NCLB Student Subgroup Accountability 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under NCLB, what minimum number of students in a subgroup was typically required before a school was held accountable for that subgroup's performance?
- 10 students
- 25 students
- A state-determined minimum sample size (Correct answer)
- 50 students
Correct answer: A state-determined minimum sample size
NCLB allowed each state to set its own minimum subgroup size (n-size) to ensure statistical reliability before holding schools accountable.
Question 2: Which of the following student groups was NOT explicitly identified as a subgroup requiring separate accountability under NCLB?
- Students with disabilities
- English language learners
- Students in gifted programs (Correct answer)
- Economically disadvantaged students
Correct answer: Students in gifted programs
NCLB did not require separate AYP reporting for gifted students; the law focused on historically underserved and at-risk populations.
Question 3: A school fails to make AYP for its Hispanic subgroup two years in a row. What is the first required consequence under NCLB?
- Mandatory restructuring
- Corrective action
- Public school choice for students (Correct answer)
- State takeover
Correct answer: Public school choice for students
After two consecutive years of failing AYP, the school must offer public school choice to students as the first required intervention.
Question 4: Under NCLB's subgroup accountability provisions, what term describes the requirement that every identified student group must meet proficiency targets?
- Universal Design for Learning
- Adequate Yearly Progress disaggregation (Correct answer)
- Subgroup safe harbor
- Confidence interval adjustment
Correct answer: Adequate Yearly Progress disaggregation
AYP disaggregation required that schools report and meet proficiency targets separately for each identified subgroup, not just the overall student population.
Question 5: What is the 'safe harbor' provision under NCLB's AYP requirements for subgroups?
- A waiver that exempts small subgroups from accountability
- An alternative way to meet AYP if a subgroup reduces its non-proficient percentage by 10% (Correct answer)
- A provision allowing states to delay AYP for new subgroups
- A federal override that protects schools from sanctions
Correct answer: An alternative way to meet AYP if a subgroup reduces its non-proficient percentage by 10%
Safe harbor allowed a subgroup to meet AYP if it reduced the percentage of non-proficient students by at least 10% from the prior year.
Question 6: How did NCLB define 'economically disadvantaged' students for subgroup accountability purposes?
- Students whose family income is below the federal poverty line
- Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch under the National School Lunch Program (Correct answer)
- Students receiving TANF benefits
- Students from households earning less than $30,000 annually
Correct answer: Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch under the National School Lunch Program
NCLB used eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch as the operational definition for economically disadvantaged students in accountability reporting.
Question 7: If a school's overall student population meets AYP but its English language learner subgroup does not, what happens under NCLB?
- The school still meets AYP overall
- The school fails AYP because every subgroup must meet targets (Correct answer)
- The school receives a partial AYP designation
- The school is given a one-year grace period for that subgroup
Correct answer: The school fails AYP because every subgroup must meet targets
Under NCLB, a school fails AYP if any one identified subgroup misses its proficiency target, regardless of overall school performance.
NCLB Student Subgroup Accountability 2
Under NCLB, what minimum number of students in a subgroup was typically required before a school was held accountable for that subgroup's performance?