Zephyr Cove Elementary on NCLB watch list

By Nancy Cauley

The current status of Zephyr Cove Elementary School, according to No Child Left Behind, reveals that ZCES is currently on the “Watch List” in the area of English-Language Arts.

NCLB law requires that all students obtain a predetermined “Percent Above Cut” (PAC) which translates into how many students are proficient on the state-mandated Criterion Reference Test (CRT) that is administered every March. On the surface this appears to be very simple, but is in reality quite complex because of the way the information is tracked by the state of Nevada.

If you will picture a table with nine rows and four columns, you begin to see the complexity unfold. In addition to a single PAC rate for the entire school, each subpopulation also has its own box to be checked. To further muddy the waters, a single student may be counted in multiple boxes.

By these calculations, a percentage of ZCES students did not meet the PAC and, hence ZCES did not meet Adequate Yearly Progress for the 2009-10 school year. We have one year to increase the number of students who are proficient in English-Language Arts and our work has already begun in achieving just that.

I have a great deal of confidence in the dedicated staff at ZCES to meet this goal. If you have any questions on the specific data related to NCLB please feel free to contact me or go to http://www.nevadareportcard.com.

Nancy Cauley is principal of Zephyr Cove Elementary School.