Michigan Merit Curriculum: Graduation Requirements & the Personal Curriculum Option

1. Michigan Merit Curriculum: Graduation Requirements & the Personal Curriculum Option An Update on Novi’s Journey Presentation for MAASE April 13, 2011

2. Paradigm Shift: Courses vs. Credits • Students TAKE courses • Students EARN credits • Credit is not just about seat time or work completed • Credit involves demonstrating proficiency in the standards for each course • A credit may----but does not necessarily--- equal a course

3. Courses vs. Credits Students earn credit by: • Successfully completing the learning expectations for the credit area • Successful completion must be determined, in part, by assessments of proficiency

4. Diplomas for All? • MMC guidance document from Michigan Dept. of Education in November 2006 says: • The federal Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) is very clear that all students have the right to access, participate and perform in the general education curriculum. • While IDEA guarantees a free, appropriate, public education, it does not provide a guarantee that a student with disabilities is entitled to a diploma.

5. Granting a Diploma is a Local Board Decision • MMC assures minimal standards are addressed • Local Districts may exceed state requirements • Local Districts determine what constitutes “credit” in a set of standards or course

6. Local Decisions-cont. • Local Districts approve assessments of proficiency • Local Districts determine “cut scores” on assessments of proficiency • Local Districts may establish “alternate cut scores” for students with disabilities

7. Local Decisions-cont. • Local Districts establish policies/procedures relative to Personal Curriculum requests • Local Districts decide how far a Personal Curriculum may modify the content expectations and still allow the student to earn a diploma

8. Local Boards May NOT • Set up procedures that essentially create an alternate diploma

9. 4 Reasons for a Personal Curriculum Modification • Any student wishes to go beyond the requirements by taking more math, science, ELA or world language credits • Any student wishes to modify the math requirement • A student moves into the state late in his/her high school career • A student with an IEP needs to modify credit requirements based on disability

10. Personal Curriculum Modification Process for All Students • Requires written agreement between superintendent, parent, and student • Must include measurable goals and methods of evaluation on whether goals are met • Requires quarterly meetings with parent and each teacher of a modified curriculum area to monitor progress • If a student fails to achieve goals, the PC is null and void • Revisions to the PC follow the same process

11. Personal Curriculum Modification Process for All Students • Must align with the student’s EDP • Must meet as much of MMC as is practicable • Must be developed by a team

12. PC Modification Process for Students with Disabilities • May request modifications not otherwise allowable • Must be based on the student’s disability • May not create a different path to graduation • Must still include as much of the MMC as is practicable • Must be consistent with the EDP and IEP

13. PC Modification Process for Students with Disabilities • After the PC Modification has been approved by the PC Committee, the IEP Team identifies: • Courses • Supports • Accommodations

14. NCSD Staff has been working on: • Alignment of high school courses with general ed content expectations • Alignment of special ed courses with ESSENTIAL content expectations • Common assessments of proficiency

15. PC Steering Committee has worked on: • Criteria for granting credit • Cut scores to determine proficiency for all students • Alternate cut scores for students with disabilities • Process for granting out of state transfer credits • Guidelines and procedures for responding to Personal Curriculum requests • Revisions to Sept 2009 Administrative Guidelines based on ongoing changes to initial legislation

16. Where are we now? • NCSD Administrative Guidelines-effective 9/09 • Guidelines revised relative to legislative changes in spring of 2010 • Staff/administrative changes fall 2010 • Board workshop December 2010 • Board Policy approved February 2011 • Guidelines revised February 2011 • Forms/procedures revised February 2011

17. Digging DEEPER into the PC requirements… What would YOU decide?

18. Questions that the PC Steering Committee faced: • What should “credit” be based on? • What constitutes “proficiency” • For the general population? • For students with disabilities? • Under what circumstances should alternate cut scores be used? • At what proficiency level is it no longer acceptable to grant diploma credit?

19. And more specific questions: • Should any student ever be allowed to waive the PE or Health requirements? • How do we handle granting credit for MMC courses taken in Middle School? • For PC requests for advanced studies, should students first be required to exhaust other options like testing out or use of electives? • How can we assure that credits accepted from other states or private schools meet MMC standards?

20. Carousel Activity with Board • Simulate the decision-making that went into the development of the draft guidelines • Split into small groups • Dialogue about a series of questions • Provide initial reactions to each question

21. Sense of the Board • Maintain rigor and integrity of the diploma • Retain the individual considerations allowed by law • Find a middle ground that is acceptable to the community

22. Interesting Features of Novi’s Board Policy • Establishes that grades are based on proficiency in a set of standards • Establishes cut score for all students • Establishes alternate cut score for students with IEPs • Mandates guidelines that assure PC does not undermine integrity of diploma or create a less rigorous diploma path

23. Interesting Features of Novi’s Administrative Guidelines • Credit requirements appear here • Identify nontraditional options for earning credit (test out, dual enrollment, summer, online, etc.) • Define student with a disability

24. Interesting Features of Novi’s Administrative Guidelines • Identify standard accommodations • Assure that accommodations not tied to a specific course or location • Include parameters for PCs (some from state, some locally determined) • Address PE modification for students with an IEP

25. Interesting Features of Novi’s Administrative Guidelines • Specific requirements for students with IEPs • PC must have a direct and substantial relationship to identified disability • PC must be driven by academic skill deficit manifested before 9th grade and resistant to research-based interventions over time • PC may not be based solely on performance deficit resulting from inadequate work habits

26. Interesting Features of Novi’s Administrative Guidelines • Specific requirements for students with IEPs (continued) • PC must include provision for remedial instruction for any modified content areas • PC must require same total number of credits as for all students • If proficiency is set at less than 60%, student receives credit but no letter grade

27. Interesting Features of Novi’s Administrative Guidelines • Specific requirements for students with IEPs (continued) • If PC allows proficiency of less than 60% in more than 2 MMC-required academics, student must demonstrate employability skills by: • Passing Work Keys at level 3 or higher, OR • 540 hours of paid employment in a field related to the EDP, 270 of which must be continuous with same employer

28. Interesting Features of Novi’s Forms • 4 types of PCs = 4 different sets of forms • Request form completed by parent and approved by assistant principal • Plan completed by counselor and team, then approved by assistant principal • Plan includes notice of all requirements • Signatures of participants indicate agreement

29. Where to get more info: • dtinberg@novi.k12.mi.us • www.maase.org