• testing

PSAT 8/9

  • The PSAT 8/9 is a test for 8th and 9th graders that will help you and your teachers figure out what you need to work on most so that you’re ready for college when you graduate from high school. It tests the same skills and knowledge as the SAT, PSAT/NMSQT, and PSAT 10 — in a way that makes sense for your grade level.

    BENEFITS

    The PSAT 8/9 establishes a baseline measurement of your college and career readiness as you enter high school. It also gives you a chance to preview the SAT, PSAT/NMSQT, and PSAT 10 and connect to AP courses.

    View guides below for specific details on taking the test:

    Parent PSAT Guide | ENG
    Parent PSAT Guide | SPAN

MAP

  • You may be familiar with paper and pencil tests where all students are asked the same questions and spend a fixed amount of time taking the test. Measures of Academic Progress® (MAP®), created by Northwest Evaluation Association™ (NWEA™), is different. MAP is a computer adaptive test, which means every student gets a unique set of test questions based on responses to previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions get harder. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions get easier. By the end of the test, most students will answer about half the questions correctly.

    What does MAP measure?

    MAP results are provided as a numerical RIT score. This score is used to measure a student’s achievement level at different times of the school year and compute growth. Think of this like marking height on a growth chart. You can tell how tall your child is at various points in time and how much they have grown between one time and another.

    What is a RIT score?

    After each MAP test, students receive a RIT score. Think of the score as a student’s height. The score reflects the student’s academic knowledge, skills, and abilities like inches reflect height.
    The RIT (Rasch Unit) scale is a stable, equal-interval scale, like feet and inches. Equal-interval means that a change of 10 RIT points indicates the same thing regardless of whether a student is at the top, bottom, or middle of the scale, and a RIT score has the same meaning regardless of grade level or age of the student. Scores over time can be compared to tell how much growth a student has made, similar to measuring height with a ruler.

    View guides below for more info:

    RIT Reference Charts-Examples
    General MAP Guide
    Parent MAP Guide

PARCC

  • Most states voluntarily adopted new, more rigorous academic standards in 2010 and 2011 and teachers have been using them since then in their daily instruction. As a result, states needed high-quality assessments aligned to those standards that would test students of all achievement levels on what they are learning.

    Many of the old state tests measured only lower-level skills. The new assessments serve as an "educational GPS system," measure students’ current performance, and point the way to what students need to learn by graduation so they are ready for college and/or a career.

    PARCC Links/Docs