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NCLB's high expectations of special -needs students also help illustrate <br />another concern we have identified with the federal law's accountability model: <br />the federal law contains no component for rewarding or recognizing individual <br />student growth. This is true for students at all ends of the learning spectrum, <br />from the students with special needs who we discussed above, to the highest <br />achievers in our schools. In fact, since so much time and resources must be <br />focused toward helping subgroups with the lowest performance levels meet their <br />AYP targets, school personnel may divert attention from high achievers who they <br />expect will easily score above the AYP requirement. An unintended <br />consequence may result, as our schools' top achievers are not challenged to <br />reach higher levels. <br />Prior to NCLB, the North Carolina accountability model recognized <br />schools for the growth students showed each year, not whether they jumped over <br />some hurdle. A high - performing student population was expected to continue to <br />learn and grow. We think that an accountability model that focuses more on <br />rewards and less on consequences is a better way to judge schools, since <br />growth in student achievement is recognized and encouraged. Again, we offer <br />an analogy. The business you operate has 5 percent of the market share. If you <br />increase that market share to 10 percent, that is significant growth. It is <br />important to recognize that improvement, even though your company may still <br />only have one-fourth of the market share of the leading company in that market. <br />Likewise, the barometer for school performance should focus on continuous <br />improvement, and not on the performance observed at some snapshot in time. <br />ISSUE: NCLB sets absolute expectations for children within specific subgroups, <br />when the growth of these children, particularly those with special needs and <br />those who are typically high achievers, would be a better measure of success. <br />RECOMMENDATION: North Carolina's plan for compliance with NCLB should <br />be allowed to include growth as a significant part of the determination of student <br />progress and school success. <br />The success we have achieved under North Carolina's growth -based <br />accountability model brings us to another concern about the No Child Left Behind <br />accountability model. Our greatest fear is that North Carolina parents will <br />perceive their school or school system as failing under the new federal law, as <br />opposed to succeeding under the nationally recognized North Carolina <br />accountability model. A review of a school or school system's performance under <br />North Carolina's ABCs plan is an apples -to- oranges comparison of performance <br />under No Child Left Behind. But that is a confusing message for parents to <br />understand. <br />In connection with our concern about the public's perception of a school or <br />school system's performance under NCLB, we are concerned about the impact <br />that perception will have on our ability to staff our schools adequately with highly <br />5 <br />