Washington, DC—The DC State Board of Education (SBOE) releases a four-part series of reports on input and feedback received from principals, teachers, other D.C. residents, as well as school accountability experts on D.C.’s school accountability system– the STAR Framework and Rating. The State Board will take all of these factors into consideration as it continues to hear from constituents ahead of a vote on recommendations to revise the STAR Framework at the January Public Meeting. 

The four-part series of reports include input and feedback received from principals, teachers, other D.C. residents, as well as school accountability experts on D.C.’s school accountability system (i.e., STAR Framework and Rating) can be found here on our website.

The Expert/Public Witness Report offers themed summaries of expert and witness testimony on the STAR Framework and Rating, following the publishing of the State Board of Education’s (State Board) Interim Report on the STAR Rating. The Board concluded in December 2020 that it should recommend changes to the STAR Rating and how it is used in an effort to address the concerns named in SR20-11 Improving the School Transparency and Reporting (STAR) Framework and others raised by the public.

The Family/General Public Survey reveals that some parents are not familiar with the STAR Rating and many do not use the STAR Rating when selecting a school nor see it as important when making a school selection. It also shows that parents want to see student progress in math and ELA, student satisfaction, and teacher turnover and retention data in reports which evaluate school quality and performance.

The Teacher Survey indicates most teachers disapprove of the STAR Rating and do not believe the STAR Rating tells the whole story of a school’s performance to families. Educators are reporting that the STAR Rating has a negative impact on their ability to teach. Academic achievement metrics were by far the top indicator teachers felt detracted from supporting the needs of specific student populations and communities. Most teachers agreed on introducing a more whole child, holistic approach to holding schools accountable is one important way to improve the STAR Framework’s ability to steer resources to address specific needs of their school, student population, and community.

Finally, the Principal Survey indicated that principals were roughly split on whether the STAR Rating is a fair assessment of their school’s quality, but most principals do not believe the STAR Rating tells the whole story of a school’s performance to families. Most principals reported not receiving supports based on their schools 2019 STAR Rating and a majority of principals suggested either tying assistance to indicators or being more mindful of student sub-groups.

Please visit the State Board website to view the full reports. 

Contact: Milayo Olufemi

202-710-4641

[email protected]