Florida’s Race to the Top 
Student Growth Implementation Committee (SGIC) Webinar
Thursday, April 14, 2011
4:00 – 6:00 PM

Meeting Agenda
Thursday, April 14, 2011
•	4:00 pm – Welcome and Overview
•	4:10 pm – Discussion of Variables
•	6:00 pm – Adjourn

Attendees
•	Student Growth Implementation Committee members
•	Florida Department of Education (FLDOE)
•	American Institutes for Research (AIR)

Background
•	At the April 4-5, 2011 Student Growth Implementation Committee (SGIC) meeting at the University of Central Florida, the SGIC selected three value-added models for AIR to evaluate.
•	Allow student characteristics and prior achievement scores
-	fixed and random effects
•	Include only prior achievement scores
•	Sustained differences model 
•	Three variables, Students with Disabilities, English language learner status, and attendance, will be evaluated in these models as determined and defined by the SGIC.
•	The SGIC proposed several additional variables for consideration in the evaluation of the models, these variables will be discussed today.

Framework for Considering Variable
List of brainstormed variables

•	Data is available and accurate
•	Discussion on variable inclusion
•	Is it in the teacher’s control?
•	Is it measured already by another variable?
•	Is it explained by pretest data?
•	Possible definitions 

Data Currently Not Available
The following data is currently not available to the FLDOE
•	Students behavioral intervention plans and RTI level
•	Foster care children
-	Data is collected only by the Department of Children and Families
•	Rural schools
-	No data captured on rural schools and there is no state definition of rural schools
•	Homework
-	This data is teacher controlled

Data Available but…
•	Teacher attendance
-	Data is available in Survey 5
-	Number of days present/absent, (other annual, vacation, professional, suspension, illness in the line of duty, military, sabbatical, absence without leave – guidelines only, vary by district), personal leave (as defined by the district), sick leave (calling in sick or maternity leave), temporary duty elsewhere, related only to the school year
-	Teacher controlled
•	If considered, a business rule, rather than a variable may be a better process to determine whether to include the teacher in the value added calculation. Through the attribution process, the school and district could make the determination if the teacher should have a value added score based on her class assignment.

Data Available but…
•	Teacher experience
-	Data is available, known to be an inaccurate measure 
-	Number of years of experience
•	Homeless 
•	Do we have the leeway to use this variable? It is an economic indicator.
-	Data available
-	Mobility an indicator?
•	Migrant
•	Do we have the leeway to use this variable? It is an economic indicator.
–	Data available
–	Mobility an indicator? ELL?

Homeless Student Codes

Code	Definition	
A	Living in emergency or transitional shelters, FEMA Trailers, abandoned in hospitals. 	
B	Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship or a similar reason; doubled-up. 	
D	Living in cars, parks, temporary trailer parks or campgrounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings or similar settings. 	
E	Living in hotels or motels. 	
F	Awaiting foster care. (Prior to 2009-10 this category was included in code A.) 	

Migrant Status Term codes

Code	Definition - Indicate which term(s) a migrant student was served and/or identified. 	
D	Enrolled/Served ONLY in Regular 180 day School Year with services provided during the regular school day only. 	
E	Enrolled/Served in Regular 180 day School Year with some or all services provided during an extended day/week. 	
S	Enrolled/Served ONLY in Summer Term – The student must be served in a partially or fully Migrant funded service component designed especially for Migrant students enrolled in conventional summer school (or intersession) in order for the student to be coded “S”. 	
B	Served in BOTH Regular 180 Day School Year and Summer Term – This code should also be used for a student identified but not served in the regular 180 day school year, but then served in the summer term. 	
X	Identified, NOT Served – Use this code if the student has been identified at any time during the school year or summer session, but not enrolled/served. This code is for emancipated youth and children three years of age or over (who are not enrolled in Pre-Kindergarten classes). 	
Z	Not Applicable, a Non-Migrant student. 	

Data Available but…
•	School grades
–	Data is available
–	80 percent of schools are earning an A or B
•	Availability of resources – lab equipment, funding
–	Can be tied to schools, but not classrooms
–	Per student FTE
–	Peer effects an alternate measure?
•	Course complexity
–	Data is available,  the level of complexity is linked to the course in the directory
–	Seems like it would be linked to student prior achievement

Data Available
•	Discipline/Referral Action - (e.g. number of suspensions and expulsions)
o	Data is available
o	http://www.fldoe.org/eias/dataweb/database_1011/st81_1.pdf
•	Class size
o	Data can be calculated based on course enrollment and number of teachers assigned to the course
•	Retention
o	Data can be calculated based on course enrollment and grade level
o	Policy Implication, no DSS opportunity to demonstrate learning gains
•	School or classroom level status scores – peer effects (another look at prior achievement)
o	Data can be calculated using student achievement data
•	Mobility (number of schools attended – student and school level)
o	Data can be calculated based on the number of schools the student attended during the year
o	If used, may be set up as a business rule rather than a variables

Discipline Action Code

Code	Definition	
C	Corporal Punishment - Corporal punishment is defined as the moderate use of physical force or physical contact by a teacher or principal to maintain discipline or to enforce school rule. (Maintained for students in grades PK-12 only.) 		
I	Suspension, In-School - In-school suspension is defined as the temporary removal of a student from the school program not exceeding ten days. (Maintained for students in grades PK-12 only.) 		
O	Suspension, Out-of-School - Out-of-school suspension is defined as the temporary removal of a student from a school and the school program for a period not exceeding ten days. (Maintained for students in grades PK-12 only.) 	
H	Suspension Extended, Pending Hearing - Suspension (out-of-school) extended beyond 10 school days pending School Board hearing for expulsion. (This code should only be used when the district Superintendent grants an extension for suspension beyond 10 school days as per Ch. 1006.08, F.S.). 		
E	Expelled, Without Continuing Educational Services - Student expelled from regular school without continuing educational services provided by the district. (Maintained for students in grades PK-12 and adult) 		
F	Expelled, With Continuing Educational Services Student expelled from regular school with continuing educational services, which may include a disciplinary program or second chance school, and/or referred to the criminal justice or juvenile justice system. (Maintained for students in grades PK-12 and adult) 	

Decisions Made by SGIC
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Overview of SGIC Meetings

Meeting	Date	Topics	
Webinar	March 24, 2011	Introductions, project and process overview	
In Person
Orlando	April 4-5, 2011	Overview of value-added models; eight different types to analyze; discussion of business rules; selection of factors; direction from committee on which models to review	
Webinar 	April 14, 2011	Discussion of covariate inclusion	
Webinar	May 2011?	Progress update	
In Person
Orlando	May 19-20, 2011	Present and discuss results of analysis of the eight different models and form preliminary recommendations on final model	
Webinar	May 25, 2011	Reach consensus on recommendation for the final model to present to the Commissioner on June 1	

Questions and Next Steps

Information about the activities, membership, meeting schedule and materials, and recording of conference calls and webinar of the SGIC are posted at: www.fldoe.org/arra/racetothetop.asp.

Contact Information
FLDOE:
Juan Copa, Director of Research and Analysis in Educator Performance
850-245-0744 (office)
Juan.Copa@fldoe.org
AIR:
Christy Hovanetz, Ph.D., Project Director
850-212-0243 (cell)
ChristyHovanetz@gmail.com