Search

The "2005 Annual Report on Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence" details the school system's significant progress toward meeting the identified milestones within each of the system's four strategic goal areas. The overall trend data continue to provide strong evidence of the effectiveness of our strategies and initiatives detailed in "Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence." The data also highlight areas requiring additional improvement to increase the performance of all students. Available baseline and trend data are presented for each data point. The baseline year of 2000 was established in alignment with the initial adoption of "Our Call to Action." When data are not available for data points in the 2000 baseline year, the baseline year is the first year in which the data are available. "Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence" establishes the strategic course of the school system's overall operation, including the operating budget, and lays the foundation for an unprecedented effort to improve the instructional program in each school. The plan reflects an effective organization, implementation, and accountability process that was recognized earlier this year when Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) won the United States Senate Productivity Award for Maryland. That achievement reflects a strategic planning focus and a comprehensive reform effort that began with the initial "Our Call to Action" in November 1999 and continues to be refined and strengthened each year. This strategic planning process guides staff throughout the school system in their work with schools, parents, and the community. Moreover, the strategic plan addresses the requirements of the state of Maryland Bridge to Excellence in Public Schools Act and the achievement goals of the federal "No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)." The 2005 annual report provides a comprehensive accounting of the school system's performance on the established milestones and data points of the strategic plan. The plan's four goals--ensure success for every student, provide an effective instructional program, strengthen productive partnerships for education, and create a positive work environment in a self-renewing organization--align with the Board of Education's four core governance policies and provide a framework for monitoring the progress of ongoing reform and improvement efforts. Within each goal, the established milestones and data points are the rubric for monitoring performance. [For "Annual Report on Our Call to Action: Strategic Plan for the Montgomery County Public Schools" of 2004, see ED485914.]

Goal 1 of the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Strategic Plan, "Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence" (MCPS, 2004), is to "Ensure Success for Every Student." One measure of success for students who plan to attend college is their preparation for college-level course work. The Advanced Placement (AP) program offers MCPS students an opportunity to take college-level courses while enrolled in high school. The growing number of MCPS students taking AP exams and doing well, earning a 3 or higher, along with the continued growth of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program speaks to MCPS students' interest in taking advantage of academic opportunities. This report provides a descriptive examination of the results of AP exam takers in the 2003-2004 school year. The key research questions addressed in this report are: (1) How many students took an AP exam and who were they? Has it changed over time? (2) How many students take multiple exams? (3) What AP exams do Montgomery Public School (MCPS) students take? (4) How did students perform on the exams? (5) Do students who have not taken the course take the exam? How do they do? (6) How many MCPS students took the IB exams? How did they do? and (7) For the graduating Class of 2004, how many exiting seniors took an AP exam and how did they do? AP data are reported by the College Board to MCPS for students who identify themselves as MCPS students. These students are compared with official MCPS enrollment files and demographic and course-taking history added to the file for analyses. IB exam data were provided by IB program staff at the school level. MCPS transcript data are extracted from the Student Information Data System. The section beginning on page 6, entitled "Results" provides descriptive information on students who took the AP exam in 2003-2004, the number of exams taken, the subject matter of the exams, and performance on the exams. It is organized to respond to the research questions identified in colleges and universities relating to students' transcripts for both AP and IB course work and exam scores. MCPS continues to offer more rigorous courses to high school students, especially AP courses and exams, and continues to encourage the growth of the IB program. Expanding both of these opportunities while maintaining current levels of success will contribute to MCPS's ability to meet Goal 1. Tables containing numbers and percentages of students taking the most popular MCPS AP exams are presented in the Appendix. (Contains 11 tables and 5 graphs.) [This document was produced by the Department of Shared Accountability.]

The vast majority of Montgomery County public schools made sufficient progress on state testing and accountability standards in 2004 to comply with the adequate yearly progress (AYP) requirements under the "No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001." Information released by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) in October 2004 shows that 90% of the 190 schools in the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) made AYP, up from 75% in 2003 when the "NCLB" testing and accountability system began. This includes 119 of 125 elementary schools, 28 of 37 middle schools, 19 of 24 high schools, and 5 of 6 special schools. In 2003, the school system did not make AYP because it only met 36 of the 38 state targets. This year, MCPS met all 38 targets. Sections in this report include: Executive Summary; Background; MCPS 2004 Adequate Yearly Progress Performance; Discussion of Results; and Conclusion. Appended is: Individual School 2004 Adequate Yearly Progress Information. [Report produced by the Department of Shared Accountability.]

The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) introduced the High School Academic Attainment (HSAA) model in 2001 to augment the existing state accountability system. The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) accountability system was implemented in the 1990s and focused primarily on elementary and middle schools. The HSAA model was designed to hold high schools accountable for the rigor of course taking and student performance. A cohort analysis was conducted to examine the graduating classes of 2000 through 2004. Transcript analyses were conducted on all students who graduated from MCPS high schools during those years. Each student was evaluated in terms of the four HSAA categories describing their high school course taking and performance. Appended are: (1) Indicators for MCPS and Student Subgroups; and (2) MCPS High Schools Performance on the HSAA Indicators. [Report produced by the Department of Shared Accountability.]

"Schools at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about enrollment, staffing, facilities, programs, outcome measures and operating costs. The information is presented for each school, with summaries for the county and by level (elementary, middle, high, and special schools). The 2004-2005 "Schools at a Glance" has been significantly expanded to include many of the school-related data elements reported in the "Annual Report on Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence." Additionally, several of the data elements previously reported in "Schools at a Glance" are now disaggregated by race, gender, and student group (i.e., special education, Free and Reduced-price Meals, and ESOL). [Report produced by the Department of Reporting and Regulatory Accountability.]