PERSONALIZED EDUCATION PLANS

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT STUDENT ACCOUNTABILITY

Q: Is there a waiver review process for writing at gateway 2 and 3?

A: No. The principal and teacher(s) shall use locally developed and scored writing samples during grades 5 and 8 to determine if students have made adequate progress in order to be promoted to the next grade. The writing tests are screens to determine whether students need focused intervention. The Division of Instructional Services is currently developing a brochure to answer questions dealing with the writing process.

Q: Must a child be retained if s/he does not score at or above 2.5 on the writing test at grades 4 and 7?

A: No. The writing test is a screen to identify students who need writing intervention. Teachers should continually assess writing progress throughout an entire school year. The writing tests serve as an indicator as to what type and amount of extra help a student needs. Writing is one indicator a teacher uses to determine promotion from the 5th grade to the 6th grade and from the 8th grade to the 9th grade.

Q: When must focused intervention for writing take place?

A: SBE policy requires that focused intervention must occur at the 5th and 8th grades. However, that doesn’t mean that intervention cannot take place immediately after the test administration and during summer school. The 5th and 8th grade teachers must also give extra assistance and continued writing instruction. The amount and type depends on the students’ needs.

Q: Must you have a Personalized Education Plan (PEP) for a student who does not meet the 2.5 proficiency for writing in the fourth or seventh grade?

A: It is not mandated. For the State Board of Education’s purposes, focused intervention must take place at the fifth and eighth grade. Teachers should continue ongoing assessment of writing.

Q: What should be the components of a PEP?

A: A PEP should consist of (1) diagnostic evaluation of student’s strengths and weaknesses, (2) intervention strategies that may include extra assistance beyond the classroom, acceleration of learning, and extra help, and (3) monitoring strategies should include a variety of assessments including writing samples reviewed on a regular basis.

Q: According to State Board of Education Policy, are PEPs mandated at the high school level?

A: PEPs are required for only those students not meeting proficiency on the exit exam. We encourage PEPs for those students who do not score at level III or IV on end-of-course tests. The competency test may also be used as an indicator for students that need additional help.

Q: Where is the PEP stored?

A: The PEP should be in a place that is easily accessible to the teacher(s) who are instructing the student. It should be a roadmap to guide student instruction.

Q: For exceptional children, is the PEP different from the IEP?

A: They are two different documents intended to serve different purposes. However, they could be combined if everyone involved including the parent understands they are combined. If an IEP is to serve as a PEP also, the IEP must include the three components of the PEP: diagnosis, intervention, and monitoring and must include components of the IEP and address the needs because of the disability. Combining an IEP and PEP is a local decision. Documentation must be a part of the IEP and PEP development and parents and school personnel should understand that they are combined.

Q: Should the borderline Level III students have a PEP?

A: The State Board does not mandate PEPs for students at the borderline of Level III. Having a PEP for these students is a local decision.

Q: Who completes the PEP (teachers, counselors, etc.)?

A: It is a local decision. A team approach is recommended. The team should be made up of teachers and instructional support personnel. The team members should know the student’s strengths and needs. If the PEP is for a student with disabilities, the IEP team must be involved.

Q: Could we have a session on IEP and PEP plans and how these need to be addressed?

A: We encourage LEA central office staff and curriculum leaders at schools to deliver professional development about PEPs and IEPs to teachers. Sessions about PEPs and IEPs will be included in conferences and workshops sponsored by DPI. PEP resource materials are now available; others will be prepared before the end of this school year.

Q: Could our teachers have model training for best practices demonstrated on developing PEP’s, etc.?

A: Best practices will be incorporated into regular scheduled conferences delivered by DPI. Videos about developing PEPs have been sent to each LEA. A detailed document about PEPs will be distributed this spring.

Q: If a PEP is written including classroom modifications for a student, will the modification be permitted for EOC test administration?

A: The accommodations for students on EOC tests are controlled by the student’s IEP team and are only allowable for students with disabilities. The IEP team should be aware of what accommodations are permissible for state tests.

Q: What is the definition of at-risk?

A: Any student scoring at level I or II on end-of-grade or end-of-course tests. It also includes students who show indicators of potential failure.

Q: Should we prepare them for the graduating class of 2003 for the competency test or the exit exam?

A: Under current SBE policy, the class of 2003 must pass both the competency test and exit exam.

Q: If a student is retested with EOGs under the student accountability standards policy, which test score counts toward the ABCs?

A: The initial administration of the test is the one used for the ABCs accountability model.

Q: If students do not pass the competency test prior to the end of a semester, how are the students rescheduled, or will they be rescheduled (10/20 rule)?

A: Students enrolled in a special course for preparation for the competency test are not affected by the 10/20 rule since the rule only applies to courses for which there are EOC tests.

Q: When do we give retests and remediation with a block schedule?

A: Retesting of students not meeting Level III or IV on high school end-of-course tests is not a state requirement. For exit exam remediation, LEAs should determine the extent of student deficiencies and base remediation on those deficiencies. End-of-course test scores should be one indication to determine whether students need focused intervention.

Q: How are other systems using their remediation money?

A: Comprehensive information is not available at this time at the state level. At-risk money can be used for after-school, summer school, before-school, tutoring, etc. Small-group and one-on-one tutoring have proved to be effective. It is important to remember to identify the at-risk students as early as possible and begin to provide appropriate focused intervention so the students can initially meet the promotion standards on the EOGs and Exit Exam.

Q: How do you remediate the course already completed?

A: When to remediate is a local decision. Assessment of student learning should be ongoing in every class.

Q: What is the timeline for staff training and implementation?

A: It is a local decision to set timelines for staff training and implementation within the implementation timeline stipulated in the Student Accountability Standards.

Q: Have the "powers that be" addressed the need for more psychologists in testing?

A: The State Board of Education is aware of schools needing more counselors.

Q: Do most systems have one coordinator that just oversees the whole process of accountability/review teams?

A: All systems must designate a testing/accountability coordinator. However, we do not collect data about how schools are setting up accountability/review teams.

Q: Wouldn’t it be beneficial to have a coordinator in the county so that all the questions, concerns, form development, etc. could be overseen by one person?

A: Having a coordinator for these specific purposes is a local decision. LEAs must determine how to use staff in the most effective and efficient ways.

Q: Is the new SIMS-NCWISE going to be able to extract testing data that we could download into a student profile for the PEP?

A: NCWISE will have the capability of exporting test data for PEP use.

Q: What do we do to determine levels of out-of-state children?

A: It is a principal’s decision to grade and classify students. This decision should be based on transcripts and other records.

Q: When, during the student waiver process, may a parent request a review?

A: A parent may request a review after the second OR third administration of an end-of-grade test, but not both.

Q: Are we required to send LEP students before the Review Committee to receive the two additional years of exemptions from the Student Accountability Standards?

A: There is no automatic exemption for LEP students from the Student Accountability Standards. Students who are exempt from statewide testing must have a portfolio of documentation submitted to a local committee to determine whether students have made sufficient academic progress to be promoted. Students who are no longer eligible for the testing exemption and who score below Level III may be eligible for a waiver from this requirement for promotion for two additional years due to language proficiency. Once again, a portfolio of documentation must be submitted to a local committee. It is suggested that the committee be outside the school and include an ESL teacher. However, committee make up is not specified. Whether or not it is the same committee as the one hearing appeals, is a local decision. The key to the LEP policy is that the waiver from the Student Accountability Standards is not automatic; it must be based on documentation in the instructional portfolio, and it should be made by a committee rather than a single individual.

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