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Title 1
Program Overview and Goals
Title I - Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged
 
On January 8, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 [P.L. 107-110]. This Act, which redefines the federal role in K-12 education, is the most sweeping reform of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) since it was enacted in 1965. The law is based on four basic principles: stronger accountability for results, increased flexibility and local control, expanded options for parents, and an emphasis on teaching methods that have been proven to work. Overall, the NCLB Act is striving to close the achievement gap between disadvantaged and minority students and their peers.
 
The focus of the Title I Program was changed from a remedial track with low expectations for disadvantaged children to a high-performance program dedicated to helping eligible children meet the same challenging academic standards that States are required to establish for all children.
 
The NCLB Act requires each State to demonstrate that challenging student academic achievement standards will be used by the State, its Local Education Agencies (LEA's), and its schools. Such standards must apply to all schools and children in the State. Further, they must align with the State's academic content standards, describe two levels of high achievement that determine how well children are mastering the materials in the State academic content standards, and describe a third level of achievement to provide complete information about the progress of the lower-achieving children toward mastering the proficient and advanced levels of achievement. Other major changes that the law delineates include the following:
  • a strong emphasis on adequate yearly progress for all public school students;
  • a strong emphasis on teacher certification and paraprofessional qualifications;
  • State and LEA report cards to detect the percentage of schools that require school improvement;
  • a greater level of authority for local schools to design their own programs; and
  • an emphasis on school safety and choice.
    The law also authorizes the following programs:
    • Education of migratory children to support high-quality and comprehensive educational programs to help reduce the educational disruptions that result from repeated moves;
    • Prevention and intervention programs for children and youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at risk, and to provide such children and youth the same opportunity to meet the same challenging State academic standards that other children in the State meet;
    • Comprehensive School Reform to provide financial incentives for schools to develop comprehensive school reforms, based upon scientifically based research and effective practices;
    • Advanced Placement Programs Access to High Standards Act to support State and local efforts to raise academic standards through advanced placement programs; and
    • School Dropout Prevention to provide grants that challenge all children to attain their highest academic potential and ensure that all students have opportunities to attain their highest academic potential.
    The Title I Program will continue to focus on improving the integration of Title I and regular classroom instruction. The District will provide assistance to schools in support of their programs. The Title I Handbook provides a clear understanding of the overall program.
    No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
     
    Listed below are summaries for some of the major sections of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, which reauthorized Title I.
     
    Section 1114. Schoolwide Programs
     
    Title I funds may be used in combination with other Federal, State and local funds in order to upgrade the entire educational program of a school. However, funds allocated to the Title I Program may not be used to fund other programs. Any school in the Miami-Dade County Public School System (LEA) generating funds through the Title I Program is eligible to implement a schoolwide program if at least 40 percent of the students are from low‑income families.
     
    Section 1115. Targeted Assistance Schools
    The new term targeted assistance schools applies to schools that are not eligible, or do not choose to operate as schoolwide project schools. In these schools, eligible children are identified and selected, or targeted for assistance by Title I. Specific requirements for a targeted assistance school are outlined, with special emphasis on extending learning time through before and after-school and summer programs, minimizing the removal of students from the regular classroom, using effective instructional devices, increasing parental involvement through programs such as family literacy, and providing an accelerated curriculum.
     
    Section 1116. Assessment and School Improvement
     
    Each LEA receiving Title I funds shall use the State academic assessments described in the State plan and any additional measures or indicators described in the local educational agency's plan to review annually the progress of each school served under this part to determine whether the school is meeting, or making adequate progress. Further, each LEA shall identify for school improvement any elementary or secondary school that fails for two consecutive years to meet adequate yearly progress. Students in such schools shall be provided the offer, no later than the first day of the school year following such identification, to transfer to another public or charter school.
     
    Section 1117. Assistance for School Support and Improvement
     
    Each State Education Agency (SEA) shall establish a statewide system of intensive and sustained support and improvement for each LEA and school receiving funds under this section, including schoolwide programs and schools in need of program improvement, in order to increase the opportunity for all students in such schools to meet the State's academic content standards and student achievement standards.