State of Indiana Student Achievement Assessment Tools

1. How does Indiana evaluate student progress toward the mastery of the Indiana Academic Standards?

Criterion-referenced assessments such as ISTEP+ and Core 40 end-of-course assessments, are currently used in Indiana to evaluate academic progress toward mastery of what students should know and be able to do. These assessment tools are aligned to the Indiana Academic Standards. In order that students be able to demonstrate mastery of the standards, instruction in Indiana classrooms should also be aligned with the standards. Test results should reflect the level of success achieved toward mastery of grade specific knowledge.

ISTEP+

The purposes of the ISTEP+ program

(1) To assess the strengths and weaknesses of school performance.
(2) To assess the effects of state and local educational programs.
(3) To provide a source of information for state and local decision makers with regard to educational matters, including the following:

(A) The overall academic progress of students.
(B) The need for new or revised educational programs.
(C) The need to terminate existing educational programs.
(D) Student readiness for post secondary school experiences.
(E) Overall curriculum development and revision activities.
(F) Identifying students who may need remediation.
(G) Diagnosing individual student needs.
(H) Teacher training and staff development activities.

Indiana administers a criterion-based test (ISTEP+) in both English / language arts and mathematics that is aligned specifically to the Indiana Academic Standards. ISTEP+ utilizes both a method of testing basic skills that include multiple choice questions and a method of testing applied skills including short answer or essay questions and the solving of arithmetic or mathematical problems. All questions are appropriate for the designated grade level tested and should be aligned to what is being taught in the classroom.

New more rigorous, clear, and concise academic standards were adopted in 2000 in mathematics and language arts. These standards will first be tested in 2002 for grades 3, 6, and 8 and in 2004 for grade 10. The scores to pass these tests will be set at the levels necessary for students to demonstrate solid academic performance on the standards. These scores will not be set or skewed to cause more or fewer students to pass or more or fewer schools to rise or fall in category placements. The education roundtable may recommend and the board may set additional higher levels of proficiency to encourage increased achievement for advanced students.

Primary indicators of improvement and performance

The primary indicators of school improvement and performance are the following:

(1) ISTEP+ English/language arts and mathematics tests at grades 3, 6, 8, & 10.
(2) English/language arts and mathematics tests at grades 4, 5, 7, and 9.
(3) ISTEP+ science tests and social studies tests, when implemented, at grades 5, 7, & 9.
(4) Science and social studies tests at grades 4, 6, & 8.
(5) Core 40 end-of-course exams.

These tests collectively are referred to as mandatory annual assessments. Mandatory annual assessments shall be administered by the following schools:

(1) Public schools.
(2) Accredited nonpublic schools.
(3) Freeway schools - unless a freeway school contract provides for a locally adopted assessment.
(4) Charter schools.

If the State Board of education determines that adequate resources are not available to support administration of all mandatory annual assessments, the schools in subsection (c) are required to administer only the following:

(1) ISTEP English/language arts and mathematics tests at grades 3, 6, 8, and 10.
(2) ISTEP science tests and social studies tests, when implemented, at grades 5, 7, and 9.

What ISTEP+ assessments are planned for Indiana students in 2003-04?

The Fall 2003 ISTEP+ administration window begins September 15 and ends September 26. Students in Grades 3, 6, 8, and 10 will be tested as usual and students in Grade 5 will take the new ISTEP+ science test. In addition, students in Grades 4, 5, 7, and 9 will take ISTEP+ in English and mathematics as a full statewide trial.

Core 40 End-of-Course Assessments

The assessments are end-of-course tests of what students know and are able to do after taking specific Core 40 courses. They are aligned with Indiana’s Academic Standards adopted by the Indiana State Board of Education (State Board) in 2000-01 in English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. Like the standards, they reflect quality, consistency, and rigor.

The State Board of Education has included selected Core 40 end-of-course assessments as primary indicators of high school improvement and performance, as reflected in Indiana’s new school accountability system, as established by Public Law 221-1999 (P.L. 221).

Required end-of-course assessments are tests that every school will administer each year to every student enrolled in certain Core 40 courses. These assessments will be required beginning in 2004. The Core 40 end-of-course assessments are designed to measure student achievement of Indiana’s Academic Standards and schools’ alignment of curriculum choices and instructional practices to the standards. Schools are required to report end-of-course assessment data as well as the percentage of students completing Core 40 and the Academic Honors Diploma curricula on the Annual School Performance Report. At least six Core 40 courses are being considered as required assessments. Developing the capacity for statewide administration and grading will take several years, with two new end-of-course tests ready each spring for statewide piloting. To simplify test administration, pilot testing will occur only in the spring (April – June). These required end-of-course assessments will be phased in over the next five years.

2. How is student progress in Indiana compared to the progress in other states?

The ISTEP+ program offers Indiana schools a norm-referenced assessment and a test of cognitive skills, but they are not required components and are not given by all schools. For national comparisons, the state of Indiana participates in the NAEP program.

NAEP

What Is NAEP?

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as "the Nation's Report Card," is the only nationally representative and continuing assessment of what America's students know and can do in various subject areas. Since 1969, assessments have been conducted periodically in reading, mathematics, science, writing, U.S. history, civics, geography, and the arts.

Under the current structure, the Commissioner of Education Statistics, who heads the National Center for Education Statistics in the US Department of Education, is responsible by law for carrying out the NAEP project. The National Assessment Governing Board, appointed by the Secretary of Education but independent of the department, governs the program.

NAEP does not provide scores for individual students or schools; instead, it offers results regarding subject-matter achievement, instructional experiences, and school environment for populations of students (e.g., fourth-graders) and subgroups of those populations (e.g., female students, Hispanic students). NAEP results are based on a sample of student populations of interest.

NAEP reports information for the nation as well as for specific geographic regions of the country. It includes students drawn from both public and nonpublic schools and reports results for student achievement at grades 4, 8, and 12. These assessments follow the frameworks developed by the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), and use the latest advances in assessment methodology. For example, NAEP assessments include a large percentage of constructed-response questions and questions that require the use of calculators and other materials. Innovative types of questions have been used in assessments such as the arts (theatre, music, and visual arts) and science to measure students' ability to perform hands-on tasks.

Indiana NAEP Results (EdWatch Online)

Indiana NAEP Results (National Center for Education Statistics)

3. How is student progress in Indiana compared to the progress in other countries?

TIMSS

What is TIMSS?

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is the result of the need in the American education community for reliable and timely data about the mathematics and science achievement of our students compared to that of students in other countries. TIMSS, conducted in 1995, involved 42 countries at three grade levels and was the largest, most comprehensive and rigorous assessment of its kind ever undertaken. In 1999, TIMSS collected data in 38 countries at the eighth-grade level to provide information about change in the mathematics and science achievement of our students compared to those in other nations over the last four years.

Inquiry Questions

The information gained from the analysis of assessment data may suggest additional questions about practices and conditions within the educational environment. To find the pieces of the puzzle needed to give you the big picture, a deeper inquiry into specific areas of the learning environment may be necessary. Improvement efforts are rarely successful if they are not focused on the specific issues that would have the greatest impact on student achievement. The following inquiry questions might be used to generate discussion and assist you in further defining what may be occurring within your school.

Curriculum

1. Does your corporation have curriculum guides in all subject areas taught?
2. Is your local curriculum aligned with the Indiana Academic Standards?
3. Are teachers utilizing the written curriculum? If not, why?
4. How do you use test data to evaluate the success of your curriculum?
5. Is there a process for updating the written curriculum?
6. How do you know that your curriculum is free from gaps and repetition?
7. Does the written curriculum contain the standards, suggestions of appropriate instructional strategies and uniform assessment measures?
8. Do parents support the local curriculum?
9. Would students say the local curriculum is challenging?
10. Would students say that the local curriculum is relevant to their needs?

Curriculum Standard Areas

1. At what grade level and at what time of year is this standard taught?
2. Has this standard been taught at a prior grade level? Is this skill taught at the following grade level?
3. How much time is spent in other disciplines on this standard?
4. How is this skill assessed within the classroom and how does that assessment compare to state assessment for that standard?
6. Has student achievement in this standard improved over time?

Instruction

1. What instructional techniques are used to teach a specific academic standard?
2. What resources are used to teach this standard?
3. What percent of the students take homework home?
4. How much homework is given in a particular subject area compared to other subjects?
5. What percentage of daily instructional time is used for doing and grading homework assignments?
6. How do teachers find out about successful instructional techniques have been implemented by other teachers within your school?
7. What percentage of instructional time within a specific discipline was taught by a substitute teacher?
8. What is the actual amount of instructional time for a specific subject area after all interruptions are subtracted?
9. Are all standards taught at the grade level required?
10. How is time organized to assure that what is required is being taught?
11. What percentage of instructional time is spent on learning not related to proficiencies?
12. How is a specific skill taught across all curricular areas?
13. How does the school help students make successful transitions between grade levels, from regular education to special programs, from one building level to the next, and from high school to higher education or employment settings?

Technology (as a learning tool)

1. What percent of the students have access to a computer at home? Access to the Internet?
2. What percentage of teachers have a computer at home? Access to the Internet?
3. What percentage of time are your computers being used during the instructional day?
4. How is technology being used in the classroom? (Remediation, research, games?) Are they being used effectively? How do you know?
5. What curricular areas are utilizing technology? Is it part of the written curriculum?
6. How is the Internet used as a learning tool?
7. Other than computers, what technologies are effectively used within the school? How are they being used?
8. What is the role of technology in stimulating student learning?
9. What technological innovations might you be able to utilize five years from now? How?

Assessment and Evaluation

1. What is the average grade for students in a particular subject area?
2. How does this grade compare to standardized test results?
3. How have you disaggregated the data?
4. How are data analyzed systemically to identify trends over time?
5. Who analyzes test scores and how is this information presented to all stakeholders?
6. How does the information from standardized test results help in shaping instruction?
7. What do you know about the students that did not meet minimum standards on the ISTEP+?

a. What percentage of this group of students passed the previous time they were tested?
b. What is their average grade point average for that subject area compared to the rest of the class?
c. What is their attendance rate compared to the rest of the class?
d. What behavioral patterns are different compared to the rest of the class?
e. What percentage of this group is involved in after school activities?
f. What is the family structure and socio-economic status of this group compared to the rest of the class?

8. Are students able to evaluate and assess their own work and the work of others?
9. How successful are your students after they leave your school?

Professional Development

1. What percentage of staff members have been to professional development activities in the last year?
2. What percentage of staff members participate in professional development activities outside the corporation?
3. If you have identified a specific area of concern, how much professional development has been spent on that concern over the last few years?
4. Are staff development activities monitored to assure relevance and connectivity to instruction?
5. How is knowledge from professional development activities shared with other staff members?
6. How do you assess the success of professional development in relationship to student achievement?
7. How are teacher evaluations related to professional development?

Climate and Parent & Community Influence

1. Do students feel safe at school?
2. Is the learning environment a positive, caring, and motivational place for students? For staff?
3. Do parents and community members feel welcome within the school environment?
4. What are community members saying about your school and why?
5. If your students drew a picture depicting school life, what would it look like?
6. If you had an hour in another school to evaluate the overall health of their school climate, where would you go and for what would you look?
7. Are students aware of the importance of a good education?
8. How does the school communicate with parents about educational issues?
9. Do students, teachers, and administrators find their work engaging and useful?
10. What importance do parents place on education?
11. What importance do businesses and community organizations place on education?
12. How does the school promote parent involvement? How are parents involved? Does it vary from teacher to teacher?
13. What school events have the highest parent attendance rate and why?
14. What effect does the community have on the school?
15. What effect does transiency have on the school?
16. What is the attendance rate of the students in a particular subject area?
17. What is the attendance rate of instructors in a particular subject area?
18. What is the relationship between attendance and classroom performance?

Leadership and Communication

1. How does the school communicate with parents about educational issues?
2. Are all school rules congruent with corporation policy and are they aligned with the school's mission statement?
3. Is there a clear chain of command within the school and throughout the corporation?
4. Does communication within and between grade levels occur? How?
5. How is technology used to communicate within the school and to parents and community?
6. Are parents able and comfortable in contacting teachers or administrators?
7. How are the achievements of students and staff successfully communicated to the community?
8. How is student leadership promoted?
9. How do instructional leaders encourage members of the school community to work toward a clearly defined mission?
10. How do instructional leaders incorporate research-based schooling practices into the school improvement planning process?

 Updated: November 15, 2004