Assessment
The primary purpose of assessment in MRPS is to inform learning, instruction, and our learners.
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Formative Assessment is a planned, ongoing process used by all students and teachers during learning and instruction to elicit and use evidence of student learning to improve student understanding. Formative assessment opportunities help:
-Clarify learning goals and shift instructional approaches
-Analyze evidence of student thinking
-Help students engage in self-assessment and peer feedback
-Provide actionable feedback
Example: Formative assessment can be as simple as asking a group of students to give a thumbs up, thumbs sideways, thumbs down to demonstrate their own self-assessment of their understanding. From this simple glance an educator can adjust their instruction to better meet the needs of all learners.
A formative assessment could also be a short quiz or assessment, with low stakes in terms of grading and reporting.
Summative Assessments are generally administered at key benchmark moments in a unit or year of instruction, such as mid-year or mid-unit and end of year or end of unit. These assessments are intended to evaluate student learning by comparing performance to a standard or benchmark (utilizing proficiency scales).
Example: At the end of a unit there is a
”final exam” that serves as the summative assessment for that unit of learning. -
View our annually reviewed Local Assessment Plan that outlines which summative assessments are given each year at the different grade levels.
Kindergarten Name Assessment - The Name Assessment will identify a student’s ability to identify, spell, and write their name. A child's name is one of the first words that they understand and identify with and it is a gateway skill to other important learning. During this assessment students will be asked to locate their name among a selection of 5 student names, say the letters in their name, and write their name either with or without a model. This assessment is administered at the beginning of the school year and identifies students needing targeted instruction in one or more of these skills.
Kindergarten PASS- Phonological Awareness Skills Screener: The PASS is a screening tool designed for kindergarten through second-grade students, although it may also be used with older students experiencing difficulty developing phonological awareness. This assessment is designed to help teachers detect students at risk for reading and spelling difficulties by assessing a student's phonological awareness skills. Phonological awareness is the understanding of sounds in spoken words and it is essential for reading because written words correspond to spoken words. This assessment is administered in sections throughout the year to monitor student progress and identify students who may need targeted instruction in this skill.
Kindergarten Letter ID- The Letter Identification Assessment will identify letter forms students can associate with the corresponding letter name. This assessment will inform teachers which letters students can correctly identify and also if they are retaining the letters that are being taught during Tier 1 instruction. This assessment is administered throughout the year to monitor student progress and identify students who may need targeted instruction in this skill.
Kindergarten Letter Sound Assessment - The Letter Sound Assessment will identify letter forms students can associate with the corresponding phoneme or sound. This assessment will inform teachers which letter sounds students correctly identify and if they are retaining the letter sounds that are being taught during Tier 1 instruction. This assessment is administered throughout the year to monitor student progress and identify students who may need targeted instruction in this skill.
Kindergarten Counting and Cardinality Inventory -
3-Minute Reads- From Timothy Rasinski and Nancy Padak this efficient diagnostic assessment measures word recognition (decoding), reading fluency, and comprehension. This allows us to monitor student progress over time across these three dimensions of reading, identify areas of need for individual children, and communicate to parents and others about student progress in reading.
WTW Spelling Inventory- A spelling inventory is an efficient diagnostic assessment that provides reliable and valid measures of what students know about words. Through the use of a feature guide we are able to analyze student results to identify which orthographic features students know and what they are ready to study, as well as their approximate stage. There are three different levels of inventory we utilize depending on the student grade level and developmental stage. These include the Primary Spelling Inventory, Elementary Spelling Inventory, and the Upper-Level Spelling Inventory.
Third Grade Proficiency Assessment- This Renaissance STAR Assessment helps determine where students are on the pathway to meeting the “by the end of 3rd grade” reading proficiency goal. The assessment identifies proficiency on the critical 3rd grade reading proficiency skills.
Elementary Addition Fact Inventory-This interview style fluency inventory is used to assess students' knowledge of addition facts within 20 (on a progression). This tool (progressively) identifies facts known from memory as well as strategies used to figure out those that are not yet known from memory.
Elementary Multiplication Facts Inventory-This interview style fluency inventory is used to assess students' knowledge of multiplication of two one digit numbers. This tool progressively identifies facts known from memory as well as strategies used to figure out those that are not yet known from memory.
PNOA-The Primary Number and Operations Assessment (PNOA) is a multi-purpose mathematics assessment tool for grades K-2 developed by Vermont educators for the VT AOE. Parts of the PNOA are administered in one to one interviews with each student to identify areas of strength and challenge in counting, symbolic notation, operations, and place value, priority standards for grades K-2. This tool can be used in full to further identify areas for instruction and support.
Upper Level Mathematics Foundational Skills Assessment - Assesses students on developmentally appropriate math foundational skills for each grade and supports continued student success in math.
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Renaissance STAR is a tool we utilize to gain a broad insight into student achievement levels in mathematics and literacy.
Star Assessments are short tests that provide teachers with learning data for each student and class.
Star tests are computer adaptive, which means they adjust in difficulty to each answer students provide. This helps teachers get the best data to help students in the shortest amount of testing time (about one-third of the time other tests require).
Students may take a Star test for early literacy, math, or reading. Teachers analyze the data they receive from Star Assessments to learn what students already know and what they are ready to learn next, to monitor student growth, and to determine which students may need additional help.
The STAR screener is a key component of our identification process for academic intervention supports.
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VTCAP refers to the Vermont Comprehensive Assessment Program which includes annual assessments in Mathematics, Literacy, and Science.
Math and Literacy are administered to grades 3-9, while science is administered at 5, 8 and 11.
These are Vermont State coordinated assessments. This past year was the first school year utilizing COGNIA as the testing entity. Results do not arrive until the following school year after administration.
10/26/23 Update:
Scores have been mailed to families via U.S. Postal service. As of yet the official scores of the district are still considered embargoed until the Vermont Agency of Education releases statewide results.
Below are some resources for score interpretation and test design:
Performance Level Indicators - represent the intended interpretations of solid student achievement on the assessment for intended uses of test scores: ELA MATH SCIENCE
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Fifty 4th graders at UES and fifty 8th graders at MSMS have been selected to take NAEP this year.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the largest nationally representative, continuing evaluation of the condition of education in the United States. It has served as a national yardstick of student achievement since 1969. Through The Nation’s Report Card, NAEP informs the public about what American students know and can do in various subject areas and compares achievement among states, large urban districts, and various student groups.
At MSMS, the test will be on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. At UES, the test will be on Wednesday, January 31 and Friday, February 2, 2024.
Example of how our assessment plan has layers that address different data needs, student profiles, and levels of detail in information to better inform instruction and learning.