Busy State Board Schedule Continues With Diploma, ISTEP+ Decisions
Indiana education policymakers had a busy month in October, and before the year comes to a close they still have much to do in preparation for the 2016 legislative session beginning in January.
The State Board of Education convenes for its regular monthly gathering Wednesday at the Statehouse, following a special meeting last week. They’ll follow up on two big items from that session: high school diplomas and 2015 ISTEP+ results.
Vince Bertram will meet with the rest of his State Board of Education colleagues Wednesday at the Statehouse. (Photo Credit: Rachel Morello/StateImpact Indiana)
Along with a special task force co-chaired by state Superintendent Glenda Ritz and Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers, the board has been gathering input on a new set of diplomas for Indiana high school students. The updates would, among other things, condense the state’s four current diploma options into three, increase the amount of credits required to graduate and give students opportunities to earn college credit or work experience prior to leaving high school.
The board is set to vote on the proposed slate of diplomas Wednesday. If approved, they would be implemented beginning in the 2018-19 school year.
As far as the ISTEP+ is concerned, the board will discuss if and how they’ll grade students differently based on whether they took the online or paper/pencil version of the annual statewide exam.
After comparing the two test types, researcher Derek Briggs proposed the board account for differences in difficulty by awarding bonus points to students who completed the online version. Briggs also suggested the group consider whether it would be wise to adjust school A-F accountability grade calculations based on which format students took.
This will build on further A-F discussions that will be brought to the board by the Stakeholder Design Committee, a group of about 20 teachers, principals and other educators who have worked over the last six months to look at Indiana’s evaluation policies and offer recommendations for improvement.
Indiana’s accountability system has received a lot of attention of late, specifically in connection with the upcoming (but continually delayed) release of 2015 scores, which are predicted to be lower with the advent of new statewide standards.
Just last week, Gov. Mike Pence said he hopes the State Board will carefully consider how they tie test performance to teacher evaluations and bonuses, a caution Superintendent Ritz has already expressed numerous times.
Members of the public can tune in to Wednesday’s meeting live online, beginning at 9 a.m.
