1. Huntsville City School 2017-18 Assessments Cathy McNeal, Ed. D
Huntsville City School Assessments Cathy McNeal, Ed.D. Assessment and Accountability
September 28, 2017

2. Why do Schools Test? Chapter 290 of the ALSDE Administrative Code Requires A Unified, Coordinated State Testing Program
Alabama’s Student Assessment Program is a system of assessments that measures the knowledge and abilities of students in Alabama’s public schools for the following purposes:
to provide information to educators and parents regarding the educational strengths and weaknesses of individual students;
to provide information to assist local and state educational personnel in reviewing and planning for instructional and curricular improvements; and
to provide information to local and state educational personnel, policy makers, and the general public regarding the educational performance of Alabama’s students.
The Alabama State Board of Education shall choose the tests to be used, grades to be administered, and when chosen tests shall be administered.

3. Huntsville City Schools 2017-18 Assessments
Grades
Data Point
Timeline
Pre K – Grade 8
STAR Enterprise: Reading and Math – Early Literacy
Formative Assessment Times a Year
Grade 10 and 11
PSAT/NMSQT
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
K – Grade 12 - ELL Students
ACCESS for ELLs & Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
January 22 - March 23, 2018
Grade 12
ACT WorkKeys
Feb. 21, Make Up Date March 7, 2018
Grade 3 -12
Alabama Alternate Assessment
ALSDE ACCOUNTABILITY MEASUREMENT
March 5 - April 13, 2018
Grade 11
ACT Plus Writing ALSDE ACCOUNTABILITY MEASUREMENT
April 3, Make Up Date May 8, 2018
Grade 3 – Grade
Scantron Performance Series ALSDE ACCOUNTABILITY MEASUREMENT
Fall 2017 & Spring 2018
Fall 2017, Winter 2018 & Spring 2018

4. Benefits of the PSAT/NMSQT
Providing entry in the National Merit Scholarship Program via the PSAT/NMSQT.
Connecting students to millions of dollars in potential scholarships via the PSAT/NMSQT.
Improving participation and performance in Advance Placement courses.
Identifying students who are falling behind so that their teachers can intervene.

5. National Merit Scholarship Corporation Has Named Semifinalists in the 2018 Competition
Class of 2018
7 – Grissom High School
6 – Huntsville High School
3 – New Century Technology High School
Previous years (Total for HCS)
Class of 2017 – 20
Class of 2016 – 13
Class of 2015 – 15
Class of 2014 – 18
Class of 2013 – 14
Class of 2012 – 12

6. 11 – Private Schools in Madison County
Huntsville City Schools Has Great Representation in the National Merit Scholarship Competition
In Our Area
16 – Huntsville City
20 – Madison City
1 – Madison County
11 – Private Schools in Madison County
Alabama has 221 Semifinalists
12 – Vestavia Hills High School
12 – Mountain Brook High School
10 – James Clemens High School
10 – Bob Jones High School
10 – Spain Park High School
8 – Homewood High School

7. SCANTRON PERFORMANCE SERIES Testing Window
The window for the Scantron administration is
Fall – Grade 3-12
September 18 – November 10, 2017.
HIGH Schools will be required to take Midyear
Dec. 1 – February 21, 2018
AMSTI Schools should take SCIENCE Midyear
Grade 5- 7 Science
Spring – Grade
April 9 – May 4, 2018

8. New Assessment SCANTRON – Performance Series
The Performance Series assessment is an adaptive assessment that determines a student’s ability level by administering a set of items that vary based on the responses provided by the student.
For the fall administration, the initial difficulty level of the first few items presented will be determined as follows:
For students taking the Performance Series assessment for the first time, initial test items delivered are based on the grade level of the student.
For students who have previously taken a Performance Series assessment, initial test items delivered are based on the student’s ability level from their last administration.
Regardless of whether a student is new or returning to the Performance Series system, the assessment immediately adjusts to each individual student to ensure the most accurate score.

9. SCANTRON PERFORMANCE SERIES – FALL Testing Window
Measuring Growth
As stated above, a Gain score is the difference between the spring and fall scaled scores.
Gain scores can be displayed as a positive or negative number.
The Gain score, along with a growth target, is used to evaluate knowledge gained over time.
The growth target allows educators to determine whether students are improving at an appropriate rate in comparison to their peers in the national norm sample.

10. SCANTRON PERFORMANCE SERIES – FALL Testing Window
A student’s growth target is determined using the student’s grade level and national percentile rank (NPR).
Specifically, the growth target is the average growth achieved nationally by students who performed similarly on the fall assessment administration, by grade level and decile.