DISTRICT AND SCHOOL ACCOUNTABILITY
State and federal accountability programs use standardized test results to measure how well public schools and public school districts are performing. State accountability for California schools and districts is required under the 1999 Public Schools Accountability Act; federal accountability is required under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
The Academic Performance Index (API) is the cornerstone of California's accountability system. The purpose of the API is to measure the academic performance and growth of districts and schools.
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measures how well the district and district schools are performing based on standards required by the federal No Child Left Behind law. All districts, schools, and numerically significant subgroups must meet minimum targets annually in order to make AYP.
A district or school that receives federal TItle I funds that does not make Adequate Yearly Progress for two consecutive years is identified for Program Improvement (PI). A district or school in Program Improvement is required to offer certain types of required services for its students during each year it is in PI. A school exits PI if it makes AYP for two years in a row. |