1. Professional Senate
September 30, 2014

2. State Board Meeting Follow-Up
Rule Waiver:
Promotion, Placement, and Retention sections (3)(a), (3)(b), (3)(c) and Statewide Passing Score sections (2)(d), (2)(e), (2)(f)
Based upon the delay of scores in this first year of Georgia Milestones due to the necessary and required technical work involved, including setting achievement expectations (i.e., cut scores), specific provisions of these two Board Rules were waived for the school year.
Additional information:
Academic Affairs and the Department of Accountability, Assessment, and Reporting Services are in the process of updating local regulations related to the calculation of final course grades for courses requiring a Georgia Milestones End Of Course assessment and for promotion criteria in grades 3, 5, and 8 for Georgia Milestones End Of Grade assessment.
Additional guidance regarding other purposes and uses of the end of course assessments, such as “test-outs”, retests, etc., will be forthcoming from GaDOE for the school year.

3. Georgia Milestones: Unique Features
Features include:
Constructed-response items in ELA and mathematics, in addition to selected-response items
A writing component (in response to text) at every grade level and course within the ELA assessment;
Norm-referenced items in every grade and content area to complement the criterion-referenced information and to provide a national comparison; and
Transition to online administration over time, with online administration considered the primary mode of administration and paper-pencil back-up until transition is completed.
Addition of technology-enhanced items beginning in

4. Georgia Milestones: Unique Features
Blended: Criterion-Referenced and Norm- Referenced
Georgia Milestones will provide:
criterion-referenced performance information in the form of four performance levels, depicting students’ mastery of state standards
norm-referenced performance information in the form of national percentiles, depicting how students’ achievement compares to peers nationally
Note: To provide norm-referenced information, some norm-referenced items may not align to Georgia’s content standards. Only aligned NRT items will contribute to proficiency designations.

5. Georgia Milestones: Unique Features
Item Types
Selected-Response [aka, multiple-choice]
all content areas
evidence-based selected response in ELA
Constructed-Response
ELA and mathematics
Extended-Response
Technology Enhanced
to begin in SY
Constructed response is a general term for assessment items that require the student to generate a response as opposed to selecting a response. Extended-response items require more elaborate answers and explanations of reasoning. They allow for multiple correct answers and/or varying methods of arriving at the correct answer. Writing prompts and performance tasks are examples of extended-response items.

6. Constructed Response: 3rd Grade Fractions
George
Ana
12 inches
9 inches
George
Carlos
Click to answer the item.
Click to transition to CR item.
12 inches
12 inches

7. Constructed Response: 3rd Grade ELA
Excerpt from
David and the Phoenix
by Edward Ormondroyd
What do paragraphs 4 through 7 show about David? Use two details from the story to support your response.
Extended Response: 3rd Grade ELA
Sea Turtles
by Kathy Kranking
The author provides many details about how sea turtles are similar to and different from each other. How is a leatherback sea turtle similar to a green sea turtle? How are they different from each other? Use details from the passage to support your response.
In your response, be sure to
• explain how a leatherback sea turtle is similar to a green sea turtle
• explain how a leatherback sea turtle is different from a green sea turtle
• use details from the passage to support your response
Click to answer the item.
Click to transition to CR item.

8. Georgia Milestones - Writing
Writing at Every Grade
All students will encounter a constructed-response item allowing for narrative prose, in response to text, within first or second section of the test.
Within the writing section of the test, students will read a pair of passages and complete a series of “warm-up” items:
3 selected-response items asking about the salient features of each passage and comparing/contrasting between the two passages
1 constructed-response item requiring linking the two passages
1 writing prompt in which students must cite evidence to support their conclusions, claims, etc.
Warning: Students who simply rewrite excerpts from the passage(s) to illustrate their point(s) will not receive favorable scores.

9. Georgia Milestones - ELA
ELA will consists of 3 sections, 1 of which will focus mainly on writing. Each section is approximately 70 minutes long.
Criterion-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 44 / Total Number of Points: 55
Breakdown by Item Type:
40 Selected Response (worth 1 point each; 10 of which are aligned NRT)
2 Constructed Response (2 points each)
1 Constructed Response (worth 4 points)
1 Extended Response (worth 7 points)
Norm-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 20 (10 of which contribute to CR score)
Embedded Field Test
Total field test items: 6
Total number of items taken by each student: 60

10. Georgia Milestones - Mathematics
Mathematics will consist of 2 sections. Each section is approximately 70 minutes long.
Criterion-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 53 / Total Number of Points: 58
Breakdown by Item Type:
50 Selected Response (worth 1 point each; 10 of which are aligned NRT)
2 Constructed Response (worth 2 points each)
1 Constructed Response (worth 4 points)
Norm-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 20 (10 of which contribute to CR score)
Embedded Field Test
Total field test items: 10
Total number of items taken by each student: 73

11. Georgia Milestones - Science
Science will consist of 2 sections. Each section is approximately 70 minutes long.
Criterion-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 55 / Total Number of Points: 55
Breakdown by Item Type:
55 Selected Response (worth 1 point each; approximately 10 of which are aligned NRT)
Norm-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 20 (approximately 10 of which contribute to CR score)
Embedded Field Test
Total field test items: 10
Total number of items taken by each student: 75

12. Georgia Milestones – Social Studies
Social Studies will consist of 2 sections. Each section is approximately 70 minutes.
Criterion-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 55 / Total Number of Points: 55
Breakdown by Item Type:
55 Selected Response (worth 1 point each; approximately 10 of which are aligned NRT)
Norm-Referenced
Total Number of Items: 20 (approximately 10 of which contribute to CR score)
Embedded Field Test
Total field test items: 10
Total number of items taken by each student: 75

13. Georgia Milestones Review
Inclusion of 10 Norm Referenced Test items in all content tests which will contribute to the overall score.
Inclusion of 10 Norm Referenced Test items in all content tests which will be used for national comparison information only.
An extended response writing section added to the ELA test for grades 3-8, Ninth Grade Comp/Literature, and American Literature.
Requirement for 30% of tested students to use the online format.
Requirement for students requiring the read-to accommodation to use the online format.
Removal of separate writing assessments at grades 3, 5, and 8.

14. SCCPSS Online Testing Schedule
*Does not include Special Education (Read-to) students. GaDOE regulations require that they test online at all grade levels

15. Transition to Georgia Milestones Resources
Content standards
frameworks, formative lessons, PARCC evidence statements
Sample items
formative items/benchmarks via Georgia OAS→GOFAR;
released items via PARCC, other states (KY, NY), NAEP
parent’s guide to Georgia’s new assessment developed by the National PTA [ ]
CRCT Readiness Indicators
Lexiles (as one indicator of text complexity)
Technology Specifications
Eliciting Evidence of Student Learning Modules
Focus on teaching and learning – eliciting evidence of student learning during instruction and adjusting as needed.

16. Georgia Milestones Accommodations
There are three accommodations that are considered conditional:
Signing reading passages (SWD only)
Reading of reading passages (SWD or EL)
Use of a basic function calculator (SWD only)
Reminder: It is exceptionally rare for a student with a 504 plan to qualify for a conditional accommodation.

17. Georgia Milestones Calculator Policy
1Basic four-function calculator with square root and percentage functions.
2Graphing calculator with functionalities consistent with TI-84 or similar models.
Calculators are not permitted on certain designated sections of each mathematics test.

18. Georgia Milestones Online Tools Available for All Students
These tools are available to all students who test online and are therefore NOT considered accommodations.
Blocking Tool
Eraser
Highlighter
Magnifying Glass
Mark for Review
Online Calculator – if allowable
Option Eliminator
Scratch Pad
Test Pause

19. Questions