A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Background

Chapter 1 Services to Religious-School Students: Final Technical Report was prepared in support of the National Assessment of Chapter 1--mandated under P.L. 101-305, "The 1992 National Assessment of Chapter 1 Act." The report elaborates upon the findings reported in Reinventing Chapter 1: The Current Chapter 1 Program and New Directions, and a supplemental volume--Chapter 1 Services to Religious School Students.

This report describes the implementation of Section 1017 of Chapter 1 of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which requires school districts to serve eligible students enrolled in private schools. In particular, it examines how participation and services have responded several years after the Felton decision, which required religiously neutral sites for Chapter 1 instruction. It draws on findings from case studies and several recent Department of Education-sponsored studies, including surveys of school districts and religious schools.

In addition to the report summary, which was transmitted to Congress in July 1993 as the supplemental volume, the study includes tabulations of the data collected and case studies illustrating the provision of Chapter 1 services to religious-school students in 10 local districts and two by-pass states. The information provided in this report should be of particular interest to the religious school practitioners and the research community.

Key Findings

Trends in the Levels of Private-School Student Participation in Chapter 1

Overall, the participation of private-school students--almost all of whom are enrolled in religious schools--in Chapter 1 has increased since the steep post-Felton drop in 1985-86, although participation levels have not yet returned to the estimated level immediately preceding Felton.

• Based on the survey data, reported in the study, the estimated number of private-school students who received Chapter 1 services during the 1990-91 school year is 174,000. Other estimates of private-school student participation range from 157,500 (based on state-reported Chapter 1 participation data) to 204,000 (based on the 1990-91 "Schools and Staffing Survey").

• Despite the increases in participation levels over the past eight years, certain barriers continue to limit the number of religious-school students who are served. Barriers identified, through case studies, include: parents and religious-school educators sometimes refuse services, school districts may not serve small concentrations of eligible students, school districts may lack the capacity to serve larger numbers of eligible students, and school districts may decide not to enter into cooperative agreements to serve students who live outside their district boundaries.

• In addition, some religious-school officials have expressed concern that while the number of participants has increased, 30 percent receive much or all of their Chapter 1 instruction through computer-assisted instruction and have little to no contact with Chapter 1 teachers.

• Trends in private school student participation in Chapter 1, since the Felton decision, vary at the local level, and range from modest or substantial decreases in 33 percent of school districts to modest or substantial increases in 20 percent of districts.

• The increased participation of private school students has resulted from strong commitments by both public- and religious-school educators to work together and the availability of capital expense funds.

Characteristics of Chapter 1 Services for Religious-School Participants

Religious-school students receive Chapter 1 services through a variety of options. Thirty-two percent of Chapter 1 private-school participants were served through CAI, 29 percent were served in mobile vans, 24 percent were served in neutral sites--including portable classrooms, and 12 percent were served at public school sites. The remaining 3 percent were served in other ways.

• Coordination between the Chapter 1 program and the regular religious-school program is most often informal or occurs through the sharing of written reports on student progress. Because of post-Felton regulations and concerns about possible violations, some school district personnel are wary about too much contact between Chapter 1 and religious school staff.

• The use of CAI--delivered through computer labs on religious-school sites--has increased as a result of Felton. The option permits Chapter 1 services to be offered on the premises of religious schools, as well as serve large numbers of students, manage many administrative tasks, and reduce schedule conflicts. However, despite the initial enthusiasm about the option, an increasing number of educators are coming to view CAI as a compromise choice. CAI instruction focuses almost exclusively on basic skills. Moreover, when offered at the religious school site, no teacher can be present to supplement the instruction on the computer.

Special Issues in the Administration of Chapter 1 Services to Religious-School Students

The restrictions placed on serving Chapter 1 students enrolled in religious schools result in the need for additional efforts and resources from district administrators, to ensure that appropriate services are offered.

• Consultation between school districts and religious-school staff is often limited and focuses primarily on the identification and selection of students who will receive services. Religious-school staff are consulted less often about issues such as program evaluation, subjects to be offered, and the location of services.

• Districts serving larger concentrations of religious-school students (1,000 or more) rely more on capital expense funds, incurred to comply with Felton, than others.

• Third-party contractors in by-pass states (Missouri and Virginia), which prohibit districts from serving religious-school students, are well regarded for the supervision of their staff and their responsiveness to the concerns of religious-school educators. The costs of offering services in the by-pass states, however, are approximately 15 percent higher than in other states and are due to additional administrative expenses needed to establish and administer a Chapter 1 program that operates under a separate system.

• Nationally, about 50 school districts rely on third-party contractors to serve religious- school students. In contrast to by-pass states, services delivered by local contractors may be less expensive than the districts' costs due to lower wages for instructional staff.

• The physical and legal separation of Chapter 1 from the regular religious-school programs make it difficult for districts to implement and meet the intent of the program improvement provisions set forth in the Hawkins-Stafford Amendments. In 1991-92, 43 percent of school districts that served religious-school students had prepared plans for meeting the needs of these students as part of their program improvement efforts.

Possible Options for Improving Chapter 1 Services to Religious-School Students

• Strengthen the statute, regulations and nonregulatory guidance about consultation and coordination by requiring school districts to develop and publish plans for consulting with private-school representatives, including schedules for annual review cycles and key program elements.

• Improve capital expense grant mechanisms by working with states and local districts to clarify allowable expenditures, encouraging states to reduce or eliminate the use of capital expense funds for past expenditures, and requiring states to submit estimates of capital expenditure needs for two- or three-year cycles to assist Congress and ED in estimating future requirements.

• Encourage the development of innovative approaches to providing Chapter 1 services to private-school students through the dissemination of information, provision of technical assistance to state departments and school districts regarding Chapter 1 services to private-school students, and support for local experimentation in innovative approaches to providing services.

Copies of the full report, Chapter 1 Services to Religious-School Students: Final Technical Report, are available by writing to the Planning and Evaluation Service, Office of the Undersecretary, 600 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 4165, Washington, DC 20202; or by phoning (202) 401-0590.

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Last update September 1996 (swz).