Texas Assessment Conference 2011

1. Texas Assessment Conference 2011 Notes from Sessions C. Castillo Dec. 5 & 6, 2011

2. Standards for STAAR Grades 3-8 • Will be set in October 2012 • EOC standards are set first (in February 2012)

3. Accommodations for STAAR, STAAR-M, STAAR-L, & TELPAS Presented by TEA’s Cari Wieland, Jana Owen, & Kim Brannan

4. Accommodation updates • The TEA Accommodations webpage is currently down as updates are being made in correlation to the sessions at the Conference • By the middle of December, TEA will repost this information, hopefully at or near full completion • The link to the website is http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/accommodations/staar-telpas/ • This webpage replaces the Accommodations Manual that was published annually under TAKS

5. Optional Test Accommodations • Should not be distributed to all students; instead, they should be made available in front of the classroom or you may ask students prior to testing if they need them (i.e. highlighters, overlays, scratch paper, place markers) • The teacher’s documentation can show who used these accommodations • No documentation is required by the Campus Coordinator beyond that which is normally used for planning the testing day • The Individual / Small Group Testing accommodation has been reclassified as Type 1

6. Routinely, Independently, & Effectively Keywords when determining whether an accommodation is appropriate for a child in a testing situation

7. Dyslexia Bundle • No longer in place for STAAR • Type 1 accommodation available that allows TA to read aloud test questions & answer choices (NEVER the passage; never the grammar revising & editing portion) • Extra testing time (to the end of the day) may be allowed if the student meets the eligibility criteria

8. Spelling Assistance • Slides from Nov. 18 TETN were referenced (link on accommodations slide earlier in PPT) • Spelling assistance does not include the TA writing the student’s response to the writing prompt

9. Reminders to Stay on Task • Being added to triangle as Type 1 • Examples: • More frequent reminders (or maybe less frequent) • Visual reminders (i.e. color cards) • Tactile reminders (i.e. paper clipping portions of the test and working in chunks)

10. Basic Transcribing • Transcribing is being broken down into two levels of support (change from original triangle) • Type 2 • TA transfers student responses when student can’t independently • Eligibility criteria is still under development • May include braille, large print, fine motor disability, physical disability, visual tracking issues, or emergency situation (i.e. broken arm) • Student circles or points to answer & TA marks on form • Student may also type or write responses to multiple choice questions, griddables, or prompt & the TA transfers the information • Could also involve those who use speak-to-text software

11. Complex Transcribing • Type 3 (requires ARF) • TA records on answer document student’s dictated response when student is unable to do so • Guidelines forthcoming

12. Extra Time (Same Day) – Type 2 • TA allows extra time beyond four-hour limit until end of regular school day for student to complete testing • Student must meet one of these criteria: • Impairment in vision • Dyslexia • Disability that affects ability to focus (i.e. ED) • Physical condition / disability that necessitates multiple or frequent breaks • NOT for test anxiety • Testing should start at the beginning of the day and students should be allowed to leave the room when done

13. Extra Day (Type 3 - ARF) • Disability that child cannot complete testing • Severe visual impairment • Emotional or behavioral disability – can’t sustain working and the end of day accommodation is not effective • Medical or physical disability with severe fatigue – decreased energy / stamina • Two full, consecutive, regular school days • Writing test would be three full regular school days • ARD paperwork indicates “pending TEA approval”

14. Supplemental Aids • TEA’s revisions to this subcategory were intended to be specific and allow for consistency • References were made and examples shown that correlate again to the Nov. 18 TETN • Mnemonic devices in all content areas can’t contain real content (i.e. PEMDAS – Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally [not parenthesis, exponents, etc.]) • Blank graphic organizers in all contents – NO words, colors • Place value chart with column labels is OK, but no numerical examples

15. Supplemental Aids (cont.) • Math pictoral models OK (i.e. bars with fractional equivalents ½, 1/3, ¼) • Parts of speech OK and language/mechanical rules (see examples on TETN)

16. Answer Documents • Will have columns for each content area to bubble whether Type 1, 2, and/or 3 were used for that content

17. TEA Accommodations Task Force Rep for HCISD • Erin McNeely

18. STAAR-Modified Presented by TEA’s Cari Wieland, Jana Owen, & Kim Brannan

19. General Information on the Test • Participation Requirements Form will be released in Spanish form • For the content areas of Math and Science, these tests may be given in the same testing room as STAAR (at discretion of CTC) • The test is okay at the federal level until 2015. It may change at that point [AGAIN!]

20. Cutpoints and Standards Setting for STAAR Presented by TEA’s Gloria Zyskowski & Pearson’s Laurie Davis

21. Standards • Cut scores that match students to their appropriate achievement levels • STAAR Standards: • Content • Performance • Accountability • This session addressed Performance standards only

22. Alignment of Performance Standards • Starts with • College readiness (EOC) • Align to high school standards • Vertically align down to elementary

23. Achievement Levels • I – Advanced (former Commended) • II – Satisfactory (former Met Standard) • III – Unsatisfactory (former Did Not Meet Standard)

24. Advanced • Well-prepared for next course or grade • Think critically • Apply assessed knowledge in varied contexts, both familiar and unfamiliar • High likelihood of success in next grade / course with little or no academic intervention

25. Satisfactory • Sufficiently prepared for next course / grade • Generally demonstrate • Reasonable likelihood of future success • May still require academic intervention

26. Unsatisfactory • Inadequately prepared • Don’t demonstrate sufficient understanding • Unlikely to succeed without significant, ongoing academic intervention

27. Implementing New Performance Standards • STAAR 3-8 in late fall 2012 or early 2013 • New standards will be used in state and federal accountability starting in 2013 • Legislative requirement to review performance standards at least once every 3 years (1st review would then be in 2014) • Phase-in for Level II (Satisfactory) to provide districts with appropriate amount of time to: • Improve instruction • Provide new professional development • Increase teacher effectiveness • Close knowledge gaps

28. STAAR Reading – Creating Meaningful Connections Between Assessment and Instruction in Grades 3-8 Presented by TEA’s Susan Robertson and Catherine Stapleton

29. STAAR Reading assessments will emphasize students’ ability • To go beyond a literal understanding of what they read • To make connections within and across texts • To think critically / inferentially about different types of texts • To understand how to use text evidence to confirm the validity of their ideas

30. STAAR Reading Sample Released Test Questions • Released sample test questions are representative of the cognitive complexity of STAAR Reading items • The grades 3-8 Reading sample release includes two reading selections and 15 sample items per grade level • The newly-assessed genres of poetry, drama, and persuasive texts are represented in the sample release • Release items come largely from supporting standards, although the test has these items in a minority, because these are new genres being assessed differently from TAKS

31. 2011 STAAR Reading Field Test Data • Spring 2011 were field test items • Overall students performed well on the STAAR field test items across all genres • The data suggests that students are less familiar with poetry, drama, and persuasive genres • Results suggest that identifying theme is a weakness across all genres • Theme: A theme is an underlying central and/or unifying idea that is repeated or developed throughout a work. Themes often explore timeless and universal ideas and are almost always implied

32. ELA/R Student Expectations and STAAR • The specific language of the student expectations is reflected on the STAAR Reading assessments • The focus of instruction needs to be on more than the verbs in the student expectations • Student success on STAAR requires that students know and use the language of the ELA/R TEKS in the classroom • Ex: Which poetic structure is found in the poem (Grade 4)? • 4(A): Students are expected to explain how the structural elements of poetry (e.g. rhyme, meter, stanzas, line breaks) relate to form (e.g. lyrical poetry, free verse)

33. Additional Examples of Student Expectations • Grade 5 Fiction 6(B): Students are expected to explain the roles and functions of characters in various plots, including their relationships and conflicts • Grade 3 Sensory Language 10(A): Students are expected to identify language that creates a graphic, visual experience and appeals to the senses

34. Student Success in Reading and on STAAR • Students must be provided in-depth instruction in all genres represented by the ELA/R TEKS • Genres should not be taught in isolation and/or at only one point in the school year • Students should routinely compare/contrast genres. Ex: How does drama differ from other literary genres? How do persuasive texts differ from expository texts? How does author’s purpose differ across genres?

35. Student Success in Reading and on STAAR (cont.) • Students must learn to analyze both fiction and expository genres – the readiness genres – at elementary, middle, and high school • Students must receive thorough instruction in the genres/TEKS prior to the year the genre is assessed on STAAR • Literary nonfiction begins in 1st grade • Drama begins in 2nd grade • Persuasive text begins in 3rd grade

36. Student Success in Reading and on STAAR (cont.) • Students must understand the relationship between reading test-taking strategies and making meaning • Students should be taught to use test-taking strategies as an individual “toolkit” (i.e. process of elimination) • Students must learn to use reading test-taking strategies judiciously, especially given the four-hour time limit • STAAR is an inferential test, so old TAKS test-taking strategies won’t work

37. STAAR Reading • Should be real-world, authentic reading

38. Data, Data, Data…Now What? Presented by Kristi Hartwick, Dana Curry, Doris Scoggin, and Dawne McDougall

39. Three Types of Assessment • Summative • STAAR • SAT/ACT • Formative • STAR • Diagnostic • IRI • TPRI

40. Summative Assessment • A “culmination” measure that “sums it up” • Mastery assessment • Assessment after instruction • Data that tells “what happened”

41. Formative Assessment • Process of assessing student achievement during instruction to help determine whether an instructional program is effective for individual students or groups of students • General indicators allow for both the Universal Screening and the frequent monitoring of student progress through direct, continuous assessment of basic skills • Data tells us “what’s happening” (right now!!) • When students are progressing, you continue using the instructional program • When tests show that students are not progressing, you can adjust your instructional programs in meaningful ways

42. Diagnostic Assessments • Measures that indicate specific skill strengths and those areas needing improvement • Results may indicate skill areas needing intervention/instruction. Programming may then address students’ needs

43. How these assessments work together: • Formative data allows us to understand students’ baseline performance and ongoing growth, monitor progress toward successful performance standards, adjust instruction based on data…thus, you can “Do something about it” every step of the way • Diagnostic data is collected as needed for certain students. Provides a deeper understanding that allows us to “zone in” and implement instructional strategies and/or supports needed to promote achievement • Summative data tells us if students “got there” successfully, once instruction is complete

44. Use formative assessment data to answer these questions • Are most students achieving comparable to their typical peers? • Are high performing students being challenged so that their high growth rates are maintained? • Are struggling students learning at a faster rate that will close the gap? • Struggling learners must learn at a faster rate in order to “catch up” with their “average” peers (moving target) • Are all student groups (AYP) progressing at similar rates?

45. Preparing Students for STAAR • Assess the rigor of the district’s core curriculum under STAAR standards • Identify struggling learners through a process of universal screening (formative assessment) • Plan for differentiation within core instruction • Add targeted interventions to core instruction • Focus on transforming instruction through the use of formative assessment • Use universal screening data to determine if students have enrolled grade level reading, writing, and math skills in order to access grade level TEKS • Use curriculum related benchmark data tied to the specificity and complexity of the assessed TEKS

46. Preparing Students for STAAR (cont.) • Add interventions to core instruction • Match reading, writing, and math skills below enrolled grade level to interventions that target these specific skills • Match identified deficits in academic vocabulary, persistence with problem-solving, or lack of real-world application of learning to interventions that target these curriculum processes

47. Intervention / Acceleration • “A school district shall provide accelerated instruction to each student who fails to perform satisfactorily on: • Grade 5 & 8 Reading and Math • Any EOC assessment • Any struggling student needs data-informed instruction driven by formative assessment • The earlier difficulties are detected through formative & diagnostic assessments, the greater the likelihood that growth can occur

48. From a Struggling Student to an Achieving Student • Do you know the student’s baseline skill level? • Do you know the achievement goal for the student? (should be the end of enrolled grade level) • Do you know the weekly rate of improvement the student needs to make in order to attain the goal? • High school students need at least end of 8th grade average reading, writing, and math skills in order to access TEKS for any required course

49. STAAR Answer Documents Presented by TEA’s Mariana Vassileva & Pearson’s Paul Matzen

50. Answer Documents • STAAR, STAAR Spanish, and STAAR-L – one combined answer document • STAAR Modified – separate answer document • STAAR Alternate – no answer documents submitted • Grade 3 – answer document, not a scorable booklet (alternating ABCD, FGHJ) • Precoded labels – EOC, Modified, and grade 4 and 7 writing • Precoded answer documents – STAAR grades 3-8 reading, math, science, and social studies