PI Glossary of Terms

AB 430 Administrator Training Program (outside link) - continues an incentive professional development program available to principals and assistant principals in California. The program is mandatory for site administrators whose schools are awarded Reading First and AB 961 funds, and voluntary for all others. The training is designed to build the capacity of administrators facing the paradigm shift to a standards based, data-driven system. The state requires that participants complete 160 hours of training: 80 hours of institute training and 80 practicum hours (Module 1: Leadership & Support of Student Instructional Programs, Module 2: Leadership Management for Instructional Improvement, and Module 3: Instructional Technology to Improve Pupil Performance). This training is highly recommended for first and second year principals and vice-principals, as well as principals of Program Improvement schools.

SB 472 Math and Reading Professional Development (outside link) - established the Mathematics and Reading Professional Development Program, a reimbursement program that provides funding for professional development in K - 8 mathematics and reading/language arts. Teachers receive standards-based training on state adopted instructional materials for mathematics or reading at their grade, course, and/or school level. This state-approved professional development can be funded from various state and federal funding sources including High Priority Schools Grants, Title I, Title II, Title III, or Title V. The AB 466 Institute addresses how to use and successfully implement the adopted instruction materials, the content standards, and frameworks for reading/language arts and mathematics.

Achievement Gap (outside link) - The gap refers to the disparity in academic performance between groups of students, most often used to describe the troubling performance gaps between African-American and Latino students and their white and Asian peers. The achievement gap shows up in classroom grades, standardized-test scores, course selection, dropout rates, and college-completion rates. It has become a focal point of school improvement initiatives such as the San Diego County Superintendents Achievement Gap Task Force (AGTF).

AMO (Annual Measurable Objectives) - Annual percent proficient targets are the minimum percentages of students who are required to meet or exceed the proficient level on the annual statewide assessments used for AYP. These targets apply to numerically significant subgroups in schools and LEAs.

AMAO's (Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives) - An AMAO is a performance objective, or target, that LEAs receiving Title III subgrants must meet each year for its ELs. All LEAs receiving a Title III subgrant are required to meet the two English language proficiency AMAOs and a third academic achievement AMAO. Both English language proficiency AMAOs are calculated based on data from the California English Language Development Test (CELDT).

API (Academic Performance Index) (outside link) - The Academic Performance Index (API) is the cornerstone of California's Public Schools Accountability Act (PSAA) of 1999. The purpose of the API is to measure the academic performance and growth of schools. It is a numeric index (or scale) that ranges from a low of 200 to a high of 1000. A school's score on the API is an indicator of a school's performance level, based on the percentage of students scoring at a given performance level or band on statewide testing. APIs are also reported for LEAs as an element of California's accountability requirements under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001.

APR (Accountability Progress Report) (outside link) - Reports generated by the California Department of Education (CDE) for schools and local education agencies (LEAs) that provide information on current progress on the state Academic Performance Index (API) for each school years API reporting cycle and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). Accountability Progress Reports provide information on:

State API results reporting of year-to-year growth in achievement
Federal AYP results that compares school and LEA results against statewide targets
Federal Program Improvement (PI) information confirming that a school or LEA is identified for PI

APS (Academic Program Survey) - This survey is the first step a school and district take in assessing the school's status with respect to the nine Essential Program Components that support academic achievement in English/language arts and mathematics. The survey document gives a rating description for full implementation of each component. The Academic Program Survey is grade-span specific, being tailored to the elementary, middle, and high school grades.

AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) (outside link) - No Child Left Behind (NCLB) established a new definition of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for all schools, local educational agencies (LEAs), and the state beginning with the 2002-03 school year. All schools and LEAs are required to meet all AYP criteria in order to meet federal NCLB accountability requirements. Schools and LEAs that receive federal Title I funds have NCLB Program Improvement (PI) requirements for not meeting AYP criteria. Federal AYP accountability requirements target areas include: % proficient or above and participation rate in English/Language Arts and math, API indicator and Graduation rate (for high schools only)

BTSA (Beginning Teachers Support and Assessment) (outside link) - BTSA is a state-funded program, co-sponsored by the California Department of Education (CDE) and the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) designed to support the professional development of newly-credentialed, beginning teachers. Participation in BTSA fulfills the requirements for the California Clear Multiple and Single Subjects Credential. BTSA programs are locally designed and implemented in accordance with the Standards for Quality and Effectiveness for Professional Teacher Induction Programs and are accredited by the CCTC.

CA CC (California Comprehensive Center) (outside link) - There are 15 federally funded comprehensive centers providing SEA and LEA support. WestEd is the California Comprehensive Center.

CDE (California Department of Education) (outside link) - The California Department of Education (CDE) oversees the state's diverse and dynamic public school system that is responsible for the education of more than seven million children and young adults in more than 9,000 schools. The CDE and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction are responsible for enforcing education law and regulations; and for continuing to reform and improve public elementary school programs, secondary school programs, adult education, some preschool programs, and child care programs.

CPSELs (California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders) - The California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders, adapted from the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards, identify the knowledge, dispositions and performances ideally demonstrated in educational leadership.

CPM (Categorical Program Monitoring) (outside link) - State and federal law require the California Department of Education to monitor the implementation of categorical programs operated by local educational agencies. This state oversight is accomplished in part by conducting on-site reviews of 24 such programs administered by local educational agencies. The reviews are conducted every year for one quarter of all the local educational agencies (LEAs). This allows for each LEA to be reviewed once every four years by state staff and local administrators trained to review one or more of these programs. The purpose of the review is to verify compliance with requirements of each categorical program and to insure that program funds are spent to increase student performance.

COE (County Office of Education) - County offices of education support school districts by performing the tasks that can be done more efficiently and economically at the county level, such as:

providing or formulating new curriculum, staff development and training programs, and new instructional procedures
designing business and personnel systems
perform many other services to meet changing needs and requirements.

When economic or technical conditions make county or regional services most appropriate for students, county offices provide a wide range of services, such as special and vocational education, programs for youths at risk of failure, and instruction to youths in juvenile detention facilities.

DAIT (District Assistance and Intervention Team) - The District Assistance Intervention Team system is being developed by the CDE. DAIT teams will provide state corrective actions to PI districts.

DAS (District Assistance Survey) - The purpose of the District Assistance Survey (DAS) is to help a district analyze the nature and coherence of its operations in support of a coherent, school-level instructional program that improves student achievement. Because student achievement in English/language arts and mathematics is central to student success, this survey primarily analyzes district support for schools in the areas of student literacy and numeracy. The survey is designed to reveal how a district supports schools in seven categories that directly impact student achievement.

ELSSA (English Learner Subgroup Self Assessment) - English Learner Subgroup Self Assessment (ELSSA) is designed to serve as a technical assistance tool for local educational agencies (LEAs) in analyzing and addressing English Learner program services as part of the process of preparing their LEA Plan Addendum.

EPC (Essential Program Components) (outside link) - The Essential Program Components (EPC) support academic student achievement in English/language arts and mathematics as measured through the Academic Program Survey (APS). The EPCs are designed to meet the needs of all students, and include State Board of Education (SBE)-adopted and standards-aligned instructional materials including interventions, appropriate instructional time and pacing schedules, professional development for teachers and administrators, assignment of fully credentialed teachers, use of data obtained from a student achievement monitoring system, instructional support, teacher collaboration, and fiscal support.

ESLRs (Expected School-wide Learning Results) - are a listing of specific priorities and commitments to excellence that are agreed upon school wide and used a guide posts to focus the decision making regarding action plans aimed and student learning outcomes. ESLRs are generally used a the high school level.

HPSGP (High Priority School Grant Program) (outside link) - The High Priority Schools Grant Program (HPSGP) is intended to assist the lowest performing schools in the state in raising student achievement by offering additional resources targeted at student performance. Participation in Cohort 2 of the HPSGP is prioritized in ascending order to schools in decile ranks one through five based on the 2005 Base Academic Performance Index (API).

IIUSP (Immediate Intervention for Underperforming Schools) (outside link) - A voluntary state funded program assisting selected deciles 1-5 schools.

ISLLC (Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium) - Identifies the knowledge, dispositions and performances ideally demonstrated in educational leadership. These national standards are in areas of knowledge, skill, and expertise. They are the foundation for the CPSELs.

LRE (Least Restrictive Environment School Self Assessment) - This self-assessment tool helps identify areas of compliance with federal and state requirements for least restrictive environments for special education students. This LRE tool was developed and managed by WestEd, for use by districts and sites to improve services for all students.

NCLB (No Child Left Behind) - This 2001 federal legislation is the current reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act enacted in 1965. This Federal legislation is intended to help ensure that all children have the opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach proficiency on challenging state academic standards and assessments. It provides flexible funding that may be used to provide additional instructional staff, professional development, extended-time programs, and other strategies for raising student achievement in high-poverty schools. The program focuses on promoting school-wide reform in high-poverty schools and ensuring students' access to scientifically based instructional strategies and challenging academic content.

PI (Program Improvement) (outside link) - Program Improvement is a formal designation for Title I-funded schools and LEAs that do not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two consecutive years. A school will exit PI status when it makes AYP in all areas for two consecutive years. An LEA is identified as PI upon two consecutive years, the LEA does not make AYP, and it does not meet the AYP criteria in each grade span served by the LEA.

Reading First (AB 65) (outside link) - Reading First is a federal initiative to help every young child in every state become a successful reader, thus redefining the federal role in K-12 education by establishing the goal of closing the gap between disadvantaged children and their peers. The initiative stresses four areas: Stronger accountability, increased flexibility and local control, expanded options for parents, and emphasis on proven teaching methods. The initiative creates a new authority to help state and local agencies use scientifically based research to implement comprehensive reading instruction from kindergarten to third grade. Competitive grants are available for eligible school districts to improve classroom instruction in reading.

RSDSS (Regional System of District and School Support) (outside link) - RSDSS, is a state wide network organized around the 11 county superintendent regions. Each region has an RSDSS Director who operates out of one of the county offices of education in each region. RSDSS priorities are serving PI districts, districts having a high percentage of PI schools, PI year 4 schools and PI year 3 schools.

SAIT (School Assistance and Intervention Team) (outside link) - Schools participating in the II/USP Program must make positive growth on the Academic Performance Index (API) in either of the two funded implementation years and each year thereafter until the school exits the program, or the school is deemed state-monitored. Districts having II /USP schools that have not exited must contract with an approved provider. The SAIT provider, serving as a state corrective action agent is to investigate and provide intensive support and monitoring to assist state-monitored schools in improving student learning.

SSC (School Site Council) - California law requires schools receiving state categorical funding to have a School Site Council to develop and implement a Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA). The SSC is comprised of parents/community/students/teachers and other staff, as well as, the site principal.

SPSA (Single Plan for Student Achievement) - The purpose of the SPSA is to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the school, so that greater numbers of students achieve proficiency in the core academic subjects of reading and mathematics. The SPSA provides a framework for analyzing student achievement data, developing goals and defining actions to address instructional issues. http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ti/programimprov.asp (outside link) A PI school must revise its SPSA within 90 days.

SLT (School Leadership Team) - Staff members at school site who support the instructional activities and actions for centralized support and leadership for action planning. The team has a diverse set of skills, abilities, challenges, and responsibilities that are represented by specific departments or grade levels and critical functions. Collectively this is the team that creates the synergy to keep the school moving forward and actions to support student achievement.

S4 (Statewide System of School Support) (outside link) - Section 1117 of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 requires each state to establish a statewide system of intensive and sustained support and improvement for local education agencies and schools receiving Title I funds to increase the opportunity for all students to meet the state's academic content and achievement standards. This federal requirement was codified in state law through Assembly Bill 312, which established a Statewide System of School Support (S4) designed to support the requirements of NCLB. Three entities work together to complete the work of S4: RSDSS, CAC, CDE. S4's mission is to build a school district's capacity to support its low-performing schools. This is realized through the dissemination of information, technical assistance, and brokering of regional and statewide resources.

Title III (Language instruction for limited-English proficient and immigrant students) (outside link) - Title III of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 provides federal financial support to state and local educational agencies for Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students and immigrant students.

WASC (Western Association Schools and Colleges) (outside link) - One of six regional associations that accredit public and private schools, colleges, and universities in the United States. WASC's consistent purpose is to professionally support schools in creating a clear vision of what they desire their students to know and be able to do and then to ensure that efficient and relevant systems are in place that predictably result in the fulfillment of those expectations for every child. All California public high schools and some middle schools go through a periodic WASSC accreditation process.

Williams Settlement Legislation (outside link) - The Williams Legislation impacts all districts and schools in California by ensuring all students have access to instructional materials, safe schools and highly qualified teachers. County offices are required to annually visit and monitor API deciles 1-3 schools. The San Diego County Office of Education has developed an implementation guidebook and materials to provide districts with resources for understanding and responding to the requirements for Williams Implementation.