ESEA FLEXIBILITY INFORMATION FROM STATE SUPERINTENDENT PATRICIA I. WRIGHT
August 30, 2012
USED Requests That Virginia Revisit Mathematics Annual Measurable Objectives (AMOs)
On Monday, August 27, 2012, staff at the U.S. Department of Education (USED) contacted Virginia regarding the Commonwealth’s annual measurable objectives (AMOs) for mathematics. USED acknowledged that it had approved Virginia’s methodology to establish the AMOs, but at the time, assessment data in mathematics were not available. USED felt that once the methodology was applied to the data, the resulting AMOs were not sufficiently ambitious to close the achievement gap in half for each subgroup and the “all students” group within six years, and therefore did not meet the requirements of the flexibility waiver.
USED did not withdraw approval of Virginia’s flexibility request, but it did send a letter stating they would like to work with Virginia to reconsider the methodology to achieve the desired outcome. In response to the USED letter, Board of Education President David M. Foster released a statement that he will ask the board at its meeting on September 27, 2012, to revisit the annual measurable objectives for mathematics achievement that were set in July 2012 using the methodology approved by USED.
At this time, no changes are anticipated in terms of identification of priority and focus schools.
USED’s letter to Virginia and the VDOE news release outlining Mr. Foster’s response are attached to this message. If you have questions about USED’s letter or Mr. Foster’s response, please contact Dr. Linda Wallinger, assistant superintendent for instruction, at (804) 225-2034 or Linda.Wallinger@doe.virginia.gov.
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- USED letter requesting revisions to Virginia’s AMOs (PDF)
- News Release, August 29, 2012 – Board of Education to Revisit ESEA Objectives - USED Praises Virginia’s Commitment to Closing Achievement Gaps
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