In 1998 and 1999 we did not see any significant increase in statewide scores, but we did see dramatic progress in a growing number of schools that committed themselves to doing things differently. If any of those schools is in your district you'll find enclosed a copy of the letter of commendation sent to the principal by Governor Bill Owens and our State Board Chairman Clair Orr. While it's hard to generalize about what makes such schools successful, we do see a pattern of concentration on the basics with particular focus and intensity brought to reading, and especially writing. In 1998 by overwhelming bipartisan majority, the legislature passed and Governor Romer signed the law on Accreditation. Their deep conviction was that Standards and Assessments wouldn't mean much unless they were tied to strong Accountability measures.
Accreditation has two major components.
One has gotten a lot of attention and one very little. Twenty-nine percent of our elementary schools have already exceeded that goal in just two years. The lesser known, but more important component, is the Accreditation Contract. The key piece here is that we offer you all the technical assistance at our command and that together we work to develop challenging, achievable, and measurable goals for your district. Very honestly, state rules have a history of being too long, too detailed, and too bureaucratic.