The Challenge and Attainability of Goals for Adequate Yearly Progress

Abstract

For standards-referenced assessment systems, there is a tension between setting high goals versus attainable ones for adequate yearly progress. The more relevant information that policymakers can consider in setting these goals, the more likely it will be that productive goals are set. Some strategies are presented here that can be used either singly or in combination to evaluate the level of rigor implied by these expectations. These strategies relate to understanding how likely it is, based on past experience, that a particular goal can be met. © 2017 Wiley. All rights reserved.