JUST THE FACTS New Jersey - US Chamber of Commerce Foundation
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
JUST THE FACTS
New Jersey
The Institute for a Competitive Workforce (ICW) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. ICW promotes the rigorous educational standards and effective job training systems needed to preserve the strength of America’s greatest economic resource, its workforce. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations. The National Chamber Foundation, a nonprofit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is dedicated to identifying and fostering public debate on emerging critical issues. We provide business and government leaders with insight and resources to address tomorrow’s challenges. © Institute for a Competitive Workforce, March 2013 “U.S. CHAMBER” and “U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE” are registered trademarks of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America. © National Chamber Foundation, March 2013
New Jersey 1 Are ALL children receiving a high-quality education in New Jersey? Not yet. Many students are doing well in New Jersey. The state ranks second in the nation in fourth and eighth grade reading and has a relatively high four-year high school graduation rate of 86.5%. However, many students are still being left behind, as evidenced by large achievement gaps. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), New Jersey has some of the nation’s largest achievement gaps between low-income children and those from more affluent families.1 Too many children attend schools where most students aren’t proficient in reading and math and 25% of low-income students aren’t graduating from high school on time. Additionally, in some community colleges, 90% of entering students require remediation.2 Unfortunately, parents have few options when looking for a better education for their children. The 18-year-old state charter school law requires updating. New Jersey parents have limited inter-district public school choice options available and there are no scholarships for low-income students to attend private schools. Parents also lack basic information that enables them to compare their children’s schools to others. In order to improve student achievement, the state is working to implement a new accountability system that will better identify low-performing schools and provide transparent school data to parents and the community. New Jersey is also on track to implement college- and career-ready standards and assessments. In 2012, major reforms were enacted to restructure teacher tenure and permit removal of ineffective teachers, regardless of tenure status. Governor Chris Christie has developed and proposed a program that would create opportunity scholarships for students in failing schools, and efforts are underway in the legislature to strengthen the state’s charter school law. While these are promising steps, there is still a tremendous amount to do to close achievement gaps. New Jersey needs to continue to move forward with implementing its reform efforts so that all children have access to a quality education.
New Jersey 2
New Jersey Schools at a Glance3
Total enrollment 1,361,813
Number of schools 2,500
Number of school districts 590
Number of charter schools 86
Students who receive free or reduced lunch 32.8%
White 51.5%
Black 16.7%
Hispanic 22.1%
Asian 8.7%
Native American/Pacific Islander 0.2%
English Language Learners 3.8%
Four-Year Graduation Rate 86.5%
Has the state received a No Child Left Behind waiver? YES
Is the state a Race to the Top Grant recipient? YES (third cohort)
How are New Jersey Not enough students graduate from
schools failing the business high school prepared for college or the
workforce.
community?
New Jersey needs more educated • Eighty-six percent of all students statewide and
workers to fill high-skill jobs. 75% of low-income students graduate from high
school in four years.9
• Sixty-six percent of jobs in New Jersey will • Fourteen of the state’s high schools are
require a career certificate or degree by 2020, considered “dropout factories” because
but only 46% of adults in the state currently graduation rates were 60% or below from
have these qualifications.4 2008–2010.10
• By 2018, the number of STEM jobs in New Jersey • Only 18% of the class of 2012 achieved a score
will increase by 11%.5 on the ACT that indicated they are ready for
• Of students who enroll in four-year public college-level courses, compared to a national
postsecondary institutions, only 66% graduate in average of 25%.11
six years.6 • If New Jersey’s high schools prepared students
• On average, a high school graduate in New Jersey for college, the state could save as much as
earns $11,650 more each year than a high school $121 million in college remediation costs and
dropout. In 2011, approximately 83,500 students lost earnings.12
did not graduate from high school, equaling lost
lifetime earnings of $2.6 billion.7
• If half of New Jersey’s dropouts had managed
to graduate, the additional spending and
investments by these graduates would be
enough to support as many as 900 new jobs and
increase the gross state product by as much as
$180 million by the time they would reach their
career midpoints.8New Jersey 3
New Jersey High School Graduation Rates, New Jersey 2011 NAEP and 2012 ASK
Class of 2012 Scores
Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate Percentage of Students Who are Not Proficient
100 95% 100
93%
90 86% 90
80 75% 77% 73% 75% 74% 80
All Students
70 Asian 70
Black NAEP Reading
60 Latino 60 56% 55% ASK Reading
53% NAEP Math
50 Limited English
50
49%
Proficiency (LEP) ASK Math
Students 42%
40 40
Low-income
Native American
30
White 30 28%
23%
20 20 18%
10 10
0
Class of 2012 0
Grade 4 Grade 8
Source: New Jersey Department of Education, http://www.state.nj.us/education/
news/2012/1205grad.htm Source: NAEP, http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/; New Jersey Department
of Education, http://www.state.nj.us/education/schools/achievement/2013/njask4/
demographic_reports.pdf.
Not enough students attend high-
quality schools and meet standards for
proficiency in reading and math. What is New Jersey doing to
improve schools and prepare
• As New Jersey prepares to complete the
implementation of college- and career-ready
students to meet college- and
standards and aligned assessments, its NAEP career-ready standards?
scores show that most students are not proficient
in reading and math, despite high passing scores Implementing state standards and
on state tests. assessments aligned to college- and
• New Jersey faces significant socioeconomic career-ready standards.
achievement gaps. On the NAEP assessment,
77% of low-income, fourth-grade students are not New Jersey adopted the Common Core State
proficient in reading compared to 45% for their Standards (CCSS) in English language arts and math in
more affluent peers. Seventy-six percent of low- June 2010.15 The state is on track to implement these
income, eighth-grade students are not proficient standards by the 2013–14 school year and aligned
in math, compared to 41% for non-disadvantaged assessments by the 2014–15 school year.16
students. Sixty-one percent of economically
disadvantaged fourth graders are below proficient 3 Common Core State Standards in reading
in reading on the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and math. The state developed a model
and Knowledge (ASK) compared to 30% of non- curriculum for the 2012–13 school year, and will
disadvantaged students.13 make improvements and modifications for the
• Tens of thousands of students attend school where 2013–14 school year based on feedback collected
only a small fraction of students are proficient in during this school year.17
reading and math on the state assessment.14New Jersey 4
3 Assessments aligned to CCSS. New Jersey in schools identified as priority or focus schools.
is a governing state in the Partnership for the Approximately 5% will be identified as priority
Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers schools, the lowest category based on absolute
(PARCC) and plans to transition to the PARCC achievement or graduation rates. Priority schools
assessment by the 2014–2015 school year. will receive intense, mandatory interventions and
supports. Focus schools, approximately 10% of
schools, will be identified as a school where one
What to Watch: or more subgroup has very low achievement or
lags significantly behind other groups of students.
? Staying the course. Will New Jersey and each Those schools will receive targeted interventions
individual district maintain its commitment to the and supports, based on the subgroups that need
timeline for implementing CCSS standards and support. Districts are not required to offer public
the PARCC assessments? school choice to students attending the lowest-
? Will increased standards and assessments achieving schools, but a RAC may identify tutoring
lead to improved college and career educational services before or after school in order
readiness? As a result of increased to provide extended learning time opportunities.
expectations, will more students graduate ready 3 High school accountability. New Jersey will
to attain postsecondary credentials to meet the report on college and career readiness at the high
demands of the labor market? school level. Indicators in this measure include
SAT participation rates and scores, Advanced
Placement participation rates and scores, and the
Holding all schools accountable for percentage of career and technical students who
meeting state standards. pass an industry exam.19
3 Transparent school and district grading
Under its approved NCLB waiver, New Jersey has reports. Currently, NJDOE provides limited
designed a new accountability system focused information on its website about school and district
on college and career readiness and reducing the performance. As part of their new accountability
achievement gap. In this system, Regional Achievement system, however, the NJDOE is designing a new
Centers (RACs) will lead the effort to turn around the school and district level performance report that will
state’s lowest-performing schools. Master educators provide clear information to the public on student
will lead these offices and are accountable for student performance and college and career readiness.
achievement gains in their respective regions. In The “School Score Card” will serve as a summary
addition to sanctions for low-performing schools, the report of the many metrics in the performance
state has created a category of Reward Schools that will report. There will be four performance areas
receive up to $100,000 in extra funds.18 reported for high schools: academic achievement,
college and career readiness, graduation rates
3 High-achievement goals. New Jersey has set and postsecondary outcomes, and progress
annual measurable objectives (AMOs) based on toward closing achievement gaps. Each area will
reducing, by half, the percentage of students who summarize the percentage of the performance
are not proficient by 2017. targets met, how a school’s performance compares
3 Accountability for all students. New Jersey to schools that are educating a similar student
will set targets and measure school and district population, and how a school compares to the state
progress for all student subgroups. as a whole. These reports will be available for all
3 Consequences for low-performing schools schools by early 2013.
and districts. New Jersey will directly interveneNew Jersey 5
School Score Card Improving teacher effectiveness.
Percentage of
Performance Statewide Peer School Performance In October of 2010, Governor Christie launched
Indicators Ranking Ranking Targets Met the Educator Effectiveness Task Force, designed
Academic to recommend a fair and transparent system of
82% 17% 50%
Achievement educator evaluations that centers on student
College/Career learning and that leads to substantial and lasting
82% 78% 25%
Readiness improvements in public education. The goal of
Graduation/ the system is to provide actionable information to
95% 10% 25%
Post secondary
schools, parents, taxpayers, and policymakers so that
Closing New Jersey is better positioned to help educators
Achievement 65% 5% 33%
Gaps improve, rethink compensation plans, and reform
Improvement tenure policy.
Focus
Status
Rationale Achievement Gaps In August 2012, New Jersey also passed the Teacher
Change Since Effectiveness and Accountability for the Children of
Last Year Improvement No Change Decline New Jersey (TEACHNJ) Act, which reforms the state’s
teacher tenure policies.
Source: U.S. Department of Education. (2012). ESEA Flexibility Request: New
Jersey. http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/approved-requests/nj.pdf.
The state’s new policy framework for promoting
effective teaching includes:
What to Watch 3 Annual evaluation of all teachers. New
Jersey requires that all teachers receive annual
? Availability of school and district grading performance evaluations.20
reports. The current system is unable to provide 3 Evaluating teachers based on student
parent-friendly school grading reports for the results. New Jersey now requires that measures
most recent school year. Will the new online of teacher practice, which includes objective
system have all of the data promised in the evidence of student learning and student growth,
waiver application? are included in teacher evaluations.21
? The lowest achieving schools need to 3 Tenure based on teacher performance.
get better! Too many students are in poorly In order to receive tenure, new teachers in
performing schools. Will the interventions for New Jersey will be required to complete a
struggling schools and districts help? Will the one-year mentorship program and then be
accountability system identify the right schools, rated “effective” or “highly effective” on their
particularly after the transition to new standards summative evaluations for two of their first three
and assessments? years of employment.22
3 Dismissal for ineffective teaching. A teacher
receiving a rating of “ineffective” or “partially
effective” in an annual summative evaluation
followed by an “ineffective” rating the following
year will be charged with inefficiency, which is
grounds for dismissal in New Jersey.23New Jersey 6
6 Pay for performance. While local boards of 3 Charter school law. New Jersey permits charter
education have authority to increase teacher schools and does not limit the growth of charter
salaries, New Jersey does not have any policies schools in the state. Proposed legislation would
to promote compensation that rewards effective expand the pool of charter authorizers and the
teachers with higher salaries or bonuses for Governor has proposed an increase in funds
exemplary performance.24 for new schools. New Jersey only requires that
6 Compensation for teachers who teach school districts provide public schools with
in high-needs schools or shortage-area 90% of state and local general revenues than
subjects. New Jersey does not have policies the school would receive for its students as a
linking teacher salaries or bonuses to teachers traditional public school.
taking on assignments in high-need schools or 6 Parent trigger. New Jersey does not have a law
shortage-subject areas. 25 that allows parents to convert a low-performing
school to a charter school.
3 Public school choice. New Jersey permits
What to Watch: interdistrict school choice at no cost to families in
109 “Choice Districts.” District participation in the
? Collective bargaining. New Jersey’s evaluation program, however, is optional.26
regulations mandate that districts implement new 6 Private school vouchers. New Jersey does not
robust evaluation systems in the 2012–13 and offer private school scholarships. The Governor’s
2013–14 school years. However, the regulations proposed budget for 2013–14 school year
will not override conflicting provisions of any includes $2 million to create a pilot ”opportunity
collective bargaining agreement in effect at scholarship” program, that would allow
the time of passage. Rather, the regulations will approximately 200 children to transfer from low-
apply when the agreement expires and a new performing public schools to private schools.27
agreement is in place. 6 Online Learning. New Jersey does not have
online learning opportunities for its students.
Two virtual schools have received preliminary
What options are available for approval from the state, but they were put
parents who want something on hold last year. In addition, the New Jersey
Education Association has gone to court to try to
better for their child? block them.28
School choice, charter schools, and
online learning.
What to Watch:
New Jersey lacks options for students looking
to attend better-performing schools. In order to ? Will the state legislature expand choice
expand choice options, Governor Chris Christie options? Will the legislature pass legislation
and supporters of charter schools have worked to strengthening charters and enact the Governor’s
strengthen the state’s charter school law and to proposed opportunity scholarships?
create a private school choice program for students
in failing schools.New Jersey 7
How are state education The State Board adopts the administrative code,
leaders selected? which sets the rules needed to implement state
education law. The State Board also advises on
State education governance in educational policies proposed by the Commissioner
New Jersey. and confirms Department of Education staff
appointments made by the Commissioner.
Commissioner of Education Chris Cerf was appointed
by the Governor in 2010. The Commissioner of For more information see: http://www.state.nj.us/
Education is the chief executive school officer of New education/sboe/.
Jersey and supervises all public schools. He is also a
member of the Governor’s cabinet, and confirmed by How to get involved:
the New Jersey Senate.
Contact the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce:
The New Jersey State Board of Education has 13 http://www.njchamber.com
members who are appointed by the Governor and
confirmed by the New Jersey State Senate. These
members serve without compensation for six-year
terms. At least three members of the State Board
must be women, and no two members may be
appointed from the same county.New Jersey 8
Endnotes
1 National Center for Education Statistics. (n.d.). NAEP State 17 NJDOE (n.d.). Welcome to the New Jersey’ Department
Comparisons. Retrieved March 1, 2013, from http://nces. of Education’s Model Curriculum! Retrieved February 28,
ed.gov/nationsreportcard/statecomparisons/. 2013, from http://www.state.nj.us/education/modelcur-
riculum/.
2 U.S. Department of Education. (2012). ESEA Flexibility
Request: New Jersey. Retrieved February 28, 2013, from 18 U.S. Department of Education. (2012). ESEA Flexibility
http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/approved-requests/ Request: New Jersey. Retrieved February 28, 2013, from
nj.pdf. http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/approved-requests/
nj.pdf.
3 State of New Jersey, Department of Education. (n.d.). New
Jersey Public Schools Fact Sheet. Retrieved February 26, 19 Ibid.
2013, from http://www.state.nj.us/education/data/fact. 20 National Council on Teacher Quality. (2011). State Teacher
htm. Policy Yearbook 2011. Retrieved March 4, 2013, from www.
4 Complete College America. (2011). New Jersey 2011. nctq.org.
Retrieved February 26, 2013, from http://www.com- 21 U.S. Department of Education. (2012). ESEA Flexibility
pletecollege.org/docs/New_Jersey.pdf. Request: New Jersey.
5 Anthony Carnevale, Nicole Smith, and Michelle Milton. 22 See http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2012/Bills/A3500/3060_
(October 2011). STEM State-Level Analysis. Retrieved U1.PDF.
February 4, 2013, from http://cew.georgetown.edu/
stem/states. 23 See http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2012/Bills/A3500/3060_
U1.PDF and NCTQ State Teacher Policy Yearbook Brief:
6 Ibid. Making Effectiveness Matter (2012) at: http://www.nctq.
7 Alliance for Excellent Education. (2012). New Jersey High org/p/publications/docs/YearbookBrief_Area5.pdf.
Schools. Retrieved February 26, 2013, from http://www. 24 Students First. (2013). New Jersey State Policy Report Card
all4ed.org/files/NewJersey_hs.pdf. 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2013, from http://reportcard.
8 Alliance for Excellent Education. (2011). Education and the studentsfirst.org/state-detail?state=New%20Jersey.
Economy: Boosting New Jersey’s Economy by Improving 25 Ibid.
High School Graduation Rates. Retrieved February 26,
2013, from http://www.all4ed.org/files/NewJersey_seb.pdf. 26 NJDOE. (n.d.). Interdistrict Public School Choice Program.
Retrieved February 28, 2013, from http://www.nj.gov/edu-
9 New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE). (2012). New cation/choice/.
Jersey High School Graduation Rate Increases to 86% in
2011–12 School Year, While Turnaround Schools Make 27 NJ.com. (2013). School vouchers, aid increase, included in
Significant Gains Across the State. Retrieved Christie budget. Retrieved February 28, 2013, from http://
February 26, 2013, from http://www.state.nj.us/education/ www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/02/school_vouch-
news/2012/1205grad.htm. ers_aid_increase_i.html.
10 Alliance for Excellent Education. (2012). New Jersey High 28 NJ Spotlight. (2013). Charter-School Reform, On Back
Schools. Retrieved February 26, 2013, from http://www. Burner, Starts to Heat Up Again. Retrieved February 28,
all4ed.org/files/NewJersey_hs.pdf. 2013, from http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/13/02/27/
charter-school-reform-on-back-burner-starts-to-heat-up-
11 ACT. (2012). The Condition of College & Career Readi- again/.
ness 2012: New Jersey. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from
http://act.org/newsroom/data/2012/states/pdf/NewJer-
sey.pdf.
12 Alliance for Excellent Education. (2012). New Jersey High
Schools. Retrieved February 26, 2013, from http://www.
all4ed.org/files/NewJersey_hs.pdf.
13 National Center for Education Statistics. (n.d.). 2011 NAEP
Scores. Retrieved February 11, 2013, from http://nces.
ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/.
14 U.S. Department of Education. (2012). ESEA Flexibility
Request: New Jersey. Retrieved February 28, 2013, from
http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/approved-requests/
nj.pdf.
15 Ibid.
16 Ibid.Institute for a Competitive Workforce
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
National Chamber Foundation
1615 H Street NW
Washington, DC 20062
Phone: 202-463-5525
www.uschamber.com/icwYou can also read
