STAAR Parent Information

Editor's Notes

• #3: Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills is being replaced by State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR). End-of-Course assessments are also part of the STAAR system. The intent was to ensure that the assessment structure assesses our content standards, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills and it is vertically aligned: An assessment structure to monitor the progress of the ultimate goal to graduate students college and career ready. Performance standards will be set to link performance year to year from grades 3–8 to high school, and from specific courses to college and career readiness. New measures of student progress will be designed to provide early-warning indicators for students not on track for the next grade or course. Ultimate Goal of College and Career Ready Graduates: With the enactment of House Bill (HB) 3, the legislature required that EOC assessments measure college readiness according to content standards jointly developed by the state’s K–12 education and higher education agencies and supported by research studies. According to current legislation, college readiness is the level of preparation a student must attain in English language arts and mathematics courses to enroll and succeed, without remediation, in an entry-level general education course for credit in that same content area for a baccalaureate degree or associate degree program. In 2008, Texas became the first state to adopt college- and career-readiness standards (CCRS). The College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS) were adopted by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) and the commissioner of education, and have subsequently been incorporated into the content standards, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) by the State Board of Education (SBOE). One of the educational goals set forth in HB 3 is for Texas to rank nationally as one of the top ten states for graduating college-ready students by the 2019–2020 school year.
• #4: We are required to teach the TEKS, which are our content standards in Texas. Readiness Standards and Supporting Standards have been identified for al grades level subjects. Process Skills have also been identified in Social Studies, Math and Science. Under TAKS, process skills were reported in a separate objective now these will be assessed in context versus isolation. Process Skills include: scientific investigation, reading/interpretating maps, etc. Types of questions that may be asked? What was meant by greater depth and high level of complexity? Focus of assessment will be on the readiness standard. If a teacher doesn’t teach supporting, the building blocks of learning will not be “strong” and result in a lack of success for the student. Standards Information STAAR assessments have been designed to focus on “readiness” standards, which are defined as those Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) student expectations that are not only essential for success in the current grade or course but also important for preparedness in the next grade or course. By focusing on the student expectations that are most critical to assess, STAAR will better measure the academic performance of students as they progress from elementary to middle school to high school. READINESS standards: Core set of standards and essential for success in the current grade or course. Important to the preparedness for the next grade or course. Necessitate in-depth instruction. Address broad and deep ideas Support college and career readiness. In general, all TEKS are eligible for assessment if they can be tested in the traditional testing format. 30% - 40% of eligible TEKS. 60% - 65% of the assessment 2 – 4 questions per standard SUPPORTING standards: Although introduced in the current grade or course, they may be emphasized in a subsequent year. Although reinforced in the current grade or course, they may be emphasized in a previous year. Support a current readiness standard or serve as a foundation for a readiness standard in another grade level. They play a role in preparing students for the next grade or course, but not a central critical role. They address more narrowly defined ideas . 60% - 70% of eligible TEKS 35% – 40% of the assessment 0 – 1 question per standard
• #5: We are required to teach the TEKS, which are our content standards in Texas. Readiness Standards and Supporting Standards have been identified for al grades level subjects. Process Skills have also been identified in Social Studies, Math and Science. Under TAKS, process skills were reported in a separate objective now these will be assessed in context versus isolation. Process Skills include: scientific investigation, reading/interpretating maps, etc. Types of questions that may be asked? What was meant by greater depth and high level of complexity? Focus of assessment will be on the readiness standard. If a teacher doesn’t teach supporting, the building blocks of learning will not be “strong” and result in a lack of success for the student. Standards Information STAAR assessments have been designed to focus on “readiness” standards, which are defined as those Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) student expectations that are not only essential for success in the current grade or course but also important for preparedness in the next grade or course. By focusing on the student expectations that are most critical to assess, STAAR will better measure the academic performance of students as they progress from elementary to middle school to high school. READINESS standards: Core set of standards and essential for success in the current grade or course. Important to the preparedness for the next grade or course. Necessitate in-depth instruction. Address broad and deep ideas Support college and career readiness. In general, all TEKS are eligible for assessment if they can be tested in the traditional testing format. 30% - 40% of eligible TEKS. 60% - 65% of the assessment 2 – 4 questions per standard SUPPORTING standards: Although introduced in the current grade or course, they may be emphasized in a subsequent year. Although reinforced in the current grade or course, they may be emphasized in a previous year. Support a current readiness standard or serve as a foundation for a readiness standard in another grade level. They play a role in preparing students for the next grade or course, but not a central critical role. They address more narrowly defined ideas . 60% - 70% of eligible TEKS 35% – 40% of the assessment 0 – 1 question per standard
• #6: Approximately 70% of the TEKS are Supporting Standards Approximately 30% of the TEKS are Readiness Standards Approximately 35% of the STAAR will assess Supporting Standards Approximately 65% of the STAAR will assess Readiness Standards
• #7: Note: The following bullet points will also be presented in the upcoming slides. Overview of Assessments STAAR will include more difficult testing methods and require a higher level of student performance. Assessments will increase in length at most grades and subjects. There will also be a four-hour time limit for the STAAR grades 3–8 assessments and the STAAR EOC assessments. Make-up testing opportunities for all grades and subjects, not only those used for AYP For reading, greater emphasis will be placed on critical analysis of passages rather than literal understanding. The writing test will require more essays in both first-person and expository styles. On the science and mathematics tests, STAAR will include a type of open-ended question known as a griddable item. The purpose of griddable items is to allow students to develop answers independently without being influenced by answer choices provided with the questions (commonly known as multiple-choice). Most science and mathematics assessments will include three to five griddable items. Illustrations of the test design for grades 3-8 are available at www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/staar/ . Versions of Test/Answer Documents/Scantrons English and Spanish Versions of STAAR will be provided at each grade level and subject (Grade 3 to 5). Students taking STAAR grade 3 reading and mathematics assessments will now record their responses on a separate answer document. Grade 3 students will no longer record their answers to test items in a scorable test booklet. It was combined under TAKS.
• #8: Four-hour time limit – TAKS was untimed. TEA established a four (4) hour time limit for both STAAR grades 3-8 assessments and STAAR EOC assessments for the 2012 spring test administration. TEA notes that a four hour time limit should provide sufficient time for the majority of students to complete the test. The rationale for time limits aligns Texas testing practices with other timed state and national assessments, i.e. SAT, ACT and AP examinations. Extended time accommodations for students with unique learning needs will continue to be offered. Addition of questions for most subjects and grade levels tested. Reading The STAAR assessments will be longer and will require analytical skills and an application of knowledge, rather than basic comprehension and recognition. to “go beyond” a literal understanding of what they read to make connections within and across texts to think critically/inferentially about different types of texts to understand how to use text evidence to confirm the validity of their ideas Note: The newly-assessed genres of poetry, drama, and persuasive text are represented in the sample release. Field-test data from 2011 showed students not as familiar with these genres. Examples from the newly-assessed genres: Which word best describes the feeling that the poet creates in this poem? A Thankfulness B Surprise C Confusion D Unhappiness (Grade 3) The reader can tell that the poem is written in free-verse form because it does not have — A a serious subject B plot and conflict C a rhyming pattern D a common theme (Grade 4) Writing STAAR exams will be administered over the course of two days, unlike the single day of testing for the TAKS. A greater number of questions will focus on revising a document, rather than editing, since revisions require a student to have a greater depth of knowledge of sentence structures, patterns, and usage. Writing will require more essays in both first-person and expository styles. TAKS required one long personal essay. Assessment split evenly over 2 days. Day 1: One prompt and the first half of the multiple-choice questions Day 2: One prompt and the second half of the multiple-choice questions Field test items: multiple-choice questions will be embedded; there will be an abbreviated stand-alone field test every three years to try out writing prompts. For each day’s test session, students can work through the test in any order: composition first or multiple-choice first. Revising and editing portions of the multiple-choice section are separate, allowing students to focus on one set of skills at a time. Revision is focused on effectiveness, strengthening/improving various aspects of a piece of writing: the introduction and conclusion, organization/progression, development, word choice, and sentences Editing is focused on correctness (conventions): capitalization, punctuation, spelling, grammar, usage, and sentence boundaries (fragments and run-ons) Revision and editing assessed separately, with increased focus on revision as students become more experienced and skilled writers (Sample of Alignment of Assessments) For Grade 4, 32% of multiple-choice score from revision (9 items) and 68% of score from editing (19 items) For Grade 7, 40% of multiple-choice score from revision (16 items) and 60% of score from editing (24 items) For English I, II, and III, 50% of multiple-choice score from revision (15 items) and 50% of score from editing (15 items) Students will write two one-page essays (26 lines maximum) addressing different modes of writing Grade 4−personal narrative and expository Grade 7−personal narrative (with extension) and expository Essays will be weighted equally If a student squeezes in more than 26 lines, only the first 26 lines will be scored. Scoring of Compositions TAKS compositions were scored using the “perfect agreement” model. Two readers read each paper, and if the scores did not agree, a third reader (and sometimes a fourth) read the paper to determine the final score. STAAR compositions will be scored using the “adjacent scoring” model. Perfect agreement does not have to be reached. With this method, districts will receive a more accurate description of each student’s writing performance. CSR Ratings: Nonscorable; very limited; between very limited and basic performance; basic performance; between basic and satisfactory performance; satisfactory performance, between satisfactory and accomplished performance; accomplished performance. SAMPLE INFORMATION PROVIDED BY TEA: Expository prompts contain a stimulus and are scaffolded: READ-THNK-WRITE-BE SURE TO… Read: A short synopsis of some kind or a quotation Think: The synopsis or quotation generalized and reworded Write: A focused charge statement Be Sure To: 4−5 bullets clearly state your central or controlling idea organize your writing develop your writing/explanation in detail choose your words carefully use correct spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, and sentences Personal Narratives… Personal narrative prompts contain a stimulus and are scaffolded, though less so than other prompts. Grade 4—SE 17(A) write about important personal experiences Grade 7—16(A) write a personal narrative that has a clearly defined focus and communicates the importance of or reasons for actions and/or consequences Personal narratives must be realistic in nature. No obvious “fantasy” papers. Strengths found in high scoring field test items: Explicit central or controlling idea “ Narrow and deep” development with no wasted words ~ Quality over Quantity! Introduction and conclusion: short but effective Specific use of language and appropriate tone for purpose Weaknesses found in low scoring field test items: Wrong organizational structure/form for purpose Weak, evolving, or nonexistent central idea/controlling idea Wasted space: repetition, wordiness, meandering, meaningless introductions and conclusions (e.g., the “bed-to-bed” approach we often saw on TAKS) Inclusion of too many different ideas for 1 page General/vague/imprecise use of language or inappropriate tone for purpose Essay poorly crafted Weak conventions
• #9: Number of open-ended (griddable) items will increase to allow students more opportunity to derive an answer independently rather than selecting from a response from those provided. The purpose of griddable items is to allow students to develop answers independently without being influenced by answer choices provided with the questions (commonly known as multiple-choice). May have up to five griddable questions on a STAAR assessment. Math At least 75 percent of STAAR test questions will incorporate underlying processes and mathematical tools. This is different from TAKS, which tested knowledge of tools and processes as separate student expectations (found under Objective 6). More questions with a higher cognitive complexity level to match TEKS More multiple step problems. More questions have context. Science Although the new science assessments for grades 5 and 8 will continue to address TEKS from multiple grade levels, these tests will focus on the science TEKS for those respective grades. The science assessments at these two grades will emphasize the 5th and 8th grade curriculum standards that best prepare students for the next grade or course; in addition, these assessments will include curriculum standards from two lower grades (i.e., grades 3 and 4 or grades 6 and 7) that support students’ success on future science assessments. In contrast, the current Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) assessments uniformly address TEKS from multiple grade levels without any specific emphasis. The STAAR test will be longer than the TAKS test. STAAR will focus on fewer concepts and will address them in more depth. Tested content will cover matter and energy, force, motion, earth and space, and organisms and the environment. Forty percent of the STAAR test will incorporate scientific investigation and reasoning. Students will also have fewer multiple choice questions and more open-ended questions, which will require them to independently arrive at their conclusions.
• #10: The Texas Education Agency has identified three performance categories for the grade 3-8 STAAR tests: Level I: Unsatisfactory Academic Performance Level II: Satisfactory Academic Performance Level III: Advanced Academic Performance Under TAKS: Commended Performance, Met Standard, and Did Not Meet Standard. STAAR Performance Standards for Grades 3 – 8: Raw score information will be available in late spring 2012 . Performance Standards will be set in Fall ( October) 2012 after first administration in spring 2012. Schools Districts will receive notice of Performance Standards and disseminate to parents (called Confidential Student Reports under TAKS). Students will not know if they achieved unsatisfactory/satisfactory or advanced academic performance until after they start the new school year. First reports with performance standards applied will be available in late fall 2012.
• #11: In Texas, students in Grade 5 and 8 are required to pass the Texas state assessments in Reading and Math to be promoted to the next grade level. For the 2011-2012 school year only, the Student Success Initiative (SSI) promotion requirements for grades 5 and 8 will not include STAAR results. Students will be assessed for promotion to the next grade by other academic information, such as grades and teacher recommendations. Students will not be held subject to Student Success Initiative (SSI) for the 2011-2012 school year because there will be no performance standards in place for grades 3-8. Therefore, there are no SSI requirements for the 2011-2012 school year. The transition between the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 school years is necessary since performance standards for STAAR at grades 3-8 will not be set until fall 2012. The SSI promotion requirement will return in the 2012-2013 school year and students in grades 5 and 8 will once again be required to pass STAAR before being promoted to the next grade level. Districts will be required to provide remediation to any student who fails a STAAR assessment, whether in grades 3-8 or high school.
• #12: In Texas, students in Grade 5 and 8 are required to pass the Texas state assessments in Reading and Math to be promoted to the next grade level. For the 2011-2012 school year only, the Student Success Initiative (SSI) promotion requirements for grades 5 and 8 will not include STAAR results. Students will be assessed for promotion to the next grade by other academic information, such as grades and teacher recommendations. Students will not be held subject to Student Success Initiative (SSI) for the 2011-2012 school year because there will be no performance standards in place for grades 3-8. Therefore, there are no SSI requirements for the 2011-2012 school year. The transition between the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 school years is necessary since performance standards for STAAR at grades 3-8 will not be set until fall 2012. The SSI promotion requirement will return in the 2012-2013 school year and students in grades 5 and 8 will once again be required to pass STAAR before being promoted to the next grade level. Districts will be required to provide remediation to any student who fails a STAAR assessment, whether in grades 3-8 or high school.
• #18: This question addresses: Content: 3.3B, select addition or subtraction and use the operation to solve problems involving whole numbers through 999 Process: 3.14C, select or develop an appropriate problem-solving plan or strategy, including drawing a picture, looking for a pattern, systematic guessing and checking, acting it out, making a table, working a simpler problem, or working backwards to solve a problem
• #19: This question addresses: Content: 3.3B, select addition or subtraction and use the operation to solve problems involving whole numbers through 999 Process: 3.14C, select or develop an appropriate problem-solving plan or strategy, including drawing a picture, looking for a pattern, systematic guessing and checking, acting it out, making a table, working a simpler problem, or working backwards to solve a problem
• #20: This question addresses: Content: 3.3B, select addition or subtraction and use the operation to solve problems involving whole numbers through 999 Process: 3.14C, select or develop an appropriate problem-solving plan or strategy, including drawing a picture, looking for a pattern, systematic guessing and checking, acting it out, making a table, working a simpler problem, or working backwards to solve a problem