Larkspur-Corte Madera School District Local Writing Assessments 2012

1. Larkspur-Corte Madera School District Local Writing Assessments 2012

2. 2011 - Conclusions based upon the sampling: • Girls continue to outperform boys in writing at the early grades, but boys do “catch up” by Eighth Grade. • The data suggests that fewer boys are proficient at writing tasks in the early grades, and that writing may be more difficult for boys than girls. • Developmental factors may play a role in writing success…(maturation, fine motor skills, cognitive development.)

3. Next Steps from 2011 • This year, ALL grade levels will be asked to use a consistent 6 point rubric to score writing samples. • Grade level and Department teams will be meeting regularly to discuss the administration of writing prompts, create protocols for administration, select anchor papers if needed and develop uniform scoring procedures. • Three benchmark writing assessments will be administered during identified assessment windows at ALL grade levels each year using uniform procedures. • With K-8 vertical articulation as our goal, lead teams, grade levels and department teams will focus on adhering to best practices which will allow us to communicate more effectively about writing to all constituencies.

4. 2012- Where are we now? • K-8 teachers have developed 6 trait writing rubrics and are continuing to refine them. • K-8 teachers are learning more about Common Core Standards, and revising/creating/testing new prompts. • K-8 teachers are beginning to engage in conversations about how writing is taught across the grade levels.

5. What are the 6 + 1 Traits of Writing? • Ideas, the main message; • Organization, the internal structure of the piece; • Voice, the personal tone and flavor of the author's message; • Word Choice, the vocabulary a writer chooses to convey meaning; • Sentence Fluency, the rhythm and flow of the language; • Conventions, the mechanical correctness; • and Presentation, how the writing actually looks on the page.

6. What are the Test Types and Purposes inCommon Core Writing CCCS identifies Test Types and Purposes for Writing. Opinion/Argument Informative/Explanatory Narrative

8. Scoring Scale Using a six point system allows us to view the range of scores possible at each grade level. The outliers in this range are 1 and 6. Most scores will fall between 2 and 5. The Proficient score of 4 is not the median score. There is a tendency to score individuals toward the median, so a score of 4 requires the scorer to establish a clear definition of what Proficient looks like.

9. Neil Cummins School Writing Assessments 2012

10. Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population 2011-12 Writing Scores - Neil Cummins – 2nd Grade141 students Writing Scores Writing Scores 2nd Grade – Spring 2012 - All Students (141) 2nd Grade – Spring 2012 – Boys (74) 2ndGrade – Spring 2012 – Girls (67) Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

11. 2011-12 Writing Scores - Neil Cummins – 3rd Grade132 students 3rd Grade – Spring – Boys (71) 3rd Grade – Spring – Girls (61) Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores 3rd Grade – Spring – All Students (132) Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

12. 2011-12 Writing Scores - Neil Cummins – 4th Grade135 students 4th Grade – Spring – Boys (72) 4th Grade – Spring – Girls (63) Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores 4th Grade – Spring – All Students (135) Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

13. 2012 Writing Scores - Neil Cummins CST Writing Application4th Grade – 142 students For CST Writing, a single rater gives the student a response score of 1-4. The score is then doubled to a range of scores of 2 – 8. Score 2 – 0 % of Student Population Score 4- 0% of Student Population Score 6-24% of Student Population Score 8-76% of Student Population

14. Hall Middle School Writing Assessments Spring 2012

15. 5th Grade – Writing 2012(5 classes – 116 students) Spring 2012– Boys (67) Spring 2012 – Girls (49) Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores Spring 2012 – All Students (116) Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

16. 6th Grade – Writing 2012143 students Spring 2012 – Boys (81) Spring 2012 – Girls (62) Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores Spring 2012- All Students (143) Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

17. 7th Grade – Writing 2012149 students Spring 2012 – Boys (72) Spring 2012- Girls (77) Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores Spring 2012 – All Students (149) Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

18. 7th Grade – CST Writing Application 2012161 students For CST Writing, a single rater gives the student a response score of 1-4. The score is then doubled to a range of scores of 2 – 8. Score 2 – 0%of Student Population Score 4 – 6% of Student Population Score 6 – 25% of Student Population Score 8 – 67% of Student Population 2% discrepancy

19. 8th Grade – Writing 2012137 students Spring 2012 – Boys Spring 2012 - Girls Percentage of Student Population Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores Writing Scores Spring 2012 – All Students Writing Scores Key 1 = Beginning 2 = Emerging 3 = Developing 4 = Proficient 5 = Advanced 6 = Exceptional Percentage of Student Population Writing Scores

20. 2012 Findings • Teachers have engaged in very thoughtful work around writing. They continue to refine the rubrics and develop writing prompts that are aligned with Common Core Writing Standards. • Conversations about writing will continue this year to explore the methods and programs that are being used to teach writing, and how writing is integrated with other subjects.

21. 2012 Student Trends • Girls continue to attain proficiency in writing earlier than boys do. • Most boys do improve their writing skills gradually and most become as proficient as girls by eighth grade. • Using both qualitative and quantitative measures of writing might prove more insightful when making comparisons between boys and girls.

22. Other Considerations • As we move more toward inquiry and project based learning, the types of writing prompts and activities may become more appealing to different types of learners who do not typically do as well with “on demand” types of assessments. • Using reflective writing propmts may also prove to provide very interesting information about students performance in writing.