States use their accountability systems to identify low-performing schools, which can receive added support and are expected to improve. Alternative schools serve students whose needs are not met in a regular school. They often serve at-risk students who are struggling academically or behaviorally. Given this unique population, the Government…

This topic paper details how dual and concurrent enrollment programs can help states overcome workforce readiness and postsecondary access and completion challenges and how governors can strengthen these programs by using their bully pulpit, agenda setting authority and budgetary authority to do so. It concludes with a number of examples of how…

As the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is implemented, the Center on Standards and Assessment Implementation (CSAI) has received queries regarding accountability requirements, particularly in regard to reporting data for subgroups of students. CSAI recently sought to answer this latter question by reviewing the ESSA. Additionally, CSAI reviewed…

This report examines Idaho's undergraduate-degree-granting colleges and universities. The authors focus on what students are learning (the curriculum), whether the marketplace of ideas is vibrant (intellectual diversity), how the universities are run (governance), and what a college education costs (affordability). In each case, the authors…

The first section of this report on Idaho's achievement standards provides the mathematics standards for kindergarten through eighth grade. In the second section, social studies standards for kindergarten through fifth grade are given, followed by history of human civilization for middle grades, geography for middle grades, and U.S. history for…

This workbook, submitted by the State of Idaho to the U.S. Department of Education, is for State Grants under Title IX, Part C, Section 9302 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (Public Law 107-110). By January 31, 2003, States must complete and submit to the Department this Consolidated State Application Accountability Workbook. The…

This paper contains proposed state exiting standards for the Idaho K-12 public school system. All schools are to deliver a core of instruction and advisement programs for each student. Students are to meet locally established standards (at a minimum, the state standards), which can be assessed by challenging examinations, demonstrations of…

The intent of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 is to hold schools accountable for ensuring that all their students achieve mastery in reading and math, with a particular focus on groups that have traditionally been left behind. Under NCLB, states submit accountability plans to the U.S. Department of Education detailing the rules and…

For five years running, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has tracked states' teacher policies, preparing a detailed and thorough compendium of teacher policy in the United States on topics related to teacher preparation, licensure, evaluation, career advancement, tenure, compensation, pensions and dismissal. The "2011 State…

The intent of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 is to hold schools accountable for ensuring that all their students achieve mastery in reading and math, with a particular focus on groups that have traditionally been left behind. Under NCLB, states have leeway to: (1) Craft their own academic standards, select their own tests, and define…

The Idaho edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) 2009 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the third annual look at state policies impacting the teaching profession. It is hoped that this report will help focus attention on areas where state policymakers can make changes that will have a positive impact on teacher…

Idaho's "Schools 2000 and Beyond--An Action Plan for Idaho" report (1992) identified 12 strategies for improving student performance in its elementary and secondary schools. One of them, a "transition to a performance-based system," suggests a process that first describes what students ought to learn and how they should be able…

The "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" examines what is arguably the single most powerful authority over the teaching profession: state government. This Idaho edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the first of what will be an annual look at the status of state policies…

This report provides information on activities during the 2000-2001 school year involving exceptional students in Idaho. Highlighted are the use of performance goals in key areas and results of an extensive self-assessment of early intervention services and special education services. Data are presented separately for students with disabilities…