Bring it On!- Not So New Coordinator’s Face STAAR

Texas Assessment Conference 2011Texas Assessment Conference 2011

STAAR Quest- STAAR Quest- Searching for STAAR Searching for STAAR

AnswersAnswers

YOUR STAAR-STUDDED PANEL

• Laura Witte, DTC, North East ISDlwitte@neisd.net

• Joe Orr, TC, Northside ISD joseph.orr@nisd.net

• Bill Renton, DTC, South San ISD brenton@southsanisd.net

• Moderator: Sandra Poth, Retired DTC sandrapoth@nisd.net

YOUR STAAR-STUDDED ORGANIZATION

TSNAPTSNAP www.tsnap.org

The ONLY professional organization representing

testing & assessment professionals in Texas!

~~~VISIT THE TSNAP BOOTH TODAY~~~

LAUNCH PLANNING Pre-Conference Survey & Session Goals

Joe Orr, Northside ISD

Survey ResultsPre-Conference Survey & Session Goals

• Survey Results - • Session Goals

Do you have a “PLAN”?•Is your Plan Written Down?

•Has it been reviewed and approved by top administration?

•Is it communicated to appropriate staff?

•Is it a working document that is updated on a regular basis?

Details Checklist – see handout

Test Administration Long Pearson Description

Window for Selection of

Details

Precode Submission Selection

Paper Submission

Window

Online Submission

WindowPaper Testing Sort Order*

Date entered into TAMS

Date to Pull Precode File

File Verified & Sorted

Send Precode File

Date Submitted to TAMS w/o

Error

Optional Reports Deadline

TAKS ALT Training & Modules N/A N/A

TELPAS Overview N/A N/A

TAKS October Exit Retest Exit File Paper 1-Gr/Stu

March STAAR*March 2012 STAAR Grades 4&7 Writing and Grades 5&8 Math & Reading Administration

11-9 / 12/9 District 1-16 / 2/10 N/A 1-Gr/Stu 3/30/2012

March STAAR EOC March 2012 STAAR EOC 11-9 / 1-20 District 1-16 / 2-10 1-Gr/Stu

March TAKS

March TAKS Exit Retest March 2012 TAKS Exit Level Retest Administration 11-9 / 12-9 Exit File 1-3 / 1-20 Paper 1-Gr/Stu 3/12/2012

TELPAS Reading 2012 TELPAS Administration 11-9 / 12-9 District TBA 1-Stu

LAT/STAAR-L TBA Paper

April STAAR* April 2012 STAAR Grades 3-8 Administration 11-9 / 2-17 District 3-5 / 3-16 N/A 2-Grp/Stu 5/2/2012

April TAKSApril 2012 TAKS/TAKS-M Grades 10,11, and Exit Level Administration

11-9 / 2/17 District 3-5 / 3-16 N/A 5/2/2012

April TAKS Exit Retest N/A Exit File N/A Paper 1-Gr/Stu

May STAAR/EOC TBA Paper 1-Stu

July STAAR/EOC TBA Paper 1-Stu

July TAKS Exit Retest Exit File N/A Paper 1-Gr/Stu

*Note - If you wish a different order for Elementary vs MS or HS, then you should submit as #2 and leave the group field blank where you want alpha documents.

Enrollment Process

While you ‘should’ have entered your enrollment (participation) counts already, however be prepared to make adjustments In the January adjustment

period. January 3–27, 2012

Training

Checklist

Questions?

WHAT IS ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMENT?

Sandra Poth, Retired DTC

WHAT IS ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMENT?

COMMUNICATION

Calendaring

Scheduling

Training

COMMUNICATION• Primary concept in Organizational Management• EARLY and TIMELY notification of testing dates• Accuracy of information• Ease of access to information• Appropriate detail, as needed, by audience• Reminders at key points in calendar• Date your communications to distinguish updates• Do NOT assume anyone knows it like YOU do!

Create a District-wide Communication Plan for

STAAR• Create a calendar for publications and assign duties• Create a team/committee• Website• Newsletters• Parent letters• Robo calls• Brochures• Local news outlets i.e., newspapers, TV• Community Forums i.e. PTA meetings• Powerpoint presentations that campuses may use

Get the Word Get the Word Out!Out!

Ways to Communicate

Brochures

Newsletter

PowerpointPres.

Communicate Where to Find Student Scores

North East ISD Example:• TAMS Student Portal using Access Code on CSR

and data file from Pearson• NEISD Student Portal*• NEISD Compass (District created system for teachers)• Confidential Student Report (CSR)• Robo Calls from district• Report Card/Progress Reports

*Create Acknowledgement of Understanding for parents/guardians to NEISD

Documentation

CALENDARINGMAJOR CONSIDERATIONS

What we know NOWNOW & What we don’t know YETYET

Use TEA calendar of events to create checklist.

Be sure to include:

Test Dates, including ‘window’ ranges

State & District events & assessments

Add your TRAINING and REPORTING dates

TIP OF THE TRADE: Involve your (CTC’s) if possible

CALENDAR VARIATIONS

Specific programs require separate calendars across the school year; create these, layering them onto the general calendar.

STAAR-Alt (Special Education Department)• When does the testing window open/close?• When do you close this window in your district?

STAAR-L (Bilingual/ESL Department)• When does the window open/close?• When does ID of LEP students to be assessed take place?

ONLINE TESTING (Technology Department)• When do the computers need to be ready?• When is Tech staff needed on-site to help with problems?

~~~Participant Activity~~~

WHATFORMAT WORKS?

SCHEDULING Communicate your testing dates in a variety of ways

to use all your available resources!– District / Campus websites

– Booster club and parent group newsletters/publications

– District/Campus bulletins and newsletters

– ‘Special’ district announcement/mailout

– Use district Facebook/Twitter accounts

– Parent Portals or your district information system

TIP OF THE TRADE: Differentiate between posting for district (internal) staff (Monitoring schedules) and posting for non-

district (external) groups (Late bus arrangements).

SCHEDULINGDevelop a local schedule that works for YOU!

Entire year-at-a-glanceOne test administration at a timeCampus grade ranges

Decide who needs to receive calendar & schedules

Campus principal & staff MaintenanceCentral office staff Transportation

Special Programs Technology

Windows permit flexibility; maintain minimum controlTIP OF THE TRADE: Consider closing the

window 1 or 2 days early to permit accuracy and program oversight.

TRAINING• Training should begin early to provide multiple opportunities• Utilize as many Central Office and non-campus instructional staff as possible---create your TEAM!!• Train any/all vested groups, including custodians, cafeteria workers, office staff, and others• Use training to inform and enlighten

TIPS OF TRADE:Train each test

Train ALL staffTrain backup staff

Train multiple sessions

Training That is More Accessible

• NEISD Testing Services has created Breeze presentations that permit staff to be trained 24 hours a day

• Testing Breeze Presentations:1. Answer Document Coding and Submission for March, April & May testing

2. Accommodation Training

3. FERPA Training (student info. & confidentiality)

4. Security Training which includes state oath for Test administrators, STAAR Alt assistants, Technology Technicians, Material Delivery Persons

5. Monitor Training which include state oath

• Breeze is an Adobe product, but there are many other products available; ask your Technology team.

Recorded Presentations • Staff may view them at anytime

– Provide website address or link

• Recorded training frees up time from face to face training or allows campuses condense training– More options for campuses

• Training during conference periods

• Recorded trainings can be reviewed whenever CTC or TA have questions i.e., answer document coding

• In the past, NEISD used Interactive Training for LAT & DBA because not all campuses have those accommodations. This year NEISD will have LAT/STAAR L training interactively.

• Interactive training allows CTCs to remain on campus and still receive the training “live” or have access to the recorded training.

Ideas for Training• Creating a stand alone security training

– Ask Test Administrators to view it prior to face to face training; be available to answer questions

– General- for office staff, technicians etc– Administration specific for Test Administrators

• Recorded Presentations– PowerPoint with sound– Quiz included– Oath included, print and sign– Ticket into face to face campus training

• Answer Document Coding – Breeze is required for all CTCs and staff assigned to help hand grid and verify coding– Shows all answer documents and explains all coding– “Chunk up” the Breeze presentations into administration specific trainings

Example of Training Calendar

•Think outside of the box•DTCs need to make sure that campus training is consistent across the district•Combine trainings when you can

•Accommodation Update prior to TELPAS Overview in Jan 2012

•Use Technology whenever possible•Don’t ever give up Face To Face Training!

KEYS TO ORGANIZATIONAL

MANAGEMENT COMMUNICATIONCOMMUNICATION CalendaringCalendaring

SSchedulingcheduling

TrainingTraining

CALENDARING & SCHEDULING

SPRING & SUMMER2012

~~~Participant Activity~~~

Questions?

STAAR Planning – The Black Hole!

Laura Witte, North East ISD

STAAR Planning – The Black Hole!

• Documentation & Storage of Documentation• Test Dates

– Spring EOC– Summer Retests

• Test Materials– Dictionaries– Calculators

• Secure Storage• Tracking Student Progress• Checking in Materials

Documentation is Key!• Document, Document, Document• Train campuses how to document test procedures, campus test

plan, sources of information such as lists of students requiring modified assessments, testing irregularities

• DTC must determine what documentation will be required by district and campuses and communicate it to staff involved

• Inform staff what the consequences are if documentation is missing or incomplete

• DTC must have documentation available for audits and incident investigations

Storing Documentation• In the past, NEISD collected all of the forms, seating charts and district

documentation and then it sits in file cabinets or in boxes stacked up in closets or warehouses waiting for audits.

• 4 years ago, NEISD started using an electronic file cabinet to store documentation

• NEISD started using an electronic file cabinet when TEA required that we store TAKS-Alt documentation locally three years ago.

• 2 years ago, we decided to train CTCs how to attach and save Testing Services documentation into Docuware (a Toshiba product)

• Now, – All testing documentation will be filed electronically this year

– TELPAS Writing Samples will be filed in Docuware

– TAKS-Alt local documentation has been stored electronically for the last two years & will continue with STAAR Alt

Right Fax 2011-2012

•Notice list of required documentation to be submitted electronically by CTCs

•Campus still must keep paper files for up to 5 years and some documentation is only kept at campus level i.e, TA oaths

STAAR Test Dates• Have you decided which dates to test EOC in the

spring?• Choices:1. Use TEA suggested dates

2. Allow campuses to select their own dates in the window– Downside: test security, mobile students

3. District selects district-wide dates for EOC– Upside: testing can take fewer days, district may have longer for

checking materials, ship early

• If we test early can we expect to get reports early?– Pearson will start to release reports online starting May 21st, but

will be online test results and Pearson will score tests on a first come basis

July EOC Retest Dates• English EOC tests have set dates but all other tests are in a

window

• Will you select test dates for other subjects or test on demand?

– NEISD is considering testing on demand with three test sessions a day

• Morning session

• Afternoon session

• Evening session (will pilot this summer at one campus)

Examples of Test Dates Selected by Districts

NISD Example:

May 9: Algebra & Geometry

May 11: US History, World Geography, World History

May 15: Biology, Chemistry, Physics

May 16: Math Make-up Date

May 17: Social Studies Make-up Date

May 18: Science Make-up Date

NEISD Example:

May 7: Algebra I & Geometry

May 8: W Geography

May 9: Biology

Make Up Testing:

May 16: Algebra I & Geometry

May 17: W Geography

May 18: Biology

Note: Some districts are considering moving all EOC testing into the 1st week of window in order to expedite scoring in hopes of getting reports sooner

Do you have enough dictionaries and calculators

for students for each day you are planning testing at middle

and high school?

Testing Materials for STAAR EOC• Dictionaries must be available for ALL students taking:

– STAAR/STAAR M Reading grades 6-8– STAAR/STAAR M Writing grade 7– STAAR/STAAR M EOC English I, II & III

• Does your district have enough to give students dictionaries at the 3 to 1 ratio this year?

• Bilingual /ESL dictionaries – Should be provided for students who use them routinely and it

must be documented by the LPAC. – There is no requirement regarding the ratio of students to

dictionary, but TEA recommends it be one for each student who depends on them routinely

So, What are other districts planning?

Note: As TEA releases information district plans are subject to

change!

NEISD’s Plan

As of Dec. 1, 2011

Some of NEISD’s Choices: Some of NEISD’s Choices: • How to apply the 15%

– Apply 85% to the final grade either given by the teacher or averaged by the computer then apply 15% of the EOC. Semester grades given by the teacher are unaffected

• Number of Retakes for Rank?– First time Scored

• Retakes for Final Course Grade on Transcript• How many times should NEISD calculate EOC Retakes into the Final

Grade as reported on the AAR and used to determine credits?

– Until the student earns course credit

• Facts– By June 8 (Pearson will start to release the week of May 21st) the

State will release:• Student results (Confidential Student Record, CSR)• Raw Score Conversions

• In order to Calculate Final Grade– Districts Must Apply District-developed Grade Conversions to

EOC exam score which will impact the Final Course Grade

NEISD’s Choice: Conversion Chart

NEISD Spreadsheet is posted on TSNAP site & at Moak Casey site

NEISD’s Choice: Conversion Chart

– If 15% of EOC exams do not have to be included in Rank, should NEISD continue to allocate rank points based on semester grades that are not influenced by EOC exams? (Current Practice)

– If 15% of the EOC must influence Rank, is it acceptable to double the final grade as rank points for the year?

NEISD’s Choice: Will NOT Count for Rank in 2012

Yes No

High School Choice

*****

Yes No

High School Choice

***** *

Phased Im

plementation

Phased Im

plementation

NEISD’s Choice: 8th Grade Algebra I – One or two tests?

•Right now, NEISD will ask students to take both assessments. That is subject to change and will be an administrative regulation and not local policy

•Students will take STAAR exams before AYP rules are determined

NEISD’s Choice: 7th Grade Pre-AP

•Students will take the 7th Grade STAAR Exam

NEISD’s Choice: Will SPED Options Include 15% (M & Alt)?

•Yes, it will be included

•Phase in as systems are developed

•ARD must concur

NEISD’s Choice: Ranking the Final 7th Semester for Seniors

•Yes

•First Semester grades in Senior Year – calculated without EOC result.

NEISD’s Choice: Number of End of Year Report Cards

•Two for all 9th graders

•Two for 8th Graders in Algebra I and Geometry

9th graders only

Testing Materials for STAAR EOC• EOC Calculators

– Required for STAAR, STAAR Modified, STAAR L Algebra I, Geometry, Biology & STAAR/STAAR L Algebra II, Chemistry & Physics

– Not an accommodation if TEA requires it!

• STAAR Gr. 3-8 Calculators– Special Ed or 504 &– Used Routinely, Independently & Effectively– Gr. 3 & 4: Physical disability that prevents students from writing OR

an impairment in vision that prevents students from seeing numbers used in computations

– Gr. 5 -8: Meets 1 criteria from Gr. 3-4 OR has a disability that affects math calculations (unable to memorize basic facts or perform steps in an algorithm)

Security Concerns• Under STAAR, DTCs are forced to confront some security

issues they may not have encounter before– EOC Testing window allows campuses to select test dates and so all

students may not be testing on the same day which increases the risk of security breaches

– Makeup testing encompasses more assessments and increases security risks

– Since most districts have selected paper EOC testing the volume of secure test books has increased significantly this year and secure storage will be an issue at the district and campus level

• Consider temporary secure storage i.e., KeeBloks

• Consider PODs at the district level

• Consider staggering the release of materials to campuses

– TRAINING is KEY – Campuses must be trained in what the expectation is and the DTC must have develop a plan for materials & communicate it

June July August May

June 1st Report Card

w/o EOC scores

July 9-13 EOC Retest Window;

TAKS Retest

June 4th Credit Recovery Begins

June 8th EOC Reports Due (Data File &

CSRs)

Aug. 6-9August

Leadership

Summer 2012

Preliminary NEISD EOC Timeline

May30th EOY

June 14 Credit

Recovery Ends;Retest

CategoriesDetermined

June ? Report Card

with EOC (Data File,

CSR, NEISD Recommendation Letter

June 12 & 13Leadership

June 18Summer

School StartsHS

Counselor’s Last Day

July 11Sem. #1 Summer SchoolEnds

July 12Sem. #2Summer SchoolStarts

Aug 3Sem. #2Summer SchoolEnds

Aug. 6/71st Day MS/HS

Counselors

Aug. 10th

EOC Retest

ReportsDue

(Data File & CSRs)

Aug. 27th

1st Day of School

Cost Analysis for July EOC

Summer EOC TestingGuiding Questions-1. Will your district test in one central location or at

individual campus sites?

2. Where is your district providing credit recovery, remediation for EOC and summer school?

3. Have you budgeted for the possible need to additional testing staff this summer?

4. Does your district have a plan for disseminating student results after school is out and rounding up the students for summer programs and testing?

EOC Retest Categories

000

900 (minimum)

1000 (Standard)

1200 (Readiness Std.)

1400

Category 1- Definite Retests

Category 2- Recommend Retest

Category 3- Voluntary Retest

EOC Scale ScoresEOC Scale Scores

NEISD’s current

thinking on

Summer 2012

Logistics of Summer Testing1. Pick one site for July 2012

2. 4 hour test windows

3. 3 sessions per day possible; students allowed to take only 1 test per session

4. Student confirms registration or registers online in NEISD Portal

5. Student is assigned a session and seat number

6. System creates a ticket for the student that student uses as pass to get into testing site

7. System creates rosters for campuses/district testing staff

3...2...1...Blast Off! (food for thought)– No scorable books at grade 3

– Spring break may interfere in March– Alternate test dates for XL retest or permission to test on election

day depending whether or not your high schools are polling sites– EOC will create 4 times the number of answer documents since

the documents are subject specific and not grade specific– TEA will release EOC reports starting the Monday after the EOC

window closes (May 21)– Will you have less help this year due to budget constraints?

Think outside the box about helpers– Staggering scorable check in vs. nonscorable check in– Consider checking in EOC by subject– Consider checking in while make up testing is going on & treat

makeups as attributions

EOC Registration System in NEISD

1. Definite & Reccomended Retestersa) Automatically registered in system

b) Requires confirmation for seat counts for planning

2. Voluntary Retestersa) Register online & confirm reservation

3. NEISD system will not be in place until the Fall of 2012

Tracking Students & Retest Registration

Guiding Questions-1. Is your district creating your own system to track

EOC students? Are you purchasing a system that you will use?

2. Do you have a district committee that has been meeting to discuss how to track students that includes the DTC, PEIMS Coor., C & I, Technology, Accountability & Guidance?

3. Are you networking with other districts in your region and in the state?

3...2...1...Blast Off! (food for thought)

• Determining year entered 9th grade is paramount• Evaluating transcripts for newly enrolled students is

important consider working with registrar/guidance to ensure everyone is on same page

• CBE with and without prior instruction• Foreign Exchange Students & EOC- they must test, but will

your district count the 15% for final grade?

What are your plans?

~~~Participant Activity~~~

New Check

-In Form

Checking in MaterialsGuiding Questions-1. Are you considering changing how you check in

scorable and nonscorable materials this year?

2. How many campuses will test EOC online?

3. Do you check in at one station or do the campuses rotate throughs various stations to check specific things such as counts, headers, handgrids, score codes etc.?

4. How many days is your district planning to check in materials before you ship?

3...2...1...Blast Off! (food for thought)

• Be Flexible! What will work this summer may not work for next school year and vice versa

• If you test online you will get results faster• Consider testing early in the window• Consider large group testing• If you are an OOS site have you considered the

number of students you may need to test?• OOD testers- what is your plan for dealing with

them?

STAAR Radar - Items Not Decided• Campus responsibilities for counseling &

notification of student options• How to document the student options• Timeline going past August 2012• Testing Center for Retesters past July 2012

What are your plans?

~~~Participant Activity~~~

METEORS & ASTEROIDS – Burning Concerns

Bill Renton, South San Antonio ISD

METEORS & ASTEROIDS – Burning Concerns

• Managing Accommodations• Documentation & Forms• Resources

The Accommodation Triangle (Under Construction – will be reposted following the

Texas Assessment Conference)

TEA – Accommodations Documents

• This section provides a general description of the accommodation and who may need it.

• The statewide assessments that the accommodation may be used on are listed in this section.

• This section lists the criteria that a student must meet to use the accommodation.

• The checkboxes are provided for possible record-keeping.

TEA – Accommodations Documents

• This section lists the campus personnel and the required documentation necessary for making accommodation decisions.

• This section also explains what to record on the student answer document.

• This section states if an Accommodation Request Form is/is not required.

• This section lists examples and types of the accommodation that may be used on a statewide assessment.

Northside ISD’s

NISD’s system for documenting

accommodations for students

Northside ISD’s List of Accommodations

NISD documents accommodations

by subject and type in a district system

Northside’s System Continued

Create a system that works for

your district and campus

South San Antonio ISD’s Accommodations System

North East ISD Document

NEISD Form page 2

NEISD Intranet site for Supplemental Aids

San Antonio ISD’s Accommodations System

San Antonio ISD’s Accommodations System - RTI

San Antonio ISD’s Accommodations System – LEP

Examples of Supplemental Aides

Science DNA Graphic Org.

Energy Photo Graphic Org.

Optional Procedures/Materials

•Optional form for NEISD CTCs to document Optional Test Administration Proc. & Materials

•Documentation is maintained at the campus level

•Note: Individual & small groups are not of form as of 11/18/11. •NEISD is also not documenting grade 3 Reading Assistance for math

Example of NEISD’s Form to Track Accommodations for students at Alternate Campuses

•NEISD wants to guarantee that students at Alternate Campuses are tested appropriately

•CTC must complete form and send to alt. campus when students leave home campus

Judson ISD Document

What are your plans?

~~~Participant Activity~~~

BIG BANG THEORY-

Accountability!

Questions?