[NLA] 1999-2000 OVAE Report

[Thomas Sticht]

In a recent post, Larry Condelli states that both Dave Speights and I
were wrong in indicating that the report to Congress on the performance
of the AELS under the WIA/AEFLA act of 1998 that we reviewed was based
on the National Reporting System (NRS). I'm not certain what the basis
for Larry's comments is, but the report I received from Dave Speights
and which I reviewed is publishced under the imprimatur of the Secretary
of Education and the Assistant Secretary for OVAE and refers to the NRS
many times throughout its entirety. For instance, page two of the report
states: 

Quote" In order to implement the accountability provisions of AEFLA, the
Department expanded its collaborative work with States on the
development of the National Reporting System (NRS) for adult education,
an initiative that first began four years prior to the enactment of the
law.  The NRS standardizes the measurement of the core indicators across
States and establishes procedures for collecting and reporting student
outcome data to enhance its validity and reliability.  

To measure adult students’ attainment of literacy skills, as AEFLA
requires, the NRS establishes a hierarchy of educational functioning
levels from beginning literacy through adult secondary education.  The
NRS describes the reading, writing, numeracy, functional and workplace
skills (and, for English literacy, speaking and listening skills)
comprised within each of these levels
.Using the NRS guidelines, local
programs use a State-identified standardized assessment procedure at
intake to determine the appropriate level in which each student should
be placed. 
End quote"

Page three of the report states, Quote"While the NRS promotes greater
standardization in how States measure and collect data on student
outcomes, it does not demand uniformity. 
End Quote"
 
Pages 5 and 6 present data on improvements in literacy and says
Quote"Performance Measure One:  Demonstrated Improvement in Literacy
Skills
On average, 41 States exceeded their performance targets for percentages
of learners demonstrating improved literacy skills across the measured
categories of educational performance contained in the NRS.  Eleven
States did not meet their educational performance targets on average."
End Quote. 

Throughout the entire report, the analyses of data seem to be based on
what the USED/OVAE is calling information from the National Reporting
System (NRS). Even the Appendix draws upon the findings discussed in the
report and is entitled," Appendix: Challenges in the Implementation of
AEFLA Requirements Using the NRS." Here the report discusses what
changes might be made to make the NRS a more effective reporting system.

>From all this it seems to me that the report Dave sent me that I
reviewed appears to be the first report to Congress using what USED/OVAE
refers to as the National Reporting System (NRS). Perhaps there is some
official differences between the NRS as USED/OVAE refers to it in the
subject report and the NRS that Larry says was in effect only after the
data for this report was submitted from the states. If this is the case,
then this is something that the USED/OVAE should have clarified in the
subject report so the field would know the differences between the NRS
referred to in the PY99-00 report and subsequent reports that will
presumabaly be based on some different NRS to which Larry is referring.  

Tom Sticht
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