This paper reports on a study conducted to investigate the consistency of the results between 2 approaches to estimating school effectiveness through value-added modeling. Estimates of school effects from the layered model employing item response theory (IRT) scaled data are compared to estimates derived from a discrete growth model based on the analysis of transitions along an ordinal developmental scale. The data were extracted from the longitudinal records maintained in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) archive for students remaining in the same school from the beginning of kindergarten through the end of Grade 3. The results of different comparisons indicated that the estimates from the 2 approaches are moderately consistent.