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Recent GAO Reviews of Federal Education Programs

Presentation to Association of Educational Federal Finance Administrators

Annual ConferenceOctober 4, 2012

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Recent GAO Reports on Federal Education Programs

• School Bullying (GAO-12-349)• K-12 Regulatory Burden (GAO-12-672)• Charter Schools and Students with Disabilities (GAO-

12-543)

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School Bullying: Reported Levels of Bullying and Related Affects Are Significant

• According to national surveys, an estimated 20 to 28 percent of youth (primarily middle and high school-aged youth) reported being bullied.• Gaps in knowledge about extent of bullying of youths in key

demographic groups remain.• Bullying is associated with a variety of negative outcomes for

victims

• Differences in definitions and survey methods make it difficult to determine trends and affected groups.

• Education, HHS, and others are taking steps to partially address the issue of inconsistent definitions.

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School Bullying: States and Educational Agencies Are Taking Various Approaches to Reduce Bullying

• According to Education, 49 states had school bullying laws as of April 2012.

• State laws impose various requirements on SEA to adopt bullying policies or plans.

• State are making changes to their bullying laws.

• State and local officials cited concerns that hinder antibullying efforts• Out-of-school incidents such as cyberbullying• Confusion between bullying behavior and other forms of

conflict

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School Bullying: Coordinated Federal Antibullying Efforts Are Underway

• Education, HHS, and Justice have established coordinated efforts on research and disseminating information. Key efforts include:• Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention Steering Committee• www.stopbullying.gov website• Stop Bullying Now! Campaign

• Education has disseminated information about federal civil rights laws and state bullying laws.

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• Key education stakeholders said many federal requirements related to ESEA Title I, IDEA Part B, or national school meals programs were burdensome.

• Of those federal requirements cited as most burdensome by state and school district officials:• 7 related to ESEA Title I• 3 to IDEA Part B• 4 to national school meals

• Officials also identified some benefits of requirements.

Regulatory Burden: Education Stakeholders and State and School District Officials Cited Burdens and Benefits

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• Education and other agencies developed retrospective analysis plans to identify and address burdensome regulations.

• Education has taken some alleviate burden and remove duplicative reporting requirements• ESEA waivers• streamlining data collections

• Education officials generally disagree with stakeholders on extent of duplicative reporting requirements and related burden.

• Education’s ability to address burdens may be limited, eg., IDEA indicators.

Regulatory Burden: Federal Agencies Are Taking Steps to Reduce Burden, but Challenges Remain

Charter Schools: Enrollment Levels of Students with Disabilities Differed

• Charter schools enrolled a lower percentage of students with disabilities than traditional public schools:• 8.2 percent of students in charter schools compared to 11.2

percent in traditional public schools (2009-2010) school year.• proportion of charter schools that enrolled high percentages

of students with disabilities also lower than traditional schools.• Differences in enrollment levels of students with disabilities varied

across states.

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Charter Schools: Little Known about Factors Contributing to Enrollment Differences

• Reasons for enrollment differences not clear. Factors contributing to differences may include:• parental preferences and student needs• recruitment practices• placement decisionmaking process• school capacity and special education funding

• Charter schools we visited reported:• tailoring services to meet individual student’s needs• having insufficient resources to serve students with severe

disabilities as a challenge

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Charter Schools: Education is Reviewing Admission Practices

• During FY 2010, Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) investigated complaints concerning students with disabilities in charter schools.

• As of June 2012, OCR had compliance reviews underway related to students with disabilities and charter schools:• 2 pertain to recruitment and admissions issues• 2 pertain to FAPE

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Ongoing Work

• Charters Schools Serving English Language Learners• Cheating on Statewide Assessments• Education Research• IDEA and Early Intervening Services• Education’s Data Collection Efforts• Child Abuse by School Personnel• RTT Teacher Evaluation Systems• Indian Education Funding

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GAO on the WebWeb site: http://www.gao.gov/ 

ContactsGeorge Scott, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security, scottg@gao.gov (202) 512-7215, U.S. Government Accountability Office441 G Street NW, Room 5K21, Washington, D.C. 20548

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