Pennsylvania System of School Assessment PSSA Administrator Training

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Pennsylvania System of School Assessment
(PSSA)Administrator Training
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Agenda

• General Overview
• Important Information
• Monitoring Information
• Planning for the Assessment
• PASA Students and Exceptions to Participation
• Administering the Assessment
• PDE Policy Test Security
• Before the Assessment DRC Information
• During the Assessment DRC Information
• After the Assessment DRC Information

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General Overview

• Grades 3 8 and Grade 11 Reading and Mathematics
  DRC
• Grades 5, 8, 11 Writing DRC
• Grades 4, 8, 11 Science DRC
• Grade 12 Retest DRC
• Reporting The Grow Network
• Policy PDE

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General Overview

• New this year
• Booklets do not need to be returned for PASA
  students
• Student attributions will be at the district and
  school level

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General Overview

• New this year
• New return procedures for Answer Booklets
• PIMS data was used to produce Student Precode
  Labels
• PIMS must be used to correct data for student
  precode records
• Science test is operational

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General Overview

• Todays Training Highlights
• Dos and Donts
• Using Barcode Labels
• Understanding Student Attributions
• Accurate AYP reporting
• Easier administration

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Important Information

• DRC Contact Information
• Our toll free number is
• 1-800-451-7849
• Our fax number is
• 1-763-268-3008
• Our email is
• pacustomerservice_at_datarecognitioncorp.com

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Important Information

• PDE contact information
• Our phone number is
• 717-705-2343
• or
• 7177874234
• Our e-mail is
• 00testing_at_psupen.psu.edu.

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Important Information

• Key Assessment Dates
• February 11 to 22 Grades 5, 8 11 Writing
• Final materials returned by February 27.
• March 31 to April 11 Grades 3 8 11 Reading
  and Mathematics
• Final materials returned by April 16.
• April 28 to May 9 Grades 4, 8 11 Science
• Materials returned no later than May 14.

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Important Information

• Key Reporting Dates
• May 12 to May 23, 2008 Data Corrections 1
• June 20, 2008 District Student Data Files
  posted to DRCs Report Delivery System

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Important Information

• Key Reporting and AYP Dates
• June 23 to June 27, 2008 Data Corrections 2
• July 1, 2008 Pre-Appeals AYP files posted to
  DRCs Report Delivery System.
• July 1 to July 15, 2008 AYP Appeals window

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Important Information

• The 2008 AYP Performance and Participation Map
  will be posted at www.pde.state.pa.us/pas/cwp
• A district that has placed a student into an
  alternative educational setting inside or outside
  the district is responsible for ensuring the
  students participation in the assessment.
• A new option for reporting individual student
  PSSA performance will be available in June

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Important Information

• The entity delivering the students education is
  responsible for ordering and receiving materials
  and administering the test.
• Know your districts procedures for Home Schooled
  and Cyber Charter School students.
• CTE Coding

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Monitoring

• Areas of review
• Test Security
• Forms tracking
• Test administration
• Use of accommodations for students with IEPs
  504 Plans and ELL students

• PDE will be monitoring the PSSA administration
  procedures in March of 2008

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Monitoring

• Selection Criteria
• Schools will be selected randomly
• PDE reserves the right to monitor schools in
  addition to those randomly selected, criteria may
  include
• Alleged violations that were not self reported
• Follow up of previously documented issues
• Suspicious assessment results

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Monitoring

• On site visit format
• Visits will occur between 3/25/08 4/11/08
• Prior to first day of testing
• During testing

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Planning for the Assessment

• Testing Preparation DOs
• Plan for testing rooms and times.
• Post PA General Description of Scoring
  Guidelines.
• Provide test administrators with
• Training
• Test manuals
• Schedule

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Planning for the Assessment

• Accommodations
• NCLB requires that all children participate.
• The 2008 Accommodations Guidelines for Students
  with IEPs and 504 Plans, Guidelines for ELLs, and
  All Students are available at www.pde.state.pa.us
  /a_and_t
• Order modified test formats (Braille, Large
  Print)
• Call PaTTAN _at_ 1-800-360-7282.
• All student responses must be transcribed into a
  regular scannable answer booklet.

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Planning for the Assessment

• Parental Request to view the test.
• Order English/Spanish Mathematics tests.
• Schedule small group setting(s).
• Schedule extended time setting(s).
• Assign test administrators for breaks and
  movement to other setting(s).
• Plan for secure distribution collection of
  materials after each session.

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PASA Students

• PASA or PSSA is decided by the IEP team
• To be eligible to participate in PASA, students
  must
• Be in grade 3 through 8 or 11 by September 1 of
  the school year in which assessment is to be
  accomplished and
• Have significant cognitive disabilities and
• Require intensive instruction to learn and
• Require extensive adaptation and support to
  perform and meaningfully participate in the
  activities and
• Require substantial modifications of general
  education curriculum and
• Participate in general education curriculum in a
  substantially different way than most other
  students.
• MUST MEET ALL SIX CRITERIA
• Order PASA tests call 412-648-7082.

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Exceptions to Participation

• Participates in PASA for Math Reading, Science
• Participates in school-provided alternate
  assessment for writing
• Voluntary participation in Reading and Writing
  for 1st year ELL students
• Parental request for religious exclusion

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Administering the Assessment

• DO
• maintain calm quiet.
• remove or cover all instructional materials.
• provide
• blank scratch paper
• sharpened pencils
• allowable highlighters.
• encourage students.
• return all test materials to secure location.

• DO NOT
• allow unsupervised breaks.
• display visual cues, e.g. picture icons.
• provide pre-printed graphic organizers.
• allow pens/colored pencils stray marks.
• prompt students.
• keep any test materials.

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Administering the Assessment

• Avoid test fatigue not more than 2.5 hrs.
  including breaks administration time.
• Administer sections in sequence.
• Complete most of testing during 1st week of
  window
• Allow 2nd week for make-ups unexpected
  occurrences.

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PDE Policy Test Security

• The assessments rely on the measurement of
  individual achievement. Any deviation from
  assessment procedures is strictly prohibited and
  will be considered a violation of test security.
• School administrators, teachers and any other
  education personnel who are involved in the
  assessment program must maintain the security of
  all assessment materials at all times.
• Because the assessment must remain secure,
  teachers/Test Administrators should not have
  assessment materials in their possession at any
  time other than during the actual assessment
  administration.

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PDE Policy Test Security

• Maintain test security
• Refer to PDE security guidelines _at_
• www.pde.state.pa.us/a_and_t/cwp
• and click on PSSA Test Security Procedure

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Before the Assessment

• Read the manuals
• Inventory/account for all materials
• Order Additional Materials

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Make sure to include your District Code along
with your District Name.
Make sure to include your School Code along with
your School Name.
Additional Material Request form is located in
the Handbook for Assessment Coordinators and
Administrators
Indicate the quantity you need.
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Before the Assessment

• Schedule the assessments
• Prepare administrators
• Use the Student Precode System

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During the Assessment

• Barcode Labels
• Answer booklets returned to DRC for processing
  must have a label attached. The only answer
  booklets that should NOT have labels attached are
  booklets that are unused and COMPLETELY blank.
• Whether a Student Precode or a District/School
  Label is used, page 3 needs to be filled out for
  any student using an accommodation.

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During the Assessment

• STUDENT PRECODE LABELS
• Student Precode Labels contain district/school
  information, individual student demographic
  information, as well as CTE or student
  attribution information.

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During the Assessment

• DO NOT SCORE LABELS
• All sites will receive Do Not Score Labels for
  answer booklets that should not be scored.
• Do Not Score Labels for Reading and Mathematics
  are grade specific

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During the Assessment

• DISTRICT/SCHOOL LABELS
• District/School Labels contain district and
  school specific information only. These labels
  should be used when Student Precode Labels are
  not used.

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During the Assessment

• Bubbling the answer booklets
• Grade 3 marking done by Test Administrators
• PASA students
• English Language Learners
• Use March 23, 2007, for calculating first year in
  U.S. school

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During the Assessment

• Non Assessed Students
• Student had a recent medical emergency.
• Student had an extended absence for the entire
  testing window.
• Student had a parental request for exclusion from
  the assessment.
• Other
• These will negatively affect AYP
  participation rates

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During the Assessment

• Administration Dos and Donts
• All students must use a No. 2 pencil.
• Use of highlighters.
• Sections must be administered in order.
• Do not allow extended breaks during a section.
• If a student goes home ill.

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During the Assessment

• Administration Dos and Donts
• Be Prepared
• Provide Encouragement
• Keep classroom distractions to a minimum
• Do not provide or permit the use of PDAs,
  dictionaries, thesauri, spell- or
  grammar-checkers, or any device that can transmit
  information to another device on any sections of
  assessments.

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During the Assessment

• Distribution and collection procedures
• Security Numbers
• Security Checklist

Security numbers are located below the barcode
are on the back of every secure booklet shipped
by DRC. This barcode is the scannable version of
the security number.
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2008
Mr. Gillin
3/16
Destroyed due to illness
Mr. Schiller
3/22
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During the Assessment

• Unusual Circumstances
• Test Administrators may encounter situations not
  covered in the manuals. The Test Administrator,
  along with the School and District Coordinator,
  should use their best professional judgment on
  how to handle each situation keeping test
  security and integrity in mind.
• One example is when a student becomes ill on a
  test. These tests should be destroyed and NOT
  returned to DRC. Make sure to note on the
  Materials Accountability Form that the document
  was destroyed due to student illness.

QUESTIONS? CALL 1-800-451-7849
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After the Assessment
Materials Accountability Form
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After the Assessment
Test Security Affidavit
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After the Assessment

• Return Instructions Writing
• Test Administrators
• School Assessment Coordinators
• District Assessment Coordinators

DRC Return Shipping Label
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After the Assessment

• Return Instructions Math Reading and Science
• Test Administrators
• School Assessment Coordinators
• District Assessment Coordinators

DRC Return Shipping Label Test Booklets Unopened
Packs
DRC Return Shipping Label Answer Booklets
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After the Assessment

• Return Instructions General
• Be organized
• Have clear communications and define a plan for
  returning scorable materials early
• Schedule your final pick up early

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After the Assessment

• Material Pick Up

For the Writing and Science assessments, place
one UPS-RS label on the top of each box to be
returned to DRC.
For Mathematics and Reading, place one UPS-RS
label on the top of each box of Answer Booklets
to be returned to DRC.
If you do not have a regularly scheduled UPS
pick-up or delivery, call UPS at [phone]
to arrange a pick up.
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Special Note

• Keep a copy of the UPS-RS tracking number or the
  airbill from the carrier returning your PSSA
  materials.
• Often DRC has questions about a districts
  assessment materials, so we make follow-up phone
  calls after the testing window has closed.
• It is important to return these calls as soon as
  possible in order ensure fast and accurate
  reporting.

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Student Precode System

• The DRC Student Precode System will be available
  until April 18, 2008.
• All changes to demographic information MUST be
  made using the Pennsylvania Information
  Management System (PIMS) during a February/March
  upload window.
• All student attribution information MUST be
  entered in the DRC Student Precode System.

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PA CUSTOMER SERVICE

• Data Recognition Corporation understands the
  intricacies involved with large scale assessments
  like the PSSA. Our customer service
  representatives are always ready and willing to
  help with any questions or problems.
• Our number is 1-800-451-7849
• Or email us at
• pacustomerservice_at_datarecognitioncorp.com

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Pennsylvania Department of Education

• To contact someone from the Pennsylvania
  Department of Education
• (717) 787- 4234
• Or
• [phone]