Assessments

1. Assessments

2. NCTM Assessment Principle • Assessment should support the learning of important mathematics and furnish useful information to both teachers and students. • Assessment should be more than merely a test at the end of instruction to gauge learning. It should be an integral part of instruction that guides teachers and enhances students’ learning.

3. NCTM Assessment Principle • Teachers should be continually gathering information about their students through questions, interviews, writing tasks, and other means. • They can then make appropriate decisions about such matters as reviewing material, re-teaching a difficult concept, or providing something more or different for students who are struggling or need enrichment.

4. NCTM Assessment Principle • To be consistent with the Learning Principle, assessments should focus on understanding as well as procedural skills. • Because different students show what they know and can do in different ways, assessments should also be done in multiple ways, and teachers should look for a convergence of evidence from different sources.

5. NCTM Assessment Principle • Teachers must ensure that all students are given an opportunity to demonstrate their mathematics learning. • For example, teachers should use communication-enhancing and bilingual techniques to support students who are learning English

6. Assessments – Educational Measures • Teachers – to determine students’ progress in learning specific knowledge or skills • Students – to ascertain if they are learning what they are being asked to learn • Parents – to determine how well their children are doing in school

7. Assessments – Educational Measures • Principals – to determine how well their students are learning • School psychologists – to assess students’ particular strengths and needs • School counselors – to guide students in choosing courses of study and careers

8. Assessments –Educational Measures • Lawmakers and policymakers – to set educational priorities and allocate resources • Research and evaluation directors – to collect data to extend general knowledge about educational processes or help evaluate the effectiveness of particular schools programs. • News reporters – to report on the quality of schooling • Lawyers – to argue for or against appropriateness and legality of particular educational practices • Measurement and Assessment in Schools (Worthen, B., et. al., 1998)

9. Assessments • State • National • International

10. State and National Assessments • Connecticut Assessments • Connecticut Mastery Tests (CMTs) • Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT)

11. National and International Assessments • Advanced Placement • Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SATs) • National Assessment of Educational Progress – “The Nations Report Card” • Trends in International Math and Science Study(TIMMS)

12. Connecticut Assessments • Connecticut Mastery Tests (CMTs) have been administered since 1985 • Limited English proficient (LEP) may be exempt from taking the tests • Language arts(reading, writing, listening, and mechanics of language) and mathematics • Given in Spring for grades 3 to 8 • www.cmtreports.com/

13. Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) • Since 1994 • All Grade 10 students • Tested on science, math, reading, and writing • Part of testing system that provides a logical progression from assessing specific objectives at the lower grades to integration and application of skills at high school level • http://capt2.captreports.com/

14. National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) • Department of Education • “The Nations Report Card” • Group comparison by race and ethnicity, gender, type of community, and region • http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/

15. Trends inInternational Math and Science Study (TIMMS) • TIMMS is an educational research project investigating student achievement in mathematics and science in about 40 countries around the world • Objective is to measure and interpret differences in national educations systems to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics and science worldwide

16. TIMSS – How did the United States do in 2003? • http://nces.ed.gov/timss/ • In 2003, U.S. fourth-grade students exceeded the international averages in both mathematics and science. In mathematics, U.S. fourth-graders outperformed their peers in 13 of the other 24 participating countries, and, in science, outperformed their peers in 16 countries.

17. TIMSS – How did the United States do in 2003? • In 2003, fourth-graders in three countries-Chinese Taipei, Japan, and Singapore-outperformed U.S. fourth-graders in both mathematics and science, while students in 13 countries turned in lower average mathematics and science scores than U.S. students.

18. TIMSS – How did the United States do in 2003? • U.S. eighth-graders improved their average mathematics and science performances in 2003 compared to 1995. Moreover, the data suggest that the performance of U.S. eighth-graders in both mathematics and science was higher in 2003 than it was in 1995 relative to the 21 other countries that participated in the studies.

19. TIMSS – How did the United States do in 2003? • U.S. eighth-grade boys and girls, and U.S. eighth-grade Blacks and Hispanics improved their mathematics and science performances from 1995. As a result, the gap in achievement between White and Black eighth-graders narrowed in both mathematics and science over this time period.

20. Connecticut Mastery Tests • For grades 3 to 8 given in Spring… • http://www.cmtreports.com

21. 2007 CMT Grade 3 Results by Content Strand Mathematics Connecticut

22. 2007 CMT Grade 5Results by Content Strand Mathematics Connecticut

23. 2007 CMT Grade 5 Results by Content Strand Mathematics Hartford,Connecticut

24. 2007 CMT Grade 5 Results by Content Strand Mathematics Avon,Connecticut

25. CMT Mathematics Grade 3 Test Blueprint

26. CMT Mathematics Grade 4 Test Blueprint