FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
Dr. Eric J. Smith
Commissioner of Education
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
DR. AKSHAY DESAI
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
KATHLEEN SHANAHAN
LINDA K. TAYLOR
January 31, 2008
TO:
District Accountability Coordinators and MIS Directors
FROM:
Lavan Dukes, Chief, Education Information and Accountability Services
Juan Copa, Director, Evaluation and Reporting
SUBJECT:
Data Processing for 2007-08 School Grades and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
In order to provide an efficient and coordinated approach to data collection as related to school grades
and AYP, the Department’s Information Services and Evaluation and Reporting Offices are collaborating
and have committed to collecting the highest quality data. The reason for this close collaboration is to
ensure that the data used for the school grades and AYP calculations are aligned with data used for other
reporting purposes.
A matching and verification process has been implemented since 2005 and has led to higher quality data
and more timely data corrections. During this process, the Department provides districts with several
opportunities to verify and correct all accountability related data. To ensure the timely calculations of
school grades and AYP, districts must correct their data within the timeframes outlined below. The
Department will not accept corrections outside these timeframes, and uncorrected data are not grounds
for appeals. Accordingly, please note the following:
The Bureau of Education Information and Accountability Services (EIAS), as part of the regular Survey 3
Student Data Base processing cycle, is conducting the matching between Survey 2 and Survey 3 data to
identify full year students. For the purposes of determining school grades and adequate yearly progress,
students are included in the calculations only if they are “full year students,” defined as being enrolled in
the school for both October, 2007 FTE week (Survey 2) and February, 2008 FTE week (Survey 3).
The Department has established the following guidelines for the 2007-08 school year:
1. Survey 3 data will be matched to Survey 2 data during the Survey 3 state processing window
(February 11 to March 7, 2008) to identify full year students.
2. All relevant demographic and program fields, including race, exceptional student education (ESE)
status, English language learner (ELL) status, free and reduced lunch status, and grade level must be
finalized on Student Data Base records by March 7, 2008, to reflect the students’ demographic
characteristics as of February 8, 2008, the last day of survey week.
3. The following Student Data Base demographic information will be used in school grade and AYP
analyses for students enrolled in the district during survey week (February 4-8, 2008): student
identifier, racial/ethnic category, gender, date of birth and name. For these students, web-based
updates to these fields will not be accepted.
GARNET L. DUKES, JR.
Accountability, Research, and Measurement
325 W. GAINES STREET • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0505 • www.fldoe.org
February 8, 2008
Data Processing for 2007-08 School Grades and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
Page Two
4. There will be an opportunity, via a web-based tool, to submit relevant changes that occur after the
February 2008 FTE week and before the first day of FCAT reading and math testing in the district.
Fields that may change are: ESE Status; ELL Status; ELL Entry Date; Free and Reduced Price Lunch
Status; and School of Enrollment (nonpublic only).
Specific instructions and technical documentation regarding the Survey 3 to Survey 2 matching process
are attached. Questions regarding these instructions and documentation may be referred to Dr. Tsung-
Yuan Lin, Program Specialist, Education Information and Accountability Services at 850-245-0400 or SC
205-0400 or tsung-yuan.lin@fldoe.org.
Specific instructions regarding the web-based tool will be sent to districts via a separate memorandum in
the future.
Please pay special attention to the item Dropout Prevention/Juvenile Justice Program, reported in
Survey 3 on the Federal/State Indicator Status record. The data in this field will be used to assist
in determining which students are excluded from school grade calculations.
It is important that District Accountability Coordinators and District MIS Directors and staff communicate to
assure accuracy of data that will be used for school grades and AYP. Data submitted for Survey 3 and
locked down on March 7, 2008, will be used for school grades and AYP. This data cannot be changed
and does not constitute grounds for appeal. Updates to select data fields will be permitted via the web-
based tool if the student’s status actually changes after the February, 2008 FTE week and before the first
day of testing in your district. Changes outside this window will not be permitted and are not grounds for
appeal.
If you have any questions regarding the process of correcting data for school grades and AYP, please
contact the Evaluation and Reporting Office at 850-245-0411 or SC 205-0411 or Evalnrpt@fldoe.org.
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