In April and May 2007, the Massachusetts Office of Educational Quality and Accountability (EQA) conducted an independent examination of the Franklin Public Schools for the period of 2004–2006. The EQA analyzed Franklin students’ performance on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests and identified how students in general and in subgroups were performing. The EQA examined critical factors that affected student performance in six major areas: leadership, governance, and communication; curriculum and instruction; assessment and evaluation; human resource management and professional development; access, participation, and student academic support; and financial and asset management.
On Tuesday, January 22, 2008, the audit report will be presented to the School Committee. The report validates many of the good things going on in Franklin’s schools, and identifies some areas in which the district needs to improve. If we want to stay on the path of districts that are moving from good to great, we will have to address those concerns. The Franklin Public Schools was considered to be a “Very High” performing district, marked by student achievement that was “Very High” in ELA and “High” in math during the review period as measured by the MCAS tests. The EQA gave the district a Management Quality Index rating of “Strong.”
The state report finds that, on average, three-fourths of all students in Franklin attained proficiency on the 2006 MCAS tests, much more than that statewide. More than four-fifths of Franklin students attained proficiency in English language arts (ELA), more than two-thirds of Franklin students attained proficiency in math, and nearly two-thirds of Franklin students attained proficiency in science and technology/engineering (STE). Ninety-seven percent of the Class of 2006 attained a Competency Determination.
The report also pointed to shortfalls in school funding, which was “insufficient” to fully fund costs associated with increased enrollment, additional special-education teachers, contractual salary increases, and utilities. But the report praised Franklin for passing a $2.7 million property tax increase last spring, which “solidified the community’s commitment to the school district and the educational needs of the children in Franklin.”
This audit is just one of a series of accountability measures that school districts undergo. The agency looks to see how Franklin uses the funding money we receive from the state and provides outside scrutiny of our public school system. The questions that the audit sought to answer include:
- How does student achievement data drive the school improvement process in the district?
- Are the educational decisions data-driven and student-centered?
- Is the instructional focus on what is learned rather than on what is taught?
The EQA was created by the Massachusetts Legislature in July of 2000, to provide independent and objective programmatic and financial audits of the 350-plus school districts which serve the cities and towns of Massachusetts. The agency is the accountability component of the Education Reform Act of 1993, and was envisioned in that legislation. The complete standards can be read by clicking here.
The full 28 page EQA report on Franklin can be read by clicking here.
Interestingly, this year, the state Legislature decided to phase out the EQA office. Legislators and policymakers are currently exploring options for establishing a new accountability function for the Commonwealth’s school districts.
Accountability, one of the key components of standards-based education reform, is intended to spur academic achievement for all students by applying pressure and consequences to public schools and school districts. Aligned with the accountability provisions envisioned in the Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA) of 1993, the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability (EQA) was created by the Legislature in 2000 to provide an “independent mechanism to verify the efforts of school districts and charter schools in order to promote higher levels of academic achievement by students.” However, EQA has faced steady criticism about the ways in which it has operated, and policymakers are determining a new way to perform the district accountability function.
The Rennie Center is presenting an event on January 16, 2008 where it will release and discuss findings from its policy brief entitled Post-EQA Accountability: A Menu of Policy Options. This brief is intended to contribute to the discussion about a new accountability function and includes case examples of accountability models from four other states and three countries. The brief concludes with an array of policy options for consideration by Massachusetts policymakers. Information on this event can be found by clicking here.
