Your annual accountability reports are your opportunity to reply, both to your media and to your community. Here are some ways you can quickly use School Accountability Report Cards (SARCs) to explain your schools' test results, and place them in the context of your teachers, students and resources.

THINK BEYOND THE SARC'S DATA DEFINITIONS

Focusing strictly on the California Department of Education's (CDE) data definitions for SARCs can prevent you from seeing other pockets of success. For example, just because the CDE's data definitions require you to report the top two proficiency bands of the California Standards Tests, that doesn't prevent you from reporting the other three. If you look at students' results in all five proficiency bands, you're on the right track. If you then look at those results over the last three years for each CST, examine the percent of kids who fall into each band schoolwide, you will see a more meaningful estimate of progress (or the lack of it). Moving kids out of the bottom bands can be your schools mark of progress, especially if students come to school years behind grade level. See an example of how you might present this information visually. (Look on page 5.)

COMMUNICATE CONTEXT WITH ADDITIONAL DATA

Publishing important facts about your schools (facts about teachers, students, and resources) and comparing this data to county and state averages will add meaning to your test results. This data is available now, and you can find it in two places. The Ed-Data Partnership offers fabulous summaries of 2003-04 data, at both the school and district level. And of course, you can turn to the CDEs Dataquest query tool on the CDEs website.

KEEP IT SHORT

A one- or two-page report published immediately after an important test release is a powerful, effective rejoinder to a news story about your test results. A short report is also more cost-effective to print and distribute throughout your community. Here are some examples of short reports other California districts have used:

See more information on how School Wise Press helps districts prepare these and other reports.

RESPOND RAPIDLY

Your timely response to your newspaper's coverage of the CST and CAT/6 test results is crucial. Post your summary SARC to your website as soon as possible, and make it available from your home page. Distribute printed copies at Open House events, send them home with students, and send copies to the media. When the Academic Performance Index and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) results are released on Aug. 31, you'll have another opportunity to put test results into context, and the sooner you can respond to your newspapers coverage, the better.

BUDGET FOR ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS

This is the time to bring your leadership team into the era of proactive communication. Accountability reporting needs to be in your communications budget this year, because next year brings higher Annual Measurable Objectives. The new AMO plateau is nearly twice as high as the current one, and will no doubt put more schools in that uncomfortable zone of not making AYP. If you learn how to use your SARCs to explain your schools' test results this year, youll be far better prepared for the challenges that next year will bring.