Models for Identifying Chapter 1 Schools for Improvement

Current Chapter 1 regulations for identifying schools in need of improvement are appropriate and useful; however, alternatives do exist for improving those regulations. Chapter 1 might move more toward a national test or national Chapter 1 norms, or, alternatively, toward more local control, with juries setting standards and assessing them. This article critiques current uses of normal curve equivalent scores (NCEs) with standardized tests and describes a range of alternative methodologies for identifying schools in need of improvement.