State Planning Tool for Standards-Based Accountability Under the Every Student Succeeds Act The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) presents states with the opportunity to broaden their visions for college and career readiness (CCR). Under ESSA, statewide accountability systems must include multiple measures that can serve as benchmarks for the varied pathways that students take to CCR. States are required to use multiple measures to differentiate among all public schools annually and to periodically identify low-performing schools for comprehensive or targeted support and improvement. ESSA expands the federally required school accountability indicators to include academic achievement status (which embeds statewide assessment participation rate), achievement growth or another academic indicator (for elementary and middle schools), graduation rates (for high schools), progress toward English language proficiency, and an additional indicator of school quality or student success. This planning resource is designed to support state educational agency (SEA) leaders and staff as they modify state accountability systems to align with CCR goals in the context of ESSA requirements. It does so by: Building capacity regarding accountability requirements by summarizing ESSA’s standards-based relevant ESSA statutory requirements in a concise, understandable format; and Providing the tools for states to identify and respond to gaps between ESSA requirements and current state policies and implementation efforts. It is recommended that SEA staff who lead or are deeply engaged in each of the policy areas addressed by this tool use it collaboratively and also consider consulting with other stakeholders who bring critical information and diverse perspectives to the process of developing the consolidated state plan. Using the ESSA Accountability Planning Tool This tool is organized into two parts: Part A (Accountability Gap Analysis Template) provides a deliberate space for states to identify and plan next steps to respond to policy and implementation gaps in the following ESSA accountability-related policy areas:
State Planning Tool for Standards-Based Accountability Under the Every Student Succeeds Act The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) presents states with the opportunity to broaden their visions for college and career readiness (CCR). Under ESSA, statewide accountability systems must include multiple measures that can serve as benchmarks for the varied pathways that students take to CCR. States are required to use multiple measures to differentiate among all public schools annually and to periodically identify low-performing schools for comprehensive or targeted support and improvement. ESSA expands the federally required school accountability indicators to include academic achievement status (which embeds statewide assessment participation rate), achievement growth or another academic indicator (for elementary and middle schools), graduation rates (for high schools), progress toward English language proficiency, and an additional indicator of school quality or student success. This planning resource is designed to support state educational agency (SEA) leaders and staff as they modify state accountability systems to align with CCR goals in the context of ESSA requirements. It does so by: Building capacity regarding ESSA’s standards-based accountability requirements by summarizing relevant ESSA statutory requirements in a concise, understandable format; and Providing the tools for states to identify and respond to gaps between ESSA requirements and current state policies and implementation efforts. It is recommended that SEA staff who lead or are deeply engaged in each of the policy areas addressed by this tool use it collaboratively and also consider consulting with other stakeholders who bring critical information and diverse perspectives to the process of developing the consolidated state plan. Using the ESSA Accountability Planning Tool This tool is organized into two parts: Part A (Accountability Gap Analysis Template) provides a deliberate space for states to identify and plan next steps to respond to policy and implementation gaps in the following ESSA accountability-related policy areas: