Difference Between AYP and ABCs
The ABCs and NCLB reports may seem to give conflicting information about your school's performance. Schools can do well in the ABCs and fail to meet standards for NCLB's Adequate Yearly Progress because of the different way the models look at test results.
The ABCs sets performance standards for the school as a whole and growth standards for individual students. These standards are compiled to determine a school's growth status and whether a school receives recognitions such as School of Excellence and High Growth.
Schools have an additional challenge under NCLB. All student groups in a school and the school as a whole must meet the state's target goals for the school to make AYP. Forty or more students in a school in the following categories make up student groups: 1) White, 2) Black, 3) Hispanic, 4) Native American, 5) Asian/Pacific Islanders, 6) Multiracial, 7) Economically Disadvantaged Students, 8) Limited English Proficient Students, and 9) Students with Disabilities. If just one student group in a school does not meet the target goal, in either reading or mathematics, then the school does not make AYP.