Technology Pupil Transportation Child Nutrition Programs Exemplary Programs IX. OREGON'S PROGRESS TOWARD NATIONAL GOALS 89 FOR MORE INFORMATION X. 95 5 iii It is the policy of the State Board of Education and n priority of the Oregon Department of Education that there will be no discrimination or harass- ment on the grounds of race, color, sex, marital status, religion, national origin, age or handicap in any educational programs, activities, or employ- ment. Persons having questions about equal opportunity and nondiscrimi- nation should contact the State Superintendent of Public Instruction at the Oregon Department of Education. This document was produced by the Publications and Multimedia Center Oregon Department of Education Salem, Oregon 97310 Complimentary copies have been distributed. Additional copies are available from the Publications Sales Clerk at 378-3589. Please share this document with 1 our colleagues! All or any part of this document may be photocopied for educational purposes without permission from the Oregon Department of Education. 17762519932500 iv HIGHLIGHTS BACKGROUND In 1991 the Oregon Legislative Assembly adopted House Bill 3565, the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century (subsequently referred to as the Reform Act). This Act is the most sweeping education reform package in Oregon's history. To achieve state goals of producing the best educated citizens in the nation by the year 2000 and a workforce equal to any in the world by 2010, the Act mandated programs which: One of the goals is to enable all children to start school ready to learn; produce the best educated citizens in integrate health and social services at or near the school site to meet the nation. the comprehensive needs of children and families; create stronger links and transitions between early childhood and elementary school and between secondary school, the world of work and higher education; create a wore flexible and innovative educational delivery system; foster site-based councils to guide implementation of school reform and improve student outcomes; begin a process of lengthening the school year from its current 180 days to 220 days by the year 2010; and hold the educational system accountable to the very highest standards of school performance and student outcome attainment. The Reform Act completed the major statutory changes necessary to transform Oregon's education system into the most forward looking system in the United States. The 1989 Legislature had passed House 13ill 2001, the 21st Century Schools Program which authorized school districts to undertake Oregon De- partment of Education-approved programs restructuring school operations and professional relationships and established waivers of certain statutes and rules that inhibited progress toward reform for those districts. These waivers were held in place by the Reform Act allowing the momentous change in the system which many educators had long been calling for. The state has now The Reform Act summon:1d schools and the Department of Education to em- begun a strong effort to bark rapidly on new courses of change, courses with enormous social conse- create new programs. quence. Two reforms especially take the public school system deeper into the realm of social change: early childhood education and comprehensive health and social services for children and families. By shifting funding to the earlier years instead of the later years the state has begun a strong effort to create new programs that will allow all of Oregon's children a real chance to grow, learn and succeed. 7 Highlights This is the second annual Report Card of the Department of Education and contains data in the following areas: School finance Staff characteristics and salaries Student demographics Student achievement Student access to programs and services (and exemplary programs) Oregon's progress toward national goals Two themes emerge: This section of the Report Card highlights major activities of the past year and school reform discusses their implications as well as the trends that seem to be developing. and school finance. This summary opens with an overview of school and district numbers and a summary of reform activities. Those discussions are followed by summaries of the six topics listed above this paragraph. Oregon's Schools and Oregon had 295 school districts in 1992-93, but the number will drop to Districts below 180 by 1996-97 because the 1991 Legislature directed districts which do not offer K-12 programs to unify. Most of these districts are feeder elementary districts which will join with union high districts. In 1992-93, there were 1,170 schools in Oregon, including 763 elementary, 183 middle and junior high schools, and 195 high schools. Twenty-nine schools provided education at all K-12 grades. Oregon also has 29 education service districts that provide specialized services to school districts. However, the 1993 Legislature approved a State Board of Education recommendation which will reduce this number to 18 as a part of the state's consolidation effort. OREGON'S SCHOOL The Oregon Department of Education convened ten task forces to develop REFORM PLAN recommendations to implement the reforms mandated by the Reform Act. The State Board of Education accepted these recommendations from the task The task force= forces: Non-Graded Primary Task Use developmentally appropriate practices for kindergarten through grade Force three which may include mixed age groupings of students Emphasize the early prevention of conditions which impair ch:ldreik's educational progress Provide staff development Provide programs in which the ratio between children and adults reflects the research vi Highlights Explore various models of middle level programs Middle Level Task Force Task Force Develop small communities of students for optimum learning Provide staff training for developmentally appropriate practices for grades 4-10 Certificate of Initial Define broad outcomes that reflect complex, integrated, world class perfor- Mastery (CIM) Task mance standards Force Create a portfolio assessment system that will present the student's cumulative knowledge and accomplishments Build a complete assessment system which includes classroom tasks, tests and performance tasks Establish a state curriculum framework with maximum local flexibility to implement Certificate of Advanced Assure that students who have achieved the Certificate of Advanced Mastery (CAM) Task Force Mastery can meet high performance standards and are prepared for: Entry to the workforce with marketable skills - Apprenticeships - Technical Peeparatory Associate Degree (TPAD) - Higher education - Organize the core curriculum to be integrated in six career strands Continue to hold districts responsible for student accomplishment of the Certificate of Advanced Mastery Determine that assessment includes portfolio, activities and authentic validation of knowledge, attitudes and skills Alternative Learning Make alternative learning environments available to all students as an Environments Task Force option in a comprehensive program Offer learning centers as a coordinated system of learning environments and services Encourage regional planning for alternative learning Public School Choice Task Give students who are not making satisfactory progress toward Certificate Force of Initial Mastery in traditional programs a second chance choice of addi- tional services and alternative learning environments Allow students to go to another school in district or school out of district that agrees to accept the student Hold the resident district responsible for payment to another district if student progress is unsatisfactory Assure that space is available and multicultural diversity is balanced prior to a decision to accept transfer students from outside the resident district Employment ofMinors Encourage students to earn the Certificate of Initial Mastery before Task Force seeking employment during the school year Allow students to be employed during the school year when the work relates to an approved education plan Site Councils Task Force Delegate decision making to councils at the school building site Establish a 21st Century Schools Council at every school by 1995 Require of the councils: Improved instructional programs for students - vii Highlights Improved staff development - Assistance in implementation of the Reform Act - Integration of Social Improve family access to social services by encouraging delivery of social Services Task Force and health care services at or near the school site Establish pilot programs that focus on prevention and allow for flexible funding Support local development of school-linked integration of social services Extended School Year Lengthen the school year to expand educational opportunities now cur- Task-Force rently available. For example: Expand student opportunities for Independent study - Technology use Career exploration Business/community learning Restructured counseling/guidance services - Expand staff opportunities for More planning time - Teacher collaboration - Guide mentors in the classroom - Expand program opportunities to meet school and community needs Statewide Commitment The Board and Department of Education have encouraged statewide commit- ment to the Reform Act. Exemplary Programs One of the most rewarding exemplary programs was that of the Distinguished Oregon Educators, six highly skilled front line teachers who spent the past year in Salem guiding department staff in their efforts to implement the Six Distinguished Oregon Reform Act. They came to shares their experiences through a series of state- Educators wide workshops during the Spring of 1993. Two have been funded to continue that work this year. The state funded six demonstration sites to work with the Department to develop the six study areas of the Certificate of Advanced Mastery: Arts and Communications Business and Management Health Services Human Resources Industrial and Engineering Systems Natural Resource Systems The Department has encouraged school districts to apply for School Restruc- turing Grants during the next two years. The grants enable schools to initiate or implement a school restructuring plan that meets the goals of the Reform Act. Directory of Resource Among the resources that assist in the effort to match exemplary programs, Sites and people who learn from them, is a Directory of Resource Sites, maintained viii 1 0