Provincial tests tell parents:

how their child compares against provincial standards

whether the child is learning what he or she is expected to learn

Benefits

Provincial tests help schools:

monitor student progress in relation to school achievement targets

improve classroom instructional practices by identifying relative strengths and weaknesses

develop action plans to increase student understanding in specific areas of the curriculumBenefi

ts

Provincial tests tell Albertans:

how well Alberta students are learning the Alberta curriculum

which areas of the curriculum need improvement

Benefits

Achievement Tests - Grade 3

Part A - Writing 70 minutes

May

Part B - Reading June

Mathematics Timed Number Facts May

Multiple Choice June

60 minutes

6 minutes

60 minutes

English Language Arts

Achievement Tests - Grade 6

Part A - Writing 120 minutes

May

Part B - Reading June

Mathematics Operations and Number

SenseMay

Multiple Choice June

60 minutes

30 minutes

60 minutes

English Language Arts

ScienceMultiple Choice June60

minutesSocial Studies

Multiple Choice June60 minutes

Tips for parents

achievement tests are like any other test

excessive test rehearsals and coaching should be discouraged

one way parents can help their children is by supporting their development of strong reading skills

Achievement tests

achievement tests are aligned with the curriculum

the best preparation for achievement tests is classroom instruction based on the full range of learning outcomes in the Alberta curriculum

Test accommodations

may include larger print, Braille, audiotapes, a scribe, more time

help students with special test writing needs do their best

are aligned with daily instructional practice as outlined in the individual program plan

Teacher involvement

writing, revising and reviewing questions

setting standards

developing scoring guides

field testing

validating the tests

administering the tests

marking the tests

Use of test results

no single test can assess everything

large scale provincial testing is intended for use in conjunction with classroom assessment strategies

the clearest picture of student growth and development is gained when a wide variety of assessment information is considered

Report cards

the teacher is responsible for classroom assessment

teachers and school jurisdictions decide whether or not to use the results for the students’ final grades

Sample Question – Grade 3 Mathematics

Sample Question – Grade 3 Mathematics

Sample Question – Grade 3 Mathematics

Core Learning Outcomes

estimating mass

using a standard unit (kg)

Sample Question – Grade 6 Science

Sample Question – Grade 6 Science

Sample Question – Grade 6 Science

Core Learning Outcomes

Air, Aerodynamics and Flight theory

Identify elevators as the structure of an airplane that controls its descent

Provincial Expectations – Achievement Tests

Alberta Learning has shifted away from an expectation on achievement tests that 15% of students achieve the standard of excellence and at least 85% achieve the acceptable standard.

emphasis now placed on continuous improvement – comparing results to stated targets and performance over time

School Results – Grade 3

Results

SchoolResults

2006Provincia

lResults

English Language Arts

Acceptable

82.4% 89.8%

Excellence

Below Acc.

17.6%

17.6%

15.6%

10.2%

Mathematics Acceptable

82.4% 90.2%

Excellence

Below Acc.

17.6%

17.6%

30.1%

9.8%

Participation Report

17 students wrote both parts of the test

-6 were ESL

-1 was Special Education

-10 were regular

- 3 students were absent

- 2 students were excused

School Results – Grade 6

Results

SchoolResults

2006Provincia

lResults

English Language Arts

Acceptable

88.4% 87.6%

Excellence

Below Acc.

18.6%

11.6%

17.7%

12.4%

Mathematics Acceptable

92.7% 82.7%

Excellence

Below Acc.

26.8%

7.3%

17.0%

17.3%

Science Acceptable

95.3% 86.7%

Excellence

Below Acc.

41.9%

4.7%

31.4%

13.3%

Social Studies Acceptable

95.5% 86.8%

Excellence

Below Acc.

27.3%

4.5%

25.8%

14.5%

Participation Report

43 students wrote the tests

-16 were ESL*

- 7 were Special Education

-20 were regular students

Next Steps: School Councils and School Staff

What are the strengths of our instructional programs?

*a three year Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI) which focused on Science

*student support team that provides ESL support and modified programming

*teacher professional development through in-services and workshops with ESL Centre of Inquiry

Discussion

What are the areas requiring improvement?

*Timed Math Facts in Gr. 3

*Shape and Space

*Focus on Perimeter/Area; extending a pattern and statistics in Gr. 6

*Focus on reading narrative and poetic passages in Grade 3 and 6

*Distinguishing and supporting facts vs. opinions in Social Studies

Areas for the School to focus on

What factors could be contributing to our students’ performance?

*More ESL students

*Number of students moving into the school throughout the year

Significant Factors

Multi- Year Results – Grade 3 Language Arts

2004-2005 N=18

Total Test – Language Arts

Acceptable = 16 students (84.2%)

Standard of Excellence = 2 students (10.5%)

Below Acceptable Standard = 2 students (11.1%)

2005-2006 N=17

Total Test-Language Arts

Acceptable =14 students (63.6%)

Standard of Excellence=3 students (13.6%)

Below Acceptable Standard=3 students (13.6%)

Language Arts Targets for 2006

An increase of 10% in the number of students at the Acceptable Standard in Reading

2005 there were 13 students out of the 18 students who wrote at the acceptable level (72.2%)

2006 –there were 14 students out of the 17 students who wrote at the acceptable level (82.4%)

Multi Year Grade 3 Mathematics

2004-2005 N= 18

Total Test-Mathematics

Acceptable=14 students (77.8%)

Standard of Excellence=3 students (16.7%)

Below Acceptable Standard = 4 students (22.2%)

2005-2006 N=17

Total Test –Mathematics

Acceptable=14 students (82.4%)

Standard of Excellence =3 students (17.6%)

Below Acceptable Standard = 3 students (18.6%)

Multi-Year Results – Grade 6 Language Arts

2004-2005 N=68

Total Test – Language Arts

Acceptable =62 students (91.2%)

Standard of Excellence = 2 students (11.6%)

Below Acceptable Standard=6 students (8.7%)

2005-2006 N= 43

Total Test – Language Arts

Acceptable = 38 students (88.4%)

Standard of Excellence =8 students (18.6%)

Below Acceptable Standard =5 students (11.6%)

Multi-Year Results – Grade 6 Mathematics

2004-2005 N=67

Total Test – Mathematics

Acceptable =62 students (89.9%)

Standard of Excellence=22 students (31.9%)

Below Acceptable Standard= 5 students (7.2%)

2005-2006 N=41

Total Test-Mathematics

Acceptable =38 students (70.4%)

Standard of Excellence =11 students (20.4%)

Below Acceptable Standard =3 students (5.6%)

Multi-Year Grade 6 Science

2004-2005 N=68

Total Test – Science

Acceptable=61 students (88.4%)

Standard of Excellence=19 students (27.5%)

Below Acceptable Standard=7 students (10.1%)

2005-2006 N=43

Total Test -Science

Acceptable=41 students (95.3%)

Standard of Excellence=18 students (41.9%)

Below Acceptable Standard =2 students (4.7%)

Science Targets for 2006

90% of the Gr. 6 students will meet the acceptable standard on the Science test.

2006 Results – Total Test 41 students (95.3%); Knowledge 42 students (97.7%); Skills 39 students (90.7%)

Multi-Year Grade 6 Social Studies

2004-2005 N=68

Total Test – Social Studies

Acceptable =91.3% (63 students)

Standard of Excellence=21.7% (15 students)

Below Acceptable Standard =7.2% (5 students)

2005-2006 N=44

Total Test – Social Studies

Acceptable=77.8% (42 students)

Standard of Excellence=22.2% (12 students)

Below Acceptable Standard =3.7% (2 students)

Next Steps: School Councils and School Staff

What are our school achievement targets for this year?

*5% more students will be at the acceptable standard

*5% more students will be at the excellence standard

Discussion

What plans address the areas requiring improvement and help students succeed?

*Following the Class Size Initiative

*Support in target area of Guided Writing

*AISI- staff PD to explore multiple literacies to support the students learnings

Future Plans

Future Plans continued

*Professional development for teachers in Multiple Literacies

*Focused work on writing by bringing in authors

*Implementing the Calgary Reads program for our younger students.