TESTS ARE US!

http://education.state.mn.us

1) Accountability programs

2) Assessment & Testing3) MCA

MCA item samplers / test specifications / MCA reports for schools

1) Academic Excellence2) School Report cards3) Alpha by district or

school name

Grade 4 Mathematics: 1995 & 2007

Significantly Higher than MNNot Significantly Different from MN

Significantly Lower than MN

Nation Mean Nation Mean

Singapore 590 ## 1 Hong Kong SAR 607Japan 567 ## 2 Singapore 599Hong Kong SAR 557 ## 3 Japan 568Netherlands 549 ## Minnesota, US 554Czech Republic 541 ## 4 England 541Austria 531 ## 5 Latvia 537Slovenia 525 ## 6 Netherlands 535Hungary 521 ## 7 United States 529United States 518 ## 8 Australia 516Australia 517 ## 9 Hungary 510Minnesota, US 516 ## 10 Austria 505Latvia 499 ## 11 Slovenia 502Scotland 493 ## 12 Scotland 494England 484 ## 13 New Zealand 492Norway 476 ## 14 Czech Republic 486New Zealand 469 ## 15 Norway 473Iran, Islamic Rep. of 387 ## 16 Iran, Islamic Rep. of 402

Grade 8 Mathematics: 1995 & 2007

Significantly Higher than MNNot Significantly Different from MN

Significantly Lower than MN

Nation Mean Nation Mean

Singapore 609 1 Korea, Rep. of 597Japan 581 2 Singapore 593Korea, Rep. of 581 3 Hong Kong SAR 572Hong Kong SAR 569 4 Japan 570Czech Republic 546 5 Minnesota, US 532Sweden 540 6 Hungary 517Slovenia 531 7 England 513Bulgaria 527 8 Russian Federation 512Hungary 527 9 United States 508Russian Federation 524 10 Lithuania 506Australia 519 11 Czech Republic 504Minnesota, US 518 12 Slovenia 501Norway 498 13 Australia 496England 498 14 Sweden 491Scotland 493 15 Scotland 487United States 492 16 Norway 469

Romania 474 17 Cyprus 465Lithuania 472 18 Bulgaria 464Cyprus 468 19 Romania 461Iran, Islamic Rep. of 418 20 Iran, Islamic Rep. of 403Colombia 360 21 Colombia 380

DO WE LET GRADING INTERFERE WITH LEARNING?

• Do some students receive good grades while learning little, while other learn much and get poor grades?

• Is there a disconnect between learning and grading?• Should nonacademic factors weigh in? Should they

be separated out?• Which weighs more, a students effort or his/her

learning?• Does a deadline mean anything?• Does extra credit promote the learning?

Minnetonka Public Schools Policy #626 (Assessment & Grading)

• Contain meaningful feedback.• Be honest, fair, transparent, credible, useful and user

friendly.• Be criterion referenced.• Align with curriculum.• Consistency within and among courses, grade levels,

departments, and/or schools.• Communicate in a clear and timely manner.• Have high expectations.• Reflect academic achievement.• Developmentally appropriate.

Standardized Tests

Do they assess standards?Measure Progress?Diagnose strengths and weaknesses?Placement Evidence?Help Plan for Improvement?Accountability?High Stakes? For Whom?

Terminology Confusion?

• Norm vs Criterion Referenced (group or established criteria comparison)

• Summative vs Formative (final/for)• Modification vs Accommodation

(change/rearrange)• Validity vs Reliability

MCA-II Levels

• (D) Does Not Meet the Standards (0 Index Pt.)

• (P) Partially Meets the Standards (.5 Index Pt.)

• (M) Meets the Standards ( 1 Index Pt.)

• (E) Exceeds the Standards ( 1 Index Pt.)

MCA-II Scoring

• 1 point is awarded for students who score at or above x50, (x representing grade level).

• 0.5 point is awarded for students who score between x40 and x49 or in the “Partially Meets the Standards” level.

• 0 points for students whose score is x39 and below or in the “Does Not Meet the Standards” level.

The problem with doing nothing, is that you never know when you are done!

If the purpose of school is truly to ensure high levels of learning for all students, schools will:

• Clarify what each student is expected to learn.• Monitor each student’s learning on a timely

basis.• Create systems to ensure students receive

additional time and support if they are not learning.

Knowing the Why!

Key to Successful Teaching

• COMMUNICATING!Early and Often

• Using triangulation ownershipStudent – Parents - School

Communicating

Examples of purposeful data to share with parents

• Report Card Grades• State Norm Data – MCA II (NCLB)• National Norm Data – MAP measure of

academic progress (NWEA)• Common Assessments (comparing same

curriculum

Parent Conference Strategies

Be familiar with data you are sharing (I like sharing with the student first)

Put data in context with overall performance Talk “with” not “at” using a team approach

sharing ownership. Basic easy to understand language using % or

quartiles. Use approximate ranges addressing strengths

and weaknesses. Highlighting growth!

Example: Data Warehouse

• View Point Demo Site

• https://dw.erdc.k12.mn.us/vpdemomn0910