Connecticut Evaluation Plan

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Description and Plan for the Evaluation

Introduction
Evaluation Tasks and Responsibilities
Evaluation Questions
Charter Schools in Connecticut
Timetable for Administering Surveys

Introduction

The legislative and regulatory actions that created the initiative, policies, and procedures to guide the development and operation of charter schools provide a clear intent that the initiative is to be monitored and evaluated in a quality manner. In addition, there is a promise to the people of Connecticut and a responsibility to the professional practice of education that this innovative initiative be submitted to the highest quality of evaluation and standards. Evaluation and oversight of charter schools are a shared responsibility of school personnel, the authorizers, and the Connecticut State Department of Education. While the emphases and general audiences for the evaluations are different, it is in this collective manner that the fullest knowledge and understanding of this significant reform effort (the charter school initiative) will be realized. To ensure objectivity and credibility, it is important that a third party evaluator, without vested interests or direct involvement in creating, operating, or providing services to charter schools, be engaged to conduct an overall evaluation of the initiative.

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Evaluation Tasks and Responsibilities

The major tasks for The Evaluation Center are to:

Provide technical assistance to each charter school to develop an evaluation design (process and impact), indicators that are reflective of the school's stated mission and goals, and a system for collecting and reporting evaluation data on an annual basis
Develop and conduct a comprehensive 5-year evaluation consisting of an aggregation of data on common indicators of charter schools statewide and the Connecticut charter school initiative, including student achievement and parent and student satisfaction

The Evaluation Center, as the major contractor for the evaluation, is charged with the following list of responsibilities:

Conducting the five-year evaluation using impact and process indicators common to all the Connecticut charter schools
Assisting each charter school to identify indicators unique to its specific goals and mission
Providing technical assistance to the charter schools in developing a system for annually collecting and reporting data pertinent to their local evaluation model
Serving as a resource for measurement, evaluation, and decision-making issues for the duration of the contract

Further, it is expected that the evaluator (The Evaluation Center at WMU) will use existing databases; develop, adapt, and administer surveys; and conduct site visits and focus groups to gather data regarding the effectiveness of the charter school initiative in Connecticut.

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Evaluation Questions

Since the charter school initiative is relatively new in Connecticut and schools are in various stages of development, the evaluation plan incorporates elements of both formative and summative evaluation. The purpose of formative evaluation is to provide information to improve the project (school) by assessing ongoing project (school) activities. It should be conducted continuously throughout the duration of the school's existence. The following specific questions are central to the evaluation within the context, mission, and goals of each Connecticut charter school and with regard to the intent of the authorizing legislation.

The overriding evaluation question is whether or not the charter schools have accomplish what they proposed to, based on their mission and goals? Other typical questions that would be asked within the context of formative evaluation are listed below:

To what extent are all students being served?
To what extent are the stated specific goals and objectives of the schools being met?
What unique and common shortcomings and barriers in meeting student needs can be identified?
What successes and shortcomings in the development of the school governance procedures and policies exist or have been developed?
What long-term (positive and negative) effects on students and parents are associated with attending or sending children to a charter school?

Additional considerations within the context of the evaluation ar to:

identify and describe innovative and creative practices that lead to greater effectiveness or efficiency in serving the needs of students and the operation of the schools
determine the form and magnitude of parental involvement in the schools
identify and determine (a) the impact of the charter school on the local public school(s) and (b) the perception of the worth and merit of the charter school within the context of the broader community
identify and describe professional opportunities, benefits, and/or problems that educators derive from working in charter schools
identify and describe the major problems and barriers common to the development of charter schools over the 5-year period
identify and describe innovative and creative practices that lead to greater effectiveness or efficiency in serving the needs of students and the operation of the schools
determine the form and magnitude of parental involvement in the schools
identify and determine (a) the impact of the charter school on the local public school(s) and (b) the perception of the worth and merit of the charter school within the context of the broader community
identify and describe professional opportunities, benefits, and/or problems that educators derive from working in charter schools
identify and describe the major problems and barriers common to the development of charter schools over the 5-year period
identify and describe innovative and creative practices that lead to greater effectiveness or efficiency in serving the needs of students and the operation of the schools
determine the form and magnitude of parental involvement in the schools
identify and determine (a) the impact of the charter school on the local public school(s) and (b) the perception of the worth and merit of the charter school within the context of the broader community
identify and describe professional opportunities, benefits, and/or problems that educators derive from working in charter schools
identify and describe the major problems and barriers common to the development of charter schools over the 5-year period

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Charter Schools in Connecticut

The Connecticut version of charter schools was defined by the legislature in P.A. 96-214, as amended by Sections 56 and 57 of P.A. 96-244. In these documents, the following definitions are provided:

1. ‘Charter school' means a public, nonsectarian school that is

A. Established under a charter granted pursuant to section 2 of this act

B. Organized as a nonprofit entity under state law

C. A public agency for purposes of chapter 3 of the general statutes

D. Operated independently of any local or regional board of education in accordance with the terms of its charter and the provisions of sections 1 to 6, inclusive, of this act

2. ‘Local charter school' means a public school or part of a public school that is converted into a charter school and is approved by the local or regional board of education of the school district in which it is located and by the State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (e) of this section.

3. ‘State charter school' means a new public school approved by the State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (f) of this section.

The procedures for applying for a charter to create a charter school in Connecticut are defined in a document entitled Connecticut: Charter School Application, 1996, developed and disseminated by the Connecticut State Department of Education under the auspices of the Connecticut State Board of Education. This document and its procedures are intended to guide the "chartering application process from July 1, 1997 to June 30, 1999." However,

no more than 12 charters for local charter schools and no more than 12 charters for state charter schools are granted
no state charter school can enroll more than 250 students or 25 per cent of the enrollment of the school district in which the state charter school is to be located, whichever is less, and the total student population of the state charter schools cannot exceed 1,000 students
no more than two local charter schools and no more than two state charter schools operate within any Congressional district at any one time
no more than two local charter schools operate within a school district at any one time

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Timetable for Administering Surveys

To ensure the collection of consistent information across all charter schools, we have developed the following schedule.

Instrument	Period for Administration
A. Charter School Teacher Survey	Administered to all teachers, March 15-31 of years 1 and 3 (1997-1998 and 1999-2000)
B. Charter School Parent/ Guardian Survey	Administered to the greater of 20 percent of the families or 25/school, March 1-15 of years 1–4 (1997–2001). The external evaluator will administer questionnaires using parent/guardian lists supplied by CS administrative heads
C. Charter School Student Survey	Administered to all grade levels 5 and above, April 1-15 of years 1 and 3 (1997-98 and 1999-2000). Elementary schools may confer with external evaluator for alternative means of obtaining elementary student responses
D. Charter School Basic Information Form	Ongoing activity with final copy due by no later than May 30 of each year
E. School Climate Survey/parents*	Administer to the greater of 20 percent of the families or 25/school in February of years 2 and 4 (1998-99 and 2000-01)
F. School Climate Survey/students*	Administer to all grade levels 5 and above in February of years 2 and 4 (1998-99 and 2000-2001)
G. School Climate Survey/teachers*	Administer to all teachers in February of years 2 and 4 (1998-99 and 2000-2001)

*The School Climate Survey is a commercially available instrument published by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Dissemination and data analysis functions for the School Climate Survey are accomplished at The Evaluation Center at Western Michigan University. The administration of this instrument will be coordinated by the Traveling Observer as a part of the external evaluation team's responsibilities.

Each school is encouraged to add questions or items to the survey. These would follow on a separate sheet of paper at the end of the surveys. The summarized results from each survey will be returned to each school for its own planning purposes.

Beyond the surveys described above, qualitative data will be collected through interviews and/or focus groups with various stakeholders and through school visits made by the external evaluators or by a Traveling Observer. ( A Traveling Observer is a field worker based in the state who will assist in the data collection.)

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Comments and/or questions regarding this page may be addressed to Gary Miron at gary.miron@wmich.edu

Last updated on March 27, 1998