Assessment and Reality.

Last year, our school finally invested in and began using MAPs to give us data on our students and their learning.   After about a year, we are starting to get some real results.

The first two times we gave the test, students did not take it seriously at all.  Most students just clicked through it but over time they are beginning to take things seriously.

I got a look at the results for all three tests given over the year.  Yes, most of them increased their scores but I discovered one reason my students have struggled so much when they reach high school.

The majority of them arrive with the skills of a fourth grader.  Unfortunately, this is not just in math, its the same in reading and language arts.  Imagine, trying to teach high school math to students who still struggle with their multiplication and division tables.

I do tend to focus on the students who attend class most days and who actually do the work.  I have a certain number of students who are regularly absent and if you talk to their teachers from earlier grades, they were not in school all that much which means they did not get a chance to learn the foundational material needed to succeed in he higher level maths.

In addition, the same applies to students who choose not to work in class.  I spoke with their earlier teachers and they didn't work there either.  Unfortunately, many of these students are testing in at a second grade level.  I'm glad to have these assessment results because I now have a better idea of where they are at so i can plan accordingly. 

This is the first time in all the years I've worked here that I've gotten an overall picture of my student's ability.  There is a place I can go to get information on what they are supposed work on but its not as detailed as I'd like so I'm just going to have to do my best. 

This is not the only assessment I use but it gives me an overall picture so I can adjust my assessments to focus on learning those specific skills.  Many of my students are so low the skills they need to work on are things such as multiplication or division, foundation skills required for higher level math.

So over the summer, I'll be checking skills, figuring out how to sneak these into my math classes while teaching to their level and meeting the standards the state has determined students must learn. I will admit one last thing. It is frustrating for students to arrive in high school with only a fourth grade ability. 

Let me know what you think.  I'd love to hear your thoughts.