In a State of Flux: The State of State Assessments DO STATES REMAIN COMMITTED TO HIGHER QUALITY SUMMATIVE TESTS? PRESENTATION TO NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON STUDENT ASSESSMENT| JUNE 2018 1
“What a long, strange trip it’s been.…” 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 PARCC and 48 states adopt USED change Smarter Common Core Next Generation in leadership Balanced report State Standards Science having 26 and 31 Every year between (CCSS) Standards state members Every Student Succeeds 2013 and 2015, 5 to (NGSS) are respectively Act (ESSA) passes; 6 states left PARCC published and maintains the requirement and 3 states left ready for state that states test and report Smarter Balanced ; USED awards grants to PARCC adoption annually against college- The non-test and Smarter Balanced to What’s and career-ready standards participation or “opt develop and implement next- USED awards grant to WIDA but creates more flexibility out” movement generation assessment systems (2011) and ELPA21 (2012) to next? for states to use other peaks in many by the 2014-15 school year develop an English measures of student states proficiency assessment ready learning in addition to for use by the 2015-16 summative testing school year 2 Source: Headline adapted from The Grateful Dead.
Given these changes, in 2017 the Hewlett Foundation asked Ed First to document the “state of state assessments” for the field What we did: 92% 2. Summer/ Fall 2017: Compiled 1. summative assessment information Our response rate from states to confirm data and fill in gaps was 47 out of 51 states/DC (four that did not verify: DC., Kentucky, New Jersey, Tennessee) We compiled a dossier on every state https://goo.gl/pBJJUC We also interviewed leaders in the 3. field to identify cross-state and a summary of trends developments and areas of need https://tinyurl.com/yct5sabk We are grateful to these individuals for their time and contributions to this research and analysis 3 1 See separate PPT file where all 51 state profile slides are compiled
Here were objectives of the Ed First research — and for the presentation and discussion today… What are “high - quality” state summative assessments— and what do we know about which tests are high quality? What choices have states made about PARCC, Smarter Balanced and other testing vendors? What factors may either limit or empower state leaders to make high- quality state tests a more consistent priority? What do recent trends, development and lessons learned suggest for a path forward, to continuing improving test quality? 4
What is a high-quality test? In 2014, CCSSO articulated criteria for state leaders to use in making sure their assessments matched the depth, breadth and rigor of new state academic standards B Align to Standards – English C A Language Arts/Literacy Meet Overall Align to Standards - Assessment Goals and Mathematics Ensure Technical Quality D F Yield Valuable Reports State Specific Criteria on Student Progress and (as desired) Performance E Adhere to Best Practices in Test Administration CCSSO encourages state officials to use these criteria as “they develop procurements and evaluate options for high-quality state summative assessments aligned to college- and career- readiness standards” 5
Why care? Summative tests are one important tool for state and education leader to help schools reset their expectations and ensure students are learning what they need for success Ideally, state tests should: Signal what is important Track how schools and And so states have trying to upgrade their students are tests to prioritize the skills and knowledge progressing that matter most today… Flag where more support or attention Deeper understanding may be needed for Innovating student success Knowledge application Provide complementary information to local Problem solving assessments Writing Synthesizing 6 Source: High Quality Assessment Project (2017) adapted from Georgetown Public Policy Institute; The Noun Project (2018)
Common Core standards — and PARCC and Smarter Balanced tests built to measure them — met the goal of asking more from students Smarter Balanced COLOR KEY: Maps on the following slides show states are BLUE which states used consortia items in the 2017- 11 states fully 18 school year participated in Smarter Balanced: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington 1 state populated its test with Smarter Balanced items: Michigan Looking ahead , this year a state selected a vendor that will use Smarter Balanced items: Indiana 7
Common Core standards — and PARCC and Smarter Balanced tests built to measure them — met the goal of asking more from students New Meridian (PARCC) states COLOR KEY: Maps on the following slides show are ORANGE which states used consortia items in the 2017- 5 states used PARCC test forms: 18 school year District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico 3 states (Colorado, Louisiana and Massachusetts) populated their assessments with PARCC items to varying degrees Although Rhode Island may still be using some PARCC items, state leaders say they have left PARCC (so we don’t count it) Looking ahead , the Illinois SEA is re-bidding its state assessment (but will still use PARCC items), and the new governor of New Jersey has stated he intends to end PARCC testing 8
With No Child Left Behind pressures for testing in most grades and state budget pressures, state tests in 2010 had lots of room for improvement; PARCC and Smarter Balanced raised the bar Fordham Institute and HumRRO review of 4 state tests in 2016 RAND review of 17 state tests in 2011 9 Sources: Data in chart includes two studies by the RAND Corporation on quality of state tests, AP and other common summative assessments (2011 and 2012), as well as research by the Fordham Institute (2016) and HumRRO (2016).
While teachers in many states objected to the increased rigor and time expectations of new tests, teachers who had a chance to examine them more closely were impressed For example, the National Network of State Teachers of the Year convened panels of teachers to study and compare PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments to assessments formerly used by states: Its first study compared new tests to previous tests from Delaware, Illinois, New Hampshire and New Jersey (2015), and a second study compared them to previous tests in Nevada and Oregon (2016) As a teacher, I sympathize with When I had the chance to sit down The most important takeaway for parents who have grown and compare content side-by-side, it parents, students and teachers is frustrated with the number of became evident the substance of that these newer state tests can be tests their children face. But I can the PARCC and Smarter Balanced useful tools to help us all say with confidence these new tests outshined the material from understand how our children are assessments are the kind we the old tests in several ways. thinking. should want our kids to take. — Josh Parker — Maryann Woods-Murphy — Pam Reilly Maryland State Teacher of the Year, New Jersey State Teacher of the Illinois State Teacher of the Year, and reviewer in NNSTOY study Year, and reviewer in NNSTOY study and reviewer in NNSTOY study 10 Sources: NNSTOY, Right Trajectory and Still on the Right Trajectory
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