[Federal Register: January 18, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 13)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 2769-2772]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr18ja02-16]
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Part III
Department of Education
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34 CFR Chapter II
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; Title I of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 as amended (ESEA); Improving the
Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged; Proposed Rule
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Chapter II
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; Title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA);
Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Request for advice and recommendations on regulatory issues.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education (Secretary) is soliciting advice
and recommendations from interested parties prior to publishing
proposed regulations to implement programs under Title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as recently amended.
Programs under Title I are designed to help disadvantaged children meet
high academic standards. They include programs operated by local
educational agencies in high-poverty schools (Part A), Reading First
(Part B, Subpart 1), Early Reading First (Part B, Subpart 2), Even
Start family literacy programs (Part B, Subpart 3), programs for
migratory children (Part C), prevention and intervention programs for
children and youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at risk of
dropping out (Part D), Comprehensive School Reform (Part F), Advanced
Placement Programs (Part G), and School Dropout Prevention (Part H).
The Secretary invites advice and recommendations concerning issues for
which regulations may be helpful to clarify statutory ambiguities or to
provide appropriate flexibility.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before February 19,
2002.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments to Susan B. Neuman, Assistant Secretary
for Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education,
400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3W331, Washington, DC 20202. If you
prefer to send your comments through the Internet, use the following
address: TitleIrulemaking@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact person identified in the preceding
paragraph.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: See the supplementary information
section for further information contacts.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
For Further Information Contact: For programs under Part A, Susan
Wilhelm, Telephone (202) 260-0982; for programs under Part B, Subparts
2 and 3, Patricia McKee, Telephone (202) 260-0991; for programs under
Part D, Gary Rutkin, Telephone (202) 260-4412: Compensatory Education
Programs, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department
of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3W230, Washington, DC
20202-6132.
For programs under Part B, Subpart 1, Chris Doherty, Office of
Elementary and Secondary Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room
3W311, Washington, DC 20202-6132. Telephone: (202) 401-2176.
For programs under Part C, James English, Migrant Education, Office
of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education,
400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3E333, Washington, DC 20202-6135.
Telephone: (202) 260-1989.
For programs under Part F and Part H, Hugh Burkett, Academic
Improvement and Demonstration Programs, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room
2W100, Washington. DC 20202-6135. Telephone: (202) 260-1989.
For programs under Part G, Edith Harvey, School Improvement
Programs, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW,
Washington, DC 20202-6135. Telephone: (202) 260-1393.
Background
On January 8, 2002, the President signed into law the ``No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001'' (NCLB Act), amending the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). The NCLB Act reauthorizes the
ESEA and incorporates the major reforms proposed by President Bush in
his No Child Left Behind framework for education reform, particularly
in the areas of assessment, accountability, and school improvement. The
NCLB Act will strengthen Title I accountability by requiring States to
implement statewide accountability systems covering all public schools
and their students. These systems must be based on challenging State
standards in at least reading and mathematics, annual testing for all
students in grades 3 through 8, and annual statewide progress
objectives for ensuring that all students reach proficiency within 12
years. Assessment results and State progress objectives must be
disaggregated by poverty, race or ethnicity, disability and limited-
English proficiency to ensure that schools address the educational
needs of all students. Schools that meet or exceed State adequate
yearly progress (AYP) objectives or close achievement gaps will be
eligible for State Academic Achievement Awards. School districts and
schools that fail to make AYP toward statewide proficiency goals will,
over time, be subject to improvement, corrective action, and
restructuring measures to help them meet State standards. Furthermore,
parents of students in those schools will have the opportunity to
transfer their children to a better public school or to obtain
supplemental educational services for them.
The programs included in Title I of the ESEA, as amended by the
NCLB Act, are designed to help disadvantaged children meet high
academic standards. They include: Improving Basic Programs Operated by
Local Educational Agencies (Part A), Reading First (Part B, Subpart 1),
Early Reading First (Part B, Subpart 2), Even Start family literacy
programs (Part B, Subpart 3), programs for migratory children (Part C),
prevention and intervention programs for children and youth who are
neglected, delinquent, or at risk of dropping out (Part D),
Comprehensive School Reform (Part F), Advanced Placement Programs (Part
G), and School Dropout Prevention (Part H).
The Department intends to implement Title I programs in a manner
that respects State and local control over education while ensuring
strong accountability for results. In particular, the Department
intends to issue regulations only where absolutely necessary: for
example, where the statute requires a regulation or where a regulation
is necessary to provide flexibility or clarification for State and
local educational agencies. Rather than regulating extensively, the
Department intends to issue nonregulatory guidance addressing legal and
policy issues under the Title I programs. This guidance can inform
schools, parents, school districts, States, and other affected parties
about the flexibility that exists under the statute, including multiple
approaches that may be available in carrying out the statute's
requirements.
The Secretary invites advice and recommendations from interested
parties involved with the implementation and operation of programs
under Title I concerning issues for which regulations may be necessary
or for which nonregulatory guidance would be helpful to clarify
statutory ambiguities or to provide appropriate flexibility. The
Secretary specifically invites advice and recommendations from States
and local administrators, parents, teachers,
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paraprofessionals, members of local boards of education, charter school
operators and public chartering authorizers, and other organizations
(including civil rights groups, test publishers, representatives of
private schools, and faith-based organizations with educational
expertise).
Issues for Negotiated Rulemaking
Before publishing any proposed regulations to implement programs
under Title I, the Secretary must establish a negotiated rulemaking
process (unless regulations must be issued within a very limited time
to assist State and local educational agencies with the operation of
Title I programs). Negotiated rulemaking can improve the substance of
regulations; increase understanding of, and support for, those
regulations; encourage affected parties to communicate with each other
and share information, knowledge, expertise, and analysis; and
discourage expensive and time-consuming litigation concerning the
regulations. The Secretary will select individuals to participate in
this process from among the individuals or groups providing advice and
recommendations on Title I regulatory issues. The Secretary will
publish a separate notice in the Federal Register providing details
about the negotiated rulemaking process.
Section 1901 of Title I requires that, at a minimum, the negotiated
rulemaking process address issues concerning standards and assessments.
The Secretary is also considering conducting negotiated rulemaking on
the statutory provisions dealing with adequate yearly progress in
section 1111. Therefore, the Secretary specifically invites comments on
these provisions, including whether regulations are necessary and
whether nonregulatory guidance would be helpful. The following
discussion describes these statutory provisions. Commenters should use
this discussion to guide their comments. The discussion, however, is
not intended to restrict the issues that commenters may address.
Academic Standards
Under section 1111(b)(1) of Title I, each State must adopt
challenging academic content standards and student academic achievement
standards (formerly called ``student performance standards'') that will
be used by the State, its local educational agencies, and its schools
to carry out Part A. These academic standards must be the same
standards that the State applies to all students and all schools in the
State. States must have such standards in subjects determined by the
State, but at a minimum, in mathematics, reading/language arts, and
(beginning in the 2005-2006 school year) science. These standards must
include challenging content standards in academic subjects that specify
what children are expected to know and be able to do. They must contain
coherent and rigorous content, and encourage the teaching of advanced
skills. States also must have challenging student academic achievement
standards that are aligned with the State's content standards and
describe three levels of achievement: Advanced, proficient, and basic.
Advanced and proficient levels determine how well children are
mastering the State's content standards; the basic level provides
complete information about the progress of lower-performing children
toward achieving the proficient and advanced levels of achievement.
Academic Assessments
Under section 1111(b)(3) of Title I, each State also must implement
a set of high-quality, yearly student academic assessments in, at a
minimum, mathematics, reading/language arts, and (by school year 2007-
08) science that will be used as the primary means of determining the
yearly achievement of the State and each local educational agency and
public school in enabling all children to meet the State's student
academic achievement standards. These assessments must be the same ones
used to measure the achievement of all children, be aligned with the
State's academic content and student achievement standards, and be used
for purposes for which they are valid and reliable. The statutory
timeline for developing and administering assessments unfolds in three
stages. In stage one, through school year 2004-05, assessments in
mathematics and reading/language arts must be administered no less than
one time during grades 3 though 5, grades 6 though 9, and grades 10
through 12. In stage two, beginning no later than school year 2005-
2006, assessments in mathematics and reading/language arts, at a
minimum, must be administered in grades 3 through 8 and one time during
grades 10 through 12. In stage three, beginning no later than school
year 2007-2008, assessments that measure proficiency in science must be
administered no less than one time during grades 3 through 5, grades 6
though 9, and grades 10 through 12. Assessments must involve multiple
up-to-date measures of academic achievement, including measures that
assess higher-order thinking skills and understanding.
States must administer assessments to all students, providing
reasonable adaptations and accommodations for students with
disabilities and students with limited English proficiency. Moreover,
students with limited English proficiency must be assessed, to the
extent practicable, in the language and form most likely to yield
accurate data on what those students know and can do in academic
content areas until they have achieved English proficiency. With
respect to reading/language arts, students with limited English
proficiency who have attended schools in the United States (excluding
Puerto Rico) for three or more consecutive school years must be
assessed in English, unless a local educational agency determines, on a
case-by-case basis, that academic assessments in another language for
up to an additional two years would likely yield more accurate and
reliable information.
The results of assessments must be disaggregated within each State,
local educational agency, and school by gender, by each major racial
and ethnic group, by English proficiency status, by migrant status, by
students with disabilities compared to nondisabled students, and by
economically disadvantaged students compared to students who are not
economically disadvantaged. Finally, States must produce individual
student interpretive, descriptive, and diagnostic reports and itemized
score analyses that allow parents, teachers, and principals to
understand and address the specific academic needs of students relative
to their achievement against State standards.
Adequate Yearly Progress
Under section 1111(b)(2)(B), each State must demonstrate what
constitutes adequate yearly progress of the State, and of all public
elementary and secondary schools and local educational agencies in the
State, toward enabling all students to meet the State's student
achievement standards, while working toward the goal of narrowing
achievement gaps in the State. ``Adequate yearly progress'' definitions
must apply the same high standards of academic achievement to all
public elementary and secondary school students in the State, be
statistically valid and reliable, and measure progress based primarily
on the State's academic assessments. The definition must include
separate annual measurable objectives for continuous and substantial
improvement in both mathematics and reading/language arts
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for all students and for each of the following specific groups of
students: Students who are economically disadvantaged, students from
each major racial and ethnic group, students with disabilities, and
students with limited English proficiency. However, disaggregated data
are not required in cases when the number of students in a category is
insufficient to yield statistically reliable information or when the
results would reveal personally identifiable information about an
individual student.
``Adequate yearly progress'' definitions must include graduation
rates for public secondary schools and at least one other academic
indicator for public elementary schools, and may include other academic
indicators. However, although additional indicators may be used to
identify additional schools for school improvement, corrective action,
or restructuring, they may not be used to reduce the number of, or
change the identity of, the schools that would otherwise be subject to
school improvement, corrective action, or restructuring.
Each State must use data from the 2001-2002 school year to
establish the starting point for measuring the percentage of students
meeting or exceeding the State's proficient level of academic
achievement. The starting point must, at a minimum, be based on the
higher of two levels defined in the statute.
``Adequate yearly progress'' must include a timeline that ensures
that all students in each subgroup meet or exceed the State's
proficient level of academic achievement no later than 12 years after
the end of the 2001-2002 school year. The timeline must include
intermediate goals for meeting adequate yearly progress. These
intermediate goals must increase in equal increments over the timeline;
the first increment must occur in not more than two years, and the
following increases must occur in not more than three years. In
calculating whether a school has made ``adequate yearly progress,'' the
State may establish procedures for averaging data. These procedures may
include averaging scores across grade spans and averaging data over
three years.
To make ``adequate yearly progress,'' a school must meet two
criterias. First, the school must meet or exceed the State's annual
measurable objectives with respect to all students and students in each
subgroup. If students in any subgroup fail to make the requisite
progress, however, the school need not be identified for improvement if
the percentage of students in that group below proficient decreased by
at least 10 percent compared to the preceding year and that group made
progress on one or more of the additional academic indicators. Second,
at least 95 percent of the students in each group who have been
enrolled in the local educational agency's schools for at least one
year must take the assessment.
Invitation to Comment
This request for comments on regulatory issues under Title I is
designed to elicit the views of interested parties, particularly State
and local administrators, parents, teachers, paraprofessionals, members
of local boards of education, charter school operators and public
chartering authorities, and other organizations (including civil rights
groups, test publishers, representatives of private school children,
and faith-based organizations with educational expertise) involved with
the implementation and operation of Title I programs.
In addition to inviting specific comments on issues relating to
standards, assessments and adequate yearly progress, the Secretary
invites comments on other regulatory issues concerning provisions under
Title I, including suggestions that regulations are not needed to
resolve particular issues.
The Secretary requests that each commenter identify his or her role
in education and the perspective from which he or she views the
educational system--either as a representative of an association,
agency, or school (public or private), or as an individual teacher,
student, parent, or private citizen. The Secretary urges each commenter
to be specific regarding his or her recommendations, including the
statutory citation pertinent to the comment.
All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available
for public inspection during and after the comment period in 400
Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3W202, Washington, DC 20202 between the hours
of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday of each week except
Federal holidays.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, in Text or Adobe Portable Document
Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/
legislation/FedRegister
To use the PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is
available free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF,
call the U.S. Government Printing Office toll free at 1-888-293-6498;
or in the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO access at: http://
www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers: 84.010, Improving
Programs Operated by Local Educational Agencies; 84.011, Migrant
Education Basic State Formula Grant Program; 84.013, Prevention and
Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who Are Neglected,
Delinquent, or At-Risk of Dropping Out; 84.213, Even Start)
Program Authority: Public Law 107-110.
Dated: January 14, 2002.
Rod Paige,
Secretary of Education.
[FR Doc. 02-1341 Filed 1-17-02; 8:45 am]
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