Value-Added Overview Sapulpa Public Schools August 16, 2012

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Our Mission  The mission of Sapulpa Public Schools, in partnership with the community, is to provide a premier education to ensure that every student achieves success in a global society.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. 1 Roadie 5 Back-up Singer 10 Rock Star Sapulpa Public Schools’ Self-Assessment

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Learning Targets  Understand why value-added analysis provides a more complete picture of school and teacher effectiveness.  Understand how harnessing the power of two, achievement and progress, provides a more robust picture of school improvement.  Develop a conceptual understanding of growth metrics

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. “Education is no longer a pathway to opportunity and success. It is a prerequisite for success.” -President Barack Obama, March 2009 National Landscape

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has brought an increased focus on student achievement results for schools, school systems and specific groups of students within schools. National Landscape

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. “With increased accountability, American schools and the people who work in them are being asked to do something new—to engage in systemic, continuous improvement in the quality of the educational experience of students and to subject themselves to the discipline of measuring their success by the metric of students’ academic performance.” - Richard Elmore, Bridging the Gap Between Standards and Achievement National Landscape

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  Across the country, growth models are helping schools identify strengths, challenges and opportunities throughout the system.  Growth analysis brings a new and critically important kind of diagnostic information to allow districts to be strategic and focused in their decision-making. National Landscape

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. For the first time in the history of American education, the definition of “great” teachers is grounded in the students’ academic growth, not just student achievement. The difference is subtle but extremely important. National Landscape

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Let’s Consider…  What are some ways that we determine our effectiveness as teachers?  Are some ways more insightful to our professional learning?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Audience Share  Teacher observation  Student growth  Classroom mgmt.  Student engagement  Student productions-produce the language  Analyze the data (achievement and benchmark)  Scaffolding information/differentiated instruction  Passion of the teacher  Parent feedback  Student independence  Student feedback  Daily work  Labs  Questions students ask  All students involved  Student attitudes  Attendance  Providing a healthy environment  Teacher knowledge of students

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Audience Share

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  All measures should inform practice and lead to improvement for students.  Multiple measures should clarify, not confuse.  Multiple measures are not necessarily “better.” Less is more, sometimes.  Important to measure what is important. The Right Measures

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  Don’t just admire the data.  Harness the power of data for improvement, not judgment.  Convert data to information.  Respond to the data. Don’t react. Using the Measures Correctly

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  Value-added models measure the influence of schools or teachers on the academic growth rates of students.  Value-added analysis compares the change in achievement of a group of students from one year to the next, to an expected amount of change, based on their prior achievement history and other potential influences. What is value-added analysis?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  In a perfect world:  Students start at the same place.  Students progress at the same pace.  Achievement test scores are enough to show growth. Stair Step Expectations

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  In reality:  Students start at different places.  Students progress at different rates.  We need more than scores on a single test to show a school’s effectiveness. Differentiated Reality

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Why use value-added analysis? Using value-added analysis, along with other data allows us to separate… what we think is happening from what is actually happening.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. What do you see?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Take a second look.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. To do this we need:  The right questions  The right data  The knowledge to interpret these data  The wisdom to respond (not react) and apply strategies for school improvement Harnessing the Power of Data for Improvement

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Setting the Stage: The Power of Two

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. The Power of Two Achievement plus Growth Measures = A Clearer Picture of Student Outcomes Achievement  Measures a student’s performance at a point in time on a single test in a single subject  Compares to a standard (e.g., proficiency)  Important to post-secondary opportunities (GPA, ACT)

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. The Power of Two Achievement plus Growth Measures= A Clearer Picture of Student Outcomes Growth  Measures the student’s progress between two points in time  Uses student’s own prior performance to predict future performance  May factor in student background characteristics  Uses multiple data points (including student demographics) that relate to student performance to increase precision  Measures the effect a district, school, grade-level, classroom or teacher has on growth of student

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  How do value-added measures support what we know about schools? The Power of Two: Achievement & Progress Progress One Year’s Growth Achievement Test Results Standard Low Progress Low Achievement Low Progress High Achievement High Progress Low Achievement High Progress High Achievement School A School B School C School D School E School F School H School K School G School J

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Progress One Year’s Growth Achievement Test Results Standard Low Progress Low Achievement Low Progress High Achievement High Progress Low Achievement High Progress High Achievement School A School B School C School D School E School F School H School K School G School J Leading The Power of Two: Achievement & Progress

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Progress One Year’s Growth Achievement Test Results Standard Low Progress Low Achievement Low Progress High Achievement High Progress Low Achievement High Progress High Achievement School A School B School C School D School E School F School H School K School G School J Learning The Power of Two: Achievement & Progress

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Progress One Year’s Growth Achievement Test Results Standard Low Progress Low Achievement Low Progress High Achievement High Progress Low Achievement High Progress High Achievement School A School B School C School D School E School F School H School K School G School J Losing Ground The Power of Two: Achievement & Progress

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Progress One Year’s Growth Achievement Test Results Standard Low Progress Low Achievement Low Progress High Achievement High Progress Low Achievement High Progress High Achievement School A School B School C School D School E School F School H School K School G School J Lucky The Power of Two: Achievement & Progress

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Pause and Reflect  Where do you think your school is?  Where would you like to be?  What strategies can you embrace now to get there?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  The gardeners’ oak trees are 4 years old.  We need to find the starting height for each tree in order to more fairly evaluate each gardener’s performance during the past year.  Both trees were much shorter last year.  Oak Tree A grew by 14 inches and Oak Tree B grew by 20 inches. Gardener A Gardener B 61 in. Oak A Age 4 (Today) 72 in. Oak B Age 4 (Today) Oak A Age 3 (1 year ago ) 47 in. Oak B Age 3 (1 year ago) 52 in. Although it appears that Gardener B was more effective in attaining a taller tree, it does not tell the whole story. +14 in. +20 in. This is analogous to a Simple Growth Model

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  Achievement Model  Simple Growth Model  Value-Added Model A Conceptual Analogy

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  For the past year, the gardeners have been tending to their oak trees, trying to maximize the height of the trees.  Each gardener used a variety of strategies to help their own trees grow.  After one year of implementing their strategies, one of Gardener A’s tree grew to 61 inches tall and one of Gardener B’s trees grew to 72 inches tall. Gardener A Gardener B 61 in. 72 in. We begin by understanding what attributed to the growth of the gardeners’ trees. This is analogous to an Achievement Model

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Low High Gardener A Gardener B We still do not know how much of this growth was due to the strategies used by each gardener.  We need a more accurate estimate.  We examine all oaks in each respective area to find the average height increase for these trees.  We also take into consideration the impact of three environmental factors: Rainfall, Soil Richness, and Temperature.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. +20 Average + 3 for Rainfall - 3 for Soil + 2 for Soil - 8 for Temp + 5 for Temp _________ +12 inches During the year _________ +22 inches During the year  The average increase in oak tree height was 20 inches during the past year.  However, each tree was exposed to different levels of rainfall, temperature and soil richness.  Therefore, we must adjust the average height during the past year to compensate for these environmental factors. Gardener A Gardener B +47 in. +52 in. - 5 for Rainfall Based on data for all oak trees in the region: Now it’s time to use our data to make a more accurate prediction for the expected height of oak trees in this area. 59 in. 12 in. 74 in. 22 in. 61 in. 72 in.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids.  Our predicted heights for tree A and B are 59 and 74 inches respectively.  Oak tree A’s actual height of 61 inches is 2 inches more than we predicted.  We attribute this above-average result to the effect of Gardener A.  Oak tree B’s actual height of 72 inches is 2 inches less than we predicted.  We attribute this below-average result to the effect of Gardener B. Finally, we compare the actual height of each tree to our prediction. Predicted Oak A Predicted Oak B Actual Oak A Actual Oak B 59 in. 74 in. Gardener A Gardener B 61 in. 72 in This is analogous to a Value-Added Model

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Predicted Oak B Actual Oak B Gardener A Avg. = -4 in. Predicted Oak A Actual Oak A Avg. = +5 in. Apply this method to all trees under each gardener’s care.  This information can be used to calculate the height for each tree today if it were being cared for by an average gardener in this area.  Now, who is the more effective gardener? Gardener B

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. How Does This Analogy Relate to Value-Added in the Education Context? Oak Tree AnalogyValue-added in Education What are we looking at?GardenersDistricts Schools Grade levels Classrooms Programs and Interventions What are we using to measure success? Relative height improvement in inches Relative improvement on standardized test scores SampleSingle oak treeGroups of students Control factorsRainfall Soil richness Temperature Students’ prior test performance (usually most significant predictor) Other demographic characteristics (grade level, gender, SWD, ELL status, IEP status, mobility, etc.)

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Reflection  Why is it important to measure both achievement and progress?  What are the challenges of identifying our most effective practices through a single lens of an achievement measure?  How may the use of value added measures inform our efforts to identify and replicate our most effective practices?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. The Value-Added Research Center (VARC) Model  School Level Results  Teacher Level Results

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Value-Added Color Scheme on Reports

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Which grade-level team should be prioritized?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Value-Added Analysis: Actual minus Predicted Value-Added Above Prediction Value-Added Below Predicted Value-Added At Prediction

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Prior Data Points Used to Predict:  Using the data from the Oklahoma Core Curriculum Test (OCCT), in reading and math…  A prior reading achievement level can be predictive of reading achievement.  e.g., 7th grade reading predicts 8th grade reading  A prior math achievement level can be predictive of math achievement.  It is also possible that a prior reading test can predict math and vice versa.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. “Once I understood the nature of the work, it helped me relax and be more generous. I learned that people get frightened if asked to change their world view. And why wouldn’t they? Of course people will get defensive; of course they might be intrigued by a new idea but then turn away in fear.” —Margaret Wheatly, Leadership and the New Science, 1999 Emotional Intelligence

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Culture Matters  For many of us, examining data can be very personal.  The school value-added report may be the first time we look into the mirror and reflect upon the impact of our practices.  A supportive and collaborative culture fosters using the data to improve our practices in a positive and productive manner.

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Closing Questions  Think about your school’s culture. How would we assess our readiness to collaborate around our data for the purposes of improved practice?  What are some ways that we can nurture a positive school culture for using value-added data to improve practice?

Copyright, Battelle for Kids. Check for Understanding Please complete the 3–2–1 Exit Ticket before leaving today. 3 Ways value-added data can improve your school and/or classroom. 2 Things you would like to further explore. 1 Takeaway you gleaned from this presentation.