Report finds few students access supplemental services
July 7, 2008
Denver—In a new report released by the Central Region Education Laboratory (REL Central), researchers at Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) found only 11 percent of students eligible for supplemental educational services in the seven-state region served by the laboratory are actually receiving them—lower than the 19 percent of students receiving similar services across the United States in general and far lower than the 100 percent that should receive them.
Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, Title I schools that fail to demonstrate student proficiency on statewide tests for three consecutive years must provide low-income students with free supplemental educational services (SES), such as tutoring and afterschool help, that are designed to improve achievement.
The study found three possible reasons so few students in the Central Region (including Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming) are taking advantage of these services.
States and districts lack adequate funding to administer the program. State contacts reported that they and their districts have expressed concerns that federal funds have not been made available to cover administrative management costs associated with the implementation of the law. Also, they reported there were restrictions against using Title I funds to support administrative tasks.
Not enough organizations or companies are providing SES. Four of the seven states (Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming) reported that they had difficulty recruiting providers, particularly in rural areas. In fact, all seven state agencies indicated that rural areas had less choice or, in some cases, no choice, among SES programs.
Many parents are reluctant to enroll their children in SES programs. Parents are not choosing to enroll their children in SES because of confusion about the program, lack of trust in the program, and logistics such as transportation and lack of technology.
"This report comes early in the initiation of the SES program. It is a program with great promise if these early issues can be solved," said Zoe Barley, a senior research fellow at McREL. "We will be following the progress in our states and especially in rural schools and hope to see the participation numbers grow."
Student Participation in SES and Eligibility Rates
State
Number
Percent Participation
Schools
Districts
Eligible Students
Students Participating
Colorado
64
16
26,942
2,993
11%
Kansas
6
4
4,661
319
7%
Missouri
21
9
6,978
1,515
22%
Nebraska
10
8
1,048
0
0%
North Dakota
11
6
2,653
197
7%
South Dakota
19
9
4,783
56
1%
Wyoming*
0
0
0
0
NA
Total
131
52
47,065
5,080
11%
Source: Interviews with SES State Contacts (August, 2006)
*Note: Wyoming reported no districts on the "needs improvement" list.
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McREL is a nationally recognized, private, nonprofit organization located in Denver, Colo., dedicated to improving education for all students through applied research, product development and service. In 2007, McREL provided research-based guidance to educators and policymakers in 47 states across the U.S.
