20 U.S.C. § 6631

Current through P.L. 118-106 (published on www.congress.gov on 10/04/2024)

Section 6631 - Purposes; definitions

(a) Purposes

The purposes of this subpart are-

(1) to assist States, local educational agencies, and nonprofit organizations to develop, implement, improve, or expand comprehensive performance-based compensation systems or human capital management systems for teachers, principals, or other school leaders (especially for teachers, principals, or other school leaders in high-need schools) who raise student academic achievement and close the achievement gap between high- and low-performing students; and

(2) to study and review performance-based compensation systems or human capital management systems for teachers, principals, or other school leaders to evaluate the effectiveness, fairness, quality, consistency, and reliability of the systems.

(b) Definitions

In this subpart:

(1) Eligible entity

The term "eligible entity" means-

(A) a local educational agency, including a charter school that is a local educational agency, or a consortium of local educational agencies;

(B) a State educational agency or other State agency designated by the chief executive of a State to participate under this subpart;

(C) the Bureau of Indian Education; or

(D) a partnership consisting of-

(i) 1 or more agencies described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C); and

(ii) at least 1 nonprofit or for-profit entity.

(2) High-need school

The term "high-need school" means a public elementary school or secondary school that is located in an area in which the percentage of students from families with incomes below the poverty line is 30 percent or more.

(3) Human capital management system

The term "human capital management system" means a system-

(A) by which a local educational agency makes and implements human capital decisions, such as decisions on preparation, recruitment, hiring, placement, retention, dismissal, compensation, professional development, tenure, and promotion; and

(B) that includes a performance-based compensation system.

(4) Performance-based compensation system

The term "performance-based compensation system" means a system of compensation for teachers, principals, or other school leaders-

(A) that differentiates levels of compensation based in part on measurable increases in student academic achievement; and

(B) which may include-

(i) differentiated levels of compensation, which may include bonus pay, on the basis of the employment responsibilities and success of effective teachers, principals, or other school leaders in hard-to-staff schools or high-need subject areas; and

(ii) recognition of the skills and knowledge of teachers, principals, or other school leaders as demonstrated through-

(I) successful fulfillment of additional responsibilities or job functions, such as teacher leadership roles; and

(II) evidence of professional achievement and mastery of content knowledge and superior teaching and leadership skills.

20 U.S.C. § 6631

Pub. L. 89-10, title II, §2211, as added Pub. L. 114-95, §2002, 129 Stat. 1931.

EDITORIAL NOTES

PRIOR PROVISIONSA prior section 6631, Pub. L. 89-10, title II, §2131, as added Pub. L. 107-110, §201, Jan. 8, 2002, 115 Stat. 1633, defined terms in subpart 3 of part A of former subchapter II of this chapter, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 114-95, §5, title II, §2002, Dec. 10, 2015, 129 Stat. 1806, 1913, effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive programs and competitive programs.A prior section 2211 of Pub. L. 89-10 was classified to section 6651 of this title, prior to the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 107-110.

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

EFFECTIVE DATESection effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive programs and competitive programs, see section 5 of Pub. L. 114-95, set out as an Effective Date of 2015 Amendment note under section 6301 of this title.

State educational agency: The term "State educational agency" means the agency primarily responsible for the State supervision of public elementary schools and secondary schools.
State: The term "State" means each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each of the outlying areas.
elementary school: The term "elementary school" means a nonprofit institutional day or residential school, including a public elementary charter school, that provides elementary education, as determined under State law.
poverty line: The term "poverty line" means the poverty line (as defined by the Office of Management and Budget and revised annually in accordance with section 9902(2) of title 42) applicable to a family of the size involved.
professional development: The term "professional development" means activities that-(A) are an integral part of school and local educational agency strategies for providing educators (including teachers, principals, other school leaders, specialized instructional support personnel, paraprofessionals, and, as applicable, early childhood educators) with the knowledge and skills necessary to enable students to succeed in a well-rounded education and to meet the challenging State academic standards; and(B) are sustained (not stand-alone, 1-day, or short term workshops), intensive, collaborative, job-embedded, data-driven, and classroom-focused, and may include activities that-(i) improve and increase teachers'-(I) knowledge of the academic subjects the teachers teach;(II) understanding of how students learn; and(III) ability to analyze student work and achievement from multiple sources, including how to adjust instructional strategies, assessments, and materials based on such analysis;(ii) are an integral part of broad schoolwide and districtwide educational improvement plans;(iii) allow personalized plans for each educator to address the educator's specific needs identified in observation or other feedback;(iv) improve classroom management skills;(v) support the recruitment, hiring, and training of effective teachers, including teachers who became certified through State and local alternative routes to certification;(vi) advance teacher understanding of-(I) effective instructional strategies that are evidence-based; and(II) strategies for improving student academic achievement or substantially increasing the knowledge and teaching skills of teachers;(vii) are aligned with, and directly related to, academic goals of the school or local educational agency;(viii) are developed with extensive participation of teachers, principals, other school leaders, parents, representatives of Indian tribes (as applicable), and administrators of schools to be served under this chapter;(ix) are designed to give teachers of English learners, and other teachers and instructional staff, the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and appropriate language and academic support services to those children, including the appropriate use of curricula and assessments;(x) to the extent appropriate, provide training for teachers, principals, and other school leaders in the use of technology (including education about the harms of copyright piracy), so that technology and technology applications are effectively used in the classroom to improve teaching and learning in the curricula and academic subjects in which the teachers teach;(xi) as a whole, are regularly evaluated for their impact on increased teacher effectiveness and improved student academic achievement, with the findings of the evaluations used to improve the quality of professional development;(xii) are designed to give teachers of children with disabilities or children with developmental delays, and other teachers and instructional staff, the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and academic support services, to those children, including positive behavioral interventions and supports, multi-tier system of supports, and use of accommodations;(xiii) include instruction in the use of data and assessments to inform and instruct classroom practice;(xiv) include instruction in ways that teachers, principals, other school leaders, specialized instructional support personnel, and school administrators may work more effectively with parents and families;(xv) involve the forming of partnerships with institutions of higher education, including, as applicable, Tribal Colleges and Universities as defined in section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)), to establish school-based teacher, principal, and other school leader training programs that provide prospective teachers, novice teachers, principals, and other school leaders with an opportunity to work under the guidance of experienced teachers, principals, other school leaders, and faculty of such institutions;(xvi) create programs to enable paraprofessionals (assisting teachers employed by a local educational agency receiving assistance under part A of subchapter I) to obtain the education necessary for those paraprofessionals to become certified and licensed teachers;(xvii) provide follow-up training to teachers who have participated in activities described in this paragraph that are designed to ensure that the knowledge and skills learned by the teachers are implemented in the classroom; and(xviii) where practicable, provide jointly for school staff and other early childhood education program providers, to address the transition to elementary school, including issues related to school readiness.