Chapter 4: A Research-Based Response to Federal Non-regulatory Guidance on Growth Models

In 2009, the United States Department of Education (USDOE) issued a document providing nonregulatory guidance for states in their efforts to design models of student achievement growth (USDOE, 2009). Although the document is explicitly “nonregulatory,” many state education officials have treated its contents as de facto compliance guidelines for the development of growth models that track district, school, and sometimes teacher performance. This perception is driven in part by the direct link between the document and federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation. For example, page 3 of the document states, “The following guidelines provide a suggested structure for a State’s proposal to include student academic growth in its definition of AYP” (Adequate Yearly Progress). Many state education officials view compliance with the federal guidelines as an important determinant of succeeding in obtaining a NCLB waiver.¹