1. State Assessments in Haverford
February 22, 2017

2. Introductions
Dr. Maureen Reusche: Superintendent Jen Saksa: Director of Curriculum and Instruction Fred Brown: Director of Data and Assessment Principals: Sara Christianson: Chatham Park Joel DiBartolomeo: Chestnutwold Dr. Tina Kane: Coopertown Jillian McGilvery: Lynnewood Dr. George Ramoundos: Manoa Dan Horan: Middle School

3. Many Ways Haverford Measures Student Success
Academics
Extra-Curricular
Athletics
97.5% graduate HS
94% of Haverford graduates attend a post-secondary institution
State Assessments
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA)
Keystone Exams

4. Federal Regulations No Child Left Behind (2001)
Mandated state assessments in ELA, Math and Science
: grades 5, 8 and 11
: grades 3, 5, 8 and 11
2005 to present: grades 3 though 8 and 11
Every Student Succeeds Act (2015)
Ensures that vital information is provided to educators, families, students, and communities through annual statewide assessments …

5. State Regulations PA Chapter 4. Academic Standards and Assessment
The PSSA assessments shall be administered annually and include assessments of the State academic standards in Mathematics and English Language Arts at grades 3 through 8, and in Science at grades 4 and 8.
All PSSA assessments administered in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science will be standards-based ... and include essay or open-ended response items in addition to other item formats.

6. State Regulations
All school districts and charter schools are required to participate in the PSSA testing
All students except a very few participate in the PSSA testing
PASA: alternative assessment designed for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities (approximately 1% of tested students)
Tested subjects and grades
ELA & Math: Grades 3-8
Science: Grades 4 and 8

7. State Regulations PA Chapter 4. Academic Standards and Assessment
The Department will implement provisions for security of the State assessment system.
State developed a “Handbook for Assessment Coordinators” to outline the security requirements
State will monitor Districts during the testing
Haverford has been visited 3 times
High School
Chestnutwold
Chatham Park
In all three visits Haverford was in complete compliance with all testing regulations

8. May Guardians See the Assessment?
Yes, for one purpose:
To determine whether the assessment “is in conflict with his/her religious belief”
Contact principal 2 weeks prior to test
Confidentiality agreement must be signed
No copies of the assessment or notes about the assessment are allowed to be made

9. May Guardians See the Assessment?
If after review, the guardian finds the test to be in conflict with their religious belief and wish their child not take the PSSA:
Written request must be made to the Principal
Addressed to the Superintendent
District will provide an alternate learning environment
Students who do not participate in the assessment due to parental request will negatively affect the school’s participation rate.

10. PSSA Dates 2016-17 ELA: Tuesday through Friday; April 5-7
Math: Tuesday through Thursday; April 25-27
Science: Tuesday and Wednesday; May 2,3

11. Time Allocation for Testing
ELA testing times: range 70 to 115 minutes
Math testing times: range 75 to 100 minutes
Science testing times: range 60 to 85 minutes
This time allocation includes administration time to:
Hand out the test, scrap paper, pencils, etc.
Read directions
Collect the test

12. Testing Environment
3rd Grade Sample Schedule Regular days Testing days 8: :00 ELA 8:50 – 11:00 Testing 11:05 -11:25 HR 11:05 – 11:25 HR 11: :20 L/R 11: :20 L/R 12:25 -1:25 Math 12:25 – 1:25 Team 1:30 – 2:25 SS/Sci 1:30 – 2:25 decision 2:30 – 3:30 Specials 2:30 – 3:30 Specials }

13. Testing Environment
In classrooms and hallways all information related to the tests must be covered or removed All other materials may remain Keep day as normal as possible

14. How We Prepare We Do Align the curriculum with the PA Core Standards
Teach the content and skills embedded in the PA Core Standards
Grade and provide feedback using PA Core scoring tools and rubrics
Ensure pacing allows instruction to occur in PA Core Standards before the assessment
Check for understanding using curriculum-based assessments, benchmarks and formative assessments
Emphasize the importance of learning

15. How We Prepare We do NOT:
Stop instruction and give practice PSSA tests
Emphasize the importance of this one assessment
“Teach to the test”
If we teach the PA Core Standards, our students will be prepared for this test.
PSSA is an assessment based on the Pa Core Standards

16. Sample questions
3rd Grade ELA Read the sentence from the passage. The carpenter hoisted his toolbox onto his shoulder and started to leave. What does the word hoisted mean as it is used in the passage? A. lifted B. studied C. closed D. locked

17. Sample Questions 4th Grade Science
Which statement best compares the sizes of two bodies of water?
A. A lake is larger than a pond.
B. A lake is larger than an ocean.
C. An ocean is smaller than a bay.
D. An ocean is smaller than a pond.

18. Sample Questions
3rd Grade math

19. Reporting Results PA Chapter 4:
Individual assessment results shall be used in planning instruction only by parents, teachers, and administrators …
The Department and other Commonwealth entities are prohibited from collecting individual student test scores and may collect only aggregate test scores by school and district.

20. Reporting Results
Individual parent report sent home and placed in student’s file
Reports sent home late September
Information on reports
Proficiency level: Advanced, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic
Scaled score
Total points out of possible maximum points on reporting categories

23. Reporting Results As the Parental/Guardian:
Concerns about results contact principal
Stay current on student progress throughout the year

24. How does Haverford use the assessment data?
One indicator to program for specific students according to need
Evaluate the curriculum
Target specific content & skills

26. How does the State use the assessment data?
PA Chapter 4: The State assessment system shall be designed to serve the following purposes:
Provide students, parents, educators and citizens with an understanding of student and school performance…
Provide information to State policymakers, including the General Assembly and the State Board of Education, on how effective schools are in promoting and demonstrating student proficiency of academic standards.
Data from the PSSA is used to develop the School Performance Profile (SPP)

27. Questions?