Abstract: In 2016, Oregon voters passed a ballot measure aimed at improving the state's graduation rate, which was among the lowest in the nation. As a result, many districts received funding for an early warning system called the Oregon Early Indicator and Intervention System (EIIS). The EIIS requires districts to collect individual student data to generate and report indicators of on-track status for graduation, including attendance, behavior, and course performance. When a student falls below the on-track threshold in one or more of these areas, a team of school staff members intervenes with the student to help them improve their performance.
Conducted at the request of the Oregon Department of Education, this study will examine whether the EIIS is supporting improvements in student attendance, behavior, and course performance outcomes and which school districts are showing early signs of success with the program. The department will use the results of the study to improve the system and the coaching that is provided to districts.
Research Questions:
Study Design: The study team will use a comparative interruptive time series design to evaluate the effects of the EIIS during the first year of implementation.
Researchers will use aggregate school-, district-, and grade-level data on student demographics, attendance, behavior, course performance, state test scores, and graduation rates along with measures of district and school size, location, and whether the school is rural, urban, or suburban. These data will be collected from the Oregon Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Education's Common Core of Data.
Projected Release Date: Fall 2021
Partnership or Research Alliance: Oregon Graduation and Postsecondary Success Alliance
Related Products: Making an Impact report
Pei Zhu and Susan Sepanik, MDRC