Building a Comprehensive Assessment System The Role of Assessment in Supporting RTI

1. Building a Comprehensive Assessment SystemThe Role of Assessment in Supporting RTI Rhode Island RTI Initiative Module # 3 2007

2. A coordinated system of supports for all students What is it? A problem-solving process A school-wide instruction and intervention system A way to make data-based decisions A shared responsibility Part of the special education, personal literacy plan and secondary reform process

3. Goals of Session Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the following: • Assessment data drives instruction and intervention decisions. • Assessment ensures that progress is being made (individual student, classroom, school, and district). • Assessment gives teachers and students frequent and useful feedback about learning.

4. What does it take to meet the needs of 100% of the students 100% of the time? • Use assessment to drive instruction • Use data to make important educational decisions • Monitor student progress to inform instruction • Use a problem solving approach to make decisions • Intervene early • Use a collaborative model of service delivery (shared responsibility) • Use research-based instruction/intervention matched to students’ needs

5. Turn and Talk A More Powerful Vision “If assessments of learning provide evidence of achievement for public reporting, then assessments for learning serve to help students learn more. The crucial distinction is between assessment to determine the status of learning and assessment to promote greater learning.” Stiggins (2002, Phi Delta Kappan)

6. Activity Jigsaw the article “Assessment Crisis: The Absence of Assessment FOR Learning” by Richard J. Stiggins The purpose of this activity is to create a shared understanding among school team members of the difference between assessment for learning and assessment of learning.

7. Jigsaw Assignments • Introduction: Everyone • The Evolution of Our Vision of Excellence in Assessment: #1 • The Flaw in the Vision: #2 • A More Powerful Vision: #3 • Are Teachers Ready? #4 • Relevant Position Statements: #5 • Balancing Assessments of and for Learning: #6 • Anticipating the Benefits of Balance: #7 • An Action Plan: #8

8. Raising Student Achievement Through Assessment “Summative assessment requires that teachers (or other assessors) become members of a community of practice, while formative assessment requires that the learners become members of the same community of practice.” Dylan Wiliam

9. Kinds of Assessment Outcome Measurement • Provides data about what has been accomplished over a period of time • Provides broader information about programs and student learning Screening • Predicts which students are likely to experience difficulty • Identifies students who are at-risk and in need of further diagnostic assessment RIDE PreK-12 Literacy Policy December 2005

10. Kinds of Assessment Diagnostic Measurement • Provides more precise and in-depth analysis of a student’s strengths and weaknesses • Determines more specifically problematic areas for the student • Pinpoints needs and helps determine appropriate interventions Progress Monitoring • Informs the teacher about a student’s progress • Determines if the student is making progress • Provides timely measures to inform instruction RIDE PreK-12 Literacy Policy December 2005

11. What is the purpose of each kind of assessment? Turn and Talk Of Learning For Learning

12. What types of assessments does your school/district currently use? Activity: Identify the name and type of assessments used by your district in the area of literacy. Align each assessment with the GLE Content Cluster each assesses. Example: The GRADE is a screening and diagnostic measure in the areas of vocabulary and comprehension.

13. OUTCOME/SCREENING DISTRICT/CLASSROOM PROGRESS MONITORING DIAGNOSTIC INTERVENTION/PROGRESS MONITORING DIAGNOSTIC INTERVENTION/PROGRESS MONITORING

15. Response To Intervention is … the practice of providing high-quality instruction and interventions matched to student need, monitoring progress frequently to make decisions about instruction so that we meet the needs of 100% of the students 100% of the time. Adapted from: National Association of State Director’s of Special Education (2005)

16. Monitoring Progress Frequently Grouping students for instruction based on student skill, monitoring their progress over small periods of time, adjusting instruction based on the data and providing kids feedback on their performance… one of the most powerfulsets of educational practices that exists. Dan Reschly

17. THREE LEVELS OF PROGRESS MONITORING: District/School: provides evidence to make informed district/school decisions for resource allocations, professional development planning/ implementation, program planning and evaluation. Classroom: is on-going and includes tasks typically used during the instructional process (curriculum embedded). It measures student’s learning based on systematic observation and guides the specifics of instruction within the curriculum. Intervention: occurs frequently (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly) for students with intervention plans. The results of this type of progress monitoring inform instructional decisions (e.g. the PLP process is used for reading interventions) and shows the effectiveness of the interventions.

18. Intervention progress monitoring using CBM • Are assessments to monitor progress • Are designed to serve as “indicators” of academic achievement. • CBM doesn’t measure everything, but measures the important things. • Are sensitive to improvement in short periods of time. • Are designed to be as short as possible to ensure “do-ability”. • Are curriculum-independent.

19. Characteristics of CBM • Standardized • Enable multiple forms • Inexpensive • Quick and easy to administer • Rely on visual displays of the information to determine progress and make instructional decisions

21. Math Computation Taken from Fuchs, L. S., Hamlett, C. A., & Fuchs, D. (1998). Monitoring Basic Skills Progress: Basic Math Computation (2nd ed.). [computer program]. Austin, TX: ProEd. Available: from http://www.proedinc.com

22. Research Indicates: • CBM produces accurate, meaningful information about students’ academic levels and growth; • When teachers use CBM to inform their instructional decisions, students achieve better.

23. Charting Progress Monitoring Results How do we know if the Intervention is working? AND… How do we use these data to make decisions?

24. Action Planning • What does our school need to do differently to make assessment effective in the Response to Intervention (RTI) process and to meet the needs of all learners all of the time?

25. Action Planning

26. If you’re not hopelessly confused, you’re out of touch!If you are hopelessly confused, then you only have one choice — try stuff.Tom Peters,Embracing Chaos, 1993