Understanding PARCC February 2013

1. Understanding PARCC February 2013

2. Why Higher Standards and New Assessments Now? By the year 2020, 65% of all jobs will require some postsecondary education or training. To ensure future economic sustainability, we must prepare all students to access postsecondary opportunities: • The PARCC assessment system will impact 21 million students. 8 million of these students attend Title I schools. 1/3 of college freshmen need remedial courses • CCSS and PARCC have the potential to substantially improve educational equity, postsecondary opportunity, and economic mobility when implemented with fidelity by K-12 and embraced by postsecondary institutions.

3. By States…for States • 17 states plus DC • 15 million students in tested grades • Aligned to the Common Core State Standards • Developed by educators in nearly two dozen states • 2013-14 field testing • 2014-15 roll out

4. By Educators for Students • Thousands of K-12 educatorsare leading test development • More than 1,000 educators serve as PARCC Educator Leader Cadre members, spearheading professional development • Hundreds of faculty from colleges and universities are working side by side with their K-12 colleagues

5. Tests Worth Taking • More challengingthan current tests • Next-generation design • Measures college and career readiness • Aligned to the Common Core State Standards • Measures reading, writing, and mathematics—with a focus on critical thinking • Timely data for students and teachers • Comparable scores across states

6. Promoting Student Access PARCC is committed to the following principles: • Use Universal Design principles to create accessible tests • Measure the full range of complexity of the CC standards • Use technology to make the assessment highly accessible • Conduct bias and sensitivity reviews of all items

7. Supporting Classroom Teachers INSTRUCTIONAL TOOLS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT K–12 Educators TIMELY ACHIEVEMENT DATA “PEER-TO-PEER” LEARNING

8. PARCC Assessment Design: The Basics

9. AssessmentsELA/Literacy and Mathematics, Grades 3–11 Beginning of School Year End of School Year Flexible administration Performance-Based Assessment DiagnosticAssessment Mid-Year Assessment End-of-Year Assessment Speaking and Listening Assessment Key: Optional Required

10. Getting All Students College and Career Ready Ongoing student support/interventions Success In first-year, credit-bearing, postsecondary coursework Voluntary K–2 assessment being developed, aligned to the Common Core State Standards Timely data showing whether ALL students are on track for college and career readiness College readiness score to identify who is ready for college-level coursework • Targeted interventions and supports: • State-developed 12th-grade bridge courses Professional development for educators

11. Performance Levels • PARCC will have 5 performance levels • Each of the proposed performance levels includes: • Policy claims, which describe educational implications for students at a particular performance level. • General content claims, which describe academic knowledge and skills students across grade levels performing at a given performance level are able to demonstrate.

12. PARCC Assessment Development: State Educator Led Design

13. State Led Design and Development • Educators in the PARCC consortium can trust that test items reflect the Common Core State Standards and the quality expectations of teachers in their states

14. State Educators Review Every Item

15. Bias and Sensitivity Review • Purpose: • Review test materials for potential sources of bias and stereotypes. • Apply professional test development standards to ensure materials are fair and not insensitive or offensive • Guiding Questions for Bias and Sensitivity Review: • Does the passage/item/task disadvantage any population (gender, race, ethnicity, language, religion, socioeconomic status, disability or geographic region) for non-educationally relevant reasons? • Does the passage/item/task contain controversial or emotionally charged subject matter that is not supported by the Common Core State Standards? • Is the passage/item/task potentially offensive, demeaning, insensitive, or negative toward any population? • Does the passage/item/task depict any population in a stereotypical manner?

16. Timeline Through First PARCC Administration in 2014-2015 1st Year Assessment Administration Fall 2014: Performance-Based and End of Year for Block Schedules 1st Year Assessment Administration Spring 2015: Performance-Based and End of Year All Phase 1 Items Completed and in the Item Bank for the Field Test Field Test Administered to over 1 Million Students: Performance Based Assessments: March –April End of Year Assessments: May-June Results of Field Test Research Studies Will be Released Spring 2015 Summer 2015 Fall 2013 Winter 2013 Spring 2014 Summer 2014 Fall 2014 Winter 2014 Phase II Item Development Will be Completed Standard Setting Conducted and Scores for 1st Operational Assessments Released Practice Test Available on PARCConline.org Schools and Districts Notified of Selection for Field Testing PARCC Assessment Implementation

17. Item Development: Innovative Items Aligned to the Common Core State Standards

18. What is Different About PARCC’s Development Process? • PARCC states first developed the Model Content Frameworks to provide guidance on key elements of excellent instruction aligned with the Standards. • Then, those Frameworks informed the assessment blueprint design. • Aligned evidence statements and task models followed. So… • PARCC is designing the assessments around exactly the same content shifts the standards expect of teachers and students. • PARCC is communicating in the same voice to teachers as it is to assessment developers 

19. Key Advances of the Common Core ANCHORED IN COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS

20. Model Content Frameworks: A Tool for Teachers • Available in math and ELA/literacy and serve as a guide for the development of the tests • They can help teachers implement the Common Core by providing examples of how the standards could be laid out over the year. • For more on Model Content Frameworks, visit: www.parcconline.org/parcc-model-content-frameworks

21. Evidence-Centered Design (ECD) for the PARCC Assessments

22. In Mathematics, Students will …

23. Three Types of Math Tasks c c a a b b

24. Connecting School to the Real World Students will be expected to: • Apply mathematical ways of thinking to real-world issues and challenges • Develop a depth of understanding of mathematics and demonstrate an ability to apply math concepts and skills to new situations

25. ELA/Literacy Students will have to: • Show they can read and understand complex reading passages • Write persuasively • Conduct research and present findings • Demonstrate speaking and listening skills

26. ELA/Literacy

27. PARCC Implementation Guidance: Technology Readiness http://www.parcconline.org/technology

28. Technology in Schools PARCC tests can be taken on a range of devices including: desktops, laptops, netbooks and tablets. These should be available for instruction and testing. Some rule-of-thumb guidance: • Schools with up to three tested grades should consider having at least one device for every two students for the largest tested grade. • A school that has six tested grades, such as a K–8 school, should consider having one device per student in the largest tested grade.

29. PARCC Implementation Guidance: Accessibility and Accommodations

30. PARCC Accessibility System Features for All Students Tools embedded in the test platform Accessibility Features for All Students Identified in advance Accommodations for Students with Disabilities, English Learners, and English Learners with Disabilities

31. Whatis Included in the Manual • The first edition of the PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual is a comprehensive policy document that will support local educators in the selection, administration, and evaluation of accommodations for the assessment of students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities on the computer-delivered PARCC Mid-Year, Performance-Based, and End-of-Year Assessments. • The manual provides educators with information on the accommodations which, when used on the PARCC End-of-Year, Performance-Based-Assessment, and Mid-Year assessment, will result in a valid score for a student.

32. Translation Policy • PARCC will develop translations of its mathematics assessments into Spanish and other languages as necessary, but use of the translated assessments will be a state decision. The additional costs associated with translating and administering assessments in languages other than English will be shared by the states that use them.

33. PARCC Implementation Guidance: Testing Time, Testing Windows, Cost Estimates, Sustainability

34. Testing Time • PARCC tests are being given instead of, not in addition to, current state tests. Testing time may increase in some states, while it will decrease or stay the same in others. • Estimated time it will take students to complete both ELA/literacy and math tests combined at each grade level: • This represents less than 1 percent of the time a student spends in school. • 8 hours annually in 3rd grade • Just over 9 hours annually in grades 4–5 • Little less than 9.5 hours annually in middle school • Little more than 9.5 hours annually in high school

35. From the Student’s Perspective • Early Spring Performance Based Assessments in Math and Literacy • ELA/Literacy: 3.5 hours to write three essays • Math: 2 hours to work through a few short problems and 6-7 extended math problems • Late Spring: Short answer/Multiple choice Assessments • ELA/Literacy: 2 hours to work through machine-scorable, reading comprehension questions • Math: 1.75-2 hours to work through short mathematics problems •

36. PARCC Testing Windows Schools will have MAXIMUM testing windows within which to complete administration of ELA/literacy and mathematics assessments for all students: • Performance Based Assessment = Maximum of 20 Days • End-of-Year = Maximum of 20 Days Individual students will participate in testing sessions for both the PBA and EOY components in both subjects over five to nine days.

37. PARCC Estimated Costs Similar to Current Median Costs $29.94Current median for State Tests $29.50Reading, Writing & Math This represents less than 1 percent of per pupil spending in the U.S.

38. What Drives the Cost of Quality Assessments? • What drives the cost? • Development of quality test questions for ELA and Mathematics Assessments • Online delivery of assessment • Scoring, including hand scoring essay questions • Data analysis • Reporting •

39. K-16 Educator Engagement

40. Educator Leader Cadres • State Teams: Building local capacity to sustain implementation • 24 members per state totaling almost 600 across PARCC States • Members include: K-16 educators and district-level administrators • Provided with training and tools to understand, support and own the implementation of the CCSS and PARCC assessments • Models of State Engagement: • New Mexico: Classroom and district level ELCs have presented at over 75 functions, events or trainings to date. • Louisiana: Expanded ELC teams locally by training and placing PARCC and CCSS advocates in every state school—bringing the number of ELC members to almost 2,000 across the state. • Building Collaboration and Partnerships • Item reviewer partnership with NEA and AFT • iTunes U Common Core Resources Project with ELC members

41. Higher Education Engagement • Through state level engagement efforts, almost 700 state postsecondary institutions and systems have been involved in the development of the PARCC assessment • PARCC ACCR and Higher Education Leadership Team played an integral role in defining and adopting the College and Career Readiness Determination for placement into entry-level, college-credit bearing courses • Role going forward: • Continue to deepen awareness of the postsecondary role in PARCC • Develop K-12/postsecondary partnerships and governance plans for using the PARCC assessments for placement • Approve and participate in the standard setting and long-term validations processes • Engage higher education in supporting full implementation of the CCSS and PARCC assessments

42. PARCC Scores as Indicators of College Readiness

43. Promoting Success: College without Remediation • Students will be able to enter into entry-level, credit-bearing courses at postsecondary institutions without remediationin ELA/Literacy and/or math • Guaranteed exemptionfrom remedial coursework at more than 700 colleges and universities • For more, go to: www.parcconline.org/parcc-assessment-policies

44. Learn More About PARCC Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers www.parcconline.org On Twitter: @PARCCPlace #askPARCC & #PARCCELC