Tuesday, November 10, 2015
State Release of PARCC Assessment Data
State
Release of PARCC Assessment Data
An
Update from the Assistant Superintendent for Learning & Teaching, November
2015
If
you are having difficulty viewing this, we have attached the information as a
pdf. You can also access it at our Edline
Site or
the Reading
Public Schools Blog.
PARCC
results released
As you may know,
the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)
released statewide PARCC data a couple of weeks ago. Today, the DESE has
released individual school and district results for English Language Arts
and Mathematics for grades 3-8, as well as the Student Growth
Percentile (SGP) and Composite Performance Index (CPI) data. (MCAS scores
for all levels of Science, as well as ELA and Mathematics for high school were
released previously.) The DESE has reported that student achievement “may
appear lower in some grades on PARCC than on MCAS, because PARCC is designed to
be a more rigorous test.” However, as our staff in all grades have been
working to align both curriculum and instructional strategies to the higher
expectations of the state’s revised standards, we have been eager to receive
this data to support and inform that continuing effort.
Achievement
Levels, Student Growth, Group Progress
Unlike MCAS, there
is no PARCC achievement level called “proficient,” but Level 4
represents the point at which students have “met expectations.” Level 5
indicates that students have “exceeded expectations.” PARCC is scored on
five achievement levels:
- Level 1: Did not yet meet
expectations
- Level 2: Partially met
expectations
- Level 3: Approached
expectations
- Level 4:
Met
Expectations
- Level 5:
Exceeded
Expectations
The Student Growth
Percentile (SGP) measures how much a student’s performance has improved from
one year to the next relative to his or her academic peers (other students
statewide with similar scores in prior years). The Composite Performance
Index (CPI) measures the extent to which groups (districts, schools, and
subgroups) are progressing toward full proficiency. When examining the data for
student groups, the transitional CPI can be used for comparing results across
years, and the median SGP can be used for measuring growth from one
year to the next. The DESE defines moderate growth to be between
the 40-60 percentile, with low growth as below the 40th
percentile and high growth as above the 60th
percentile. (See the attached tables for further explanation of both SGP
and CPI.)
Some
initial findings
- The percentage of Reading
students in grades 3-8 who met or exceeded expectations
is 12 points higher than the state average for English Language Arts, and
13 points higher for Mathematics.
- All 20 of the median Student
Growth Percentiles (SGP) in both ELA and Math for the five elementary
schools are in the moderate or high growth range (with 11 of those in the high
growth range).
- Twenty (20) of the 30 Composite
Performance Indexes (CPI) in ELA and Math for the five elementary schools
represent an improvement over the previous year. (As we continue to
monitor and address the accountability status for the Joshua Eaton
Elementary School, we are pleased that two of those are rather significant
increases in Math at both the 4th and 5th grade
levels.)
- The CPI for the 8th
grade Algebra I test is 100, meaning that all students in 8th
grade Algebra I either met or exceeded expectations (which was 20% higher
than the state average).
- The district’s K-3 curriculum
progress will be reviewed, as we examine a few low indicators in the 3rd
grade results.
- While we are generally pleased
with the aggregate CPIs for “all students,” we must continue to
disaggregate the data to specifically address the high needs
subgroup—especially students with disabilities.
In upcoming weeks,
the district, school, and student level results will be used to identify our
current strengths and weaknesses, review curriculum and instructional
alignment, and identify appropriate interventions for students where
applicable. We will also utilize recently released assessment items—including
test questions, scoring rubrics, and examples of scored student responses—to
inform our practice. (See the below link to access the PARCC released
assessment information.) Accountability
and assistance levels for schools are “held harmless” for this first year of a
new assessment (meaning that 2014 levels may stay the same or improve, but
cannot decline). The DESE has announced, however, that it will still be
releasing accountability reports for all districts in early December, and we
look forward to reviewing that information. The DESE also reports that individual
student reports for PARCC will be shipped to the districts by the end of
the month, and so parents/guardians can expect to receive those in the
beginning of December as well.
An overview
presentation of this district assessment data will be given for the School
Committee on November 23rd, and each school will also be doing its
own school-level presentation during December. If you have any questions,
feel free to contact your school Principal or the district administration
offices.
See the
attached summary tables for a complete overview of the district PARCC results.
Or click on
the below link to access this information Edline:
PARCC Released Items can be accessed at this link:
Further
information regarding the PARCC results can be accessed at this DESE link:
Monday, November 2, 2015
Extra Candy? Join Barrows School in donating it to a good cause!
Have a lot of extra candy in your house right now? Talk with your child about the benefits of 'giving back' to others. Barrows school will be hosting a collection point for Operation Gratitude. Operation Gratitude sends donated Halloween candy to our troops serving overseas. This is a great way for our children to willingly give to those who can't be here to enjoy it and who are working hard to keep us all safe. If your family would like to contribute, please have a PARENT/ADULT drop the candy off at the office drop-off point between now and Monday, November 9th. We will take care of the postage costs. (please do not send candy in with your child's backpack, and drop it off at the office during pick-up or drop-off times if needed!)
Read more here: https://opgrat.wordpress.com/2013/07/18/halloween-candy-for-the-troops/
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