School or District Improvements

Blog: School or District Improvements

Our district in currently seeking to improve the ability to show growth in high-achieving students. When students are performing at a low level and intervention occurs, it is much easier to see growth and progress in their achievements than it is if the students are already high performing. Since the new trend may well be to reward districts based on individual student growth, this has moved from the back burner to the front burner.

One way they are attempting to show individual growth over the school year is through the use of MAP testing. The test is administered in the beginning of the year and then again at the end of the year, and scores are compared. The test is a computerized, self-adjusting test, meaning that as the number of correct answers a student gets, the harder and higher level the questions become. Subsequently, if the student begins answering incorrectly, the questions become easier. This way, a 6th grader who may be reading at an 8th grade level, is still challenged and assessed at the level that is currently appropriate for that particular student.

One of the strengths of MAP testing is that it helps educators understand exactly where their students are performing on an individual basis and can aid in tiering lessons to be sure that instruction is optimal for all of the students. Lessons can be differentiated easily into at least three tiers using this system. The current problem for our district is that our students are already performing at a very high level and capping out the ability of the test to assess their level of understanding. In other words, a majority of our students are already in the highest tier, so showing growth will still be a challenge.

Future assessment will need to show growth in each individual student. Our district focuses a lot on technology so I can see the feasibility of using e-portfolios in the future. I chose to take these technology classes because of this focus on technology. I need to be able to keep up with the advances in technology use in education and right now I am seriously behind. Our chapter readings have gotten me very excited to start implementing some of these ideas in my own classroom. I'd like to see how the use of techniques like PBL, blogging and e-portfolios can help my students achieve their potential and to become lifelong learners as well.