Committee Report | February 2011

Report of the


REGENTS P-12 EDUCATION COMMITTEE


to


The Board of Regents


February 8, 2011

            Your P-12 Education Committee held its scheduled meeting on February 7, 2011.  All members were present, except for Chancellor Emeritus Bennett and Regents Dawson, Brooks Hopkins, and Norwood.

ACTION ITEMS

Charter
 School
 Actions

Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents approves the Bedford Preparatory Charter School and Coney Island Preparatory Public Charter School charter revisions as proposed by the Chancellor of the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) and the provisional charters are amended accordingly.  [P-12 (A) 1]

MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD

           

            Madam Chancellor and Colleagues: Your P-12 Education Committee recommends, and I move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on February 8, 2011, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent.

MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION

Graduation Rate: Data Collection and Reporting Processes – The Committee discussed the Department’s procedures for collecting and reporting the cohort graduation rate, including recent audit findings and recommendations.  Discussion focused on how graduation rate cohorts are defined, including reasons why students may or may not be included and the documentation required for any student who is to be excluded from the cohort for graduation rate reporting. [P-12 (D) 1]

Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) Assessment Update – The Committee was updated on the design and development of the PARCC assessments which are scheduled to be operational in 2014-15.  The Committee discussed the work of the Assessment Design and Development Team, the Leadership Team, and the Governing Board all of which were convened by Achieve, Inc. in December 2010 to begin development and design of the assessments.  The Committee discussed the role of the Board of Regents as New York State moves towards a national cut score for grades 3-11 and concerns relating to how the PARCC assessments fit in with the additional standards adopted by New York State.  The Committee discussed recommendations for assessment design options including rich performance tasks, through-course assessments and end of year assessments.   Staff will come back at a future meeting to present additional information on the design of the PARCC assessments.   [P-12 (D) 2]

Joint Regents Report on Accountability – due to time constraints, this item was not discussed and will be presented at a future meeting.  [P-12 (D) 3]

Credit for Online and Blended Coursework – The Committee discussed proposed amendments to regulations that would prescribe requirements for earning credit for online or a combination of online and blended coursework.  Discussion focused on current science laboratory requirements and the increasing availability of high-quality virtual laboratory experiences and discussions that will take place with the field regarding alternative approaches to this requirement.  The Committee also expressed the importance of monitoring the progress of students who take online courses to see if there are significant improvements on assessments.  Staff will develop guidance documents to inform public school districts and BOCES interested in offering new learning opportunities for students through online instruction.  It is anticipated that the proposed rule will be presented for adoption at the May Regents meeting.   [P-12 (D) 4]

Consent Agenda Items – The Committee discussed proposed amendments to regulations to make technical amendments to Section 100.2(ee)(2).  This item is scheduled for approval on the full Board consent agenda.  [BR (CA) 9]