Definitions - Table of Contents

• [Attendance Rate ]
• [Dropout Rate ]
• [Fully Licensed ]
• [Graduation Rate ]
• [Highly Qualified ]
• [Kansas Assessment Performance Levels ]
• [Similar Schools ]
• [Subgroup ]

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is a method for determining if schools, districts and the state have made adequate progress in improving student achievement. AYP establishes annual targets for participation and performance on state assessments, as well as attendance rates and graduation rates.

Attendance Rate

The student attendance rate is determined by dividing the average daily attendance by the total average daily membership.

Dropout Rate

Dropout rates are calculated using dropouts reported for the year for grades 7 through 12 and dividing by the total enrollment for the year for the same grades. Dropout rates are a one-year indicator of students who left school and are not the inverse of graduation rates.

Fully Licensed

Teachers in Kansas are considered fully licensed when they hold a valid Kansas teaching certificate/license with the appropriate subject and grade level endorsement for the assignment they hold.

Graduation Rate

The US Department of Education passed regulations requiring all states to calculate graduation using a 4-year adjusted cohort rate. In addition, states were given the option to use an extended-year rate; Kansas chose to calculate a 5-year rate. The 4-year adjusted cohort graduation rate reflects the percent of students who were first time 9th graders in 2007-2008 and who graduated four years later (by September 30, 2011) with adjustments during the four years for transfers in and out. The 5-year adjusted cohort graduation rate is the percent of students who were first time 9th graders in 2006-2007 that graduated five years later (by September 30, 2011).

NOTE: In the 4-year adjusted cohort graduation rate, any student who does not graduate in the expected four years—even if they are still in school—is considered a non-graduate and counts against the graduation rate. This rule is extended to five years in the 5-year adjusted cohort graduation rate.

The 4-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula is as follows:
    # 2011 graduates (# of cohort members earning a regular HS diploma by Sept. 30, 2011) X 100% = rate
    # 1st time 9th graders in fall 2007 plus transfers in minus students who transfer out,
    emigrate, or die during 2010-2011, 2009-2010, 2008-2009 and 2007-2008

The 5-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula is as follows:
    # 2011 graduates (# of cohort members earning a regular HS diploma by Sept. 30, 2011) X 100% = rate
    # 1st time 9th graders in fall 2006 plus transfers in minus students who transfer out,
    emigrate, or die during 2010-2011, 2009-2010, 2008-2009, 2007-2008 and 2006-2007

Highly Qualified

Teachers are considered highly qualified by meeting the Federal definition of "Highly Qualified" teacher as stated in Title IX, section 9101 (23) of the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001."

Kansas Assessment Performance Level Descriptors

Exemplary
Exceeds Standard
Meets Standard
Approaches Standard
Academic Warning

* For a detailed explanation of the Performance Level Descriptors, please click on the following link: http://www.ksde.org/Default.aspx?tabid=420

Similar Schools

For the purpose of determining similar schools on this report card, the determination of similarity based on grade configuration is based on whether the school is a:

• Elementary school (includes all or some combination of grades K-8) or
• Secondary school (includes all or some combination of grades 6-12)

and whether the school has at least two of the same grades as the target school

Elementary and middle schools are determined to be similar based on the size of grades in the school when both the target school and the comparison school fall into the same range of the six ranges listed below:

• 1-15 students per grade
• 16-30 students per grade
• 31-45 students per grade
• 46-60 students per grade
• 61-75 students per grade
• more than 75 students per grade

For secondary schools, the determination of similarity based on the size of grades in the school is based on whether the target school and the comparison school fall into the same range of the five ranges listed below:

• 1-30 students per grade
• 31-50 students per grade
• 51-75 students per grade
• 76-200 students per grade
• more than 200 students per grade

Schools are considered to be comparable based on the percentage of students enrolled in the free or reduced price lunch programs when they are within ten percentage points of the target school. Schools with more than 60% of students eligible for the programs are considered similar by this factor.

Schools must be similar to the target school based on all of the above criteria to appear on the target school’s similar schools list.

When comparing schools based on the percentage of students with disabilities in the school, schools are considered similar to the target school when the population for this group is within 10 percentage points of the target school’s population for the same group. Schools with more than 20% of their school population comprised of students with disabilities are considered similar by this factor.

When comparing schools based on the percentage of students with limited English proficiency in the school, schools are considered similar to the target school when the population for this group is within 10 percentage points of the target school’s population for the same group. Schools with more than 20% of their school population comprised of students with limited English proficiency are considered similar by this factor.

When comparing schools based on the percentage of migrant students in the school, schools are considered similar to the target school when the population for this group is within 10 percentage points of the target school’s population for the same group. Schools with more than 20% of their school population comprised of migrant students are considered similar by this factor.

When comparing schools based on the percentage of minority students in the school, schools are considered similar to the target school when the population for this group is within 10 percentage points of the target school’s population for the same group. Schools with more than 50% of their school population comprised of minority students are considered similar by this factor.

Subgroup

For purposes of determining Adequate Yearly Progress, a subgroup is any group of 30 or more students who can be identified by characteristics related to ethnicity, income level, special needs or English proficiency.