Title: Alternative Methods to Obtain a Certificate of Academic Achievement Same Standards Different Rulers
1Alternative Methods to Obtain a Certificate of
Academic Achievement Same Standards Different
Rulers
-
-
- Bob Butts
- Alternative Assessment Coordinator
- Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
-
-
- April 2006
2Where it began
- HB 2195 (2004)
- The high school assessment system shall include
objective alternative assessments that may be
used to achieve a Certificate of Academic
Achievement - The alternative assessments shall be comparable
in rigor to the skills and knowledge that the
student must demonstrate on the WASL for each
content area. - OSPI directed to identify options and make
recommendations - Same Standards -- Different
Rulers
3What did the 2006 Legislature approve??
4The Multiple Methods to Earn a Certificate of
Academic Achievement
As Passed 2006 Legislature Senate Bill 6475
WASL A student
may obtain a Certificate of Academic Achievement
by meeting standards on the WASL. If a student
does not meet a standard initially, he or she
will have opportunities to retake the assessment.
WASL/Grades Comparison The students grades are
compared with the grades of students who took the
same courses and who met the standard.
Collection of Evidence (Guidelines and scoring
must be approved by the State Board) Students
submit classroom-based work samples from academic
and career/ technical classes. Specific
collections are to be designed for Career and
Technical Education programs that lead to an
industry certificate.
Certificate of Academic Achievement
PSAT, SAT, and ACT (Mathematics Only) State
Board to set cutscores equivalent to the WASL.
- Guidelines and Appeals
- - Transfer Students Students who transfer to a
Washington public school in their junior or
senior year. - Special Cases Students with severe health
problems or who have other unique, unavoidable
circumstances.
- To be eligible for these options, a student must
take the WASL twice and meet attendance and
remediation requirements in his/her Student
Learning Plan.
5Collection of EvidenceHow it Works
- Students, with the assistance of a teacher,
compiles a collection of work samples based on
specified guidelines - Created in academic, intervention, and CTE
classes - The following will be available
- The guidelines
- Model performance tasks
- Scoring criteria
- Exemplary work samples and collections
- Training
- Collections will be scored at the state-level by
scoring panels of teachers
6Collection of Evidence
National or State Industry Certificate
Programs
- OSPI to develop guidelines for collections for
students in approved CTE programs that lead to a
state or national industry certificate - The collections must
- Be relevant to the student's CTE program
- Focus on the application of academic knowledge
and skills - Include projects where academic knowledge is
inferred - Be related to the standards and represent the
knowledge and skills that needed for the industry
certificate - To meet the state standard on the alternative
assessment, the student must also attain the
industry certificate - OSPI to develop a list of approved CTE programs
that qualify for the alternative assessment
7Which Students Should Take This Pathway?
- Not met standard after taking the WASL twice
- Students who have the skills but have not
demonstrated them on the WASL - Have test anxiety
- Unable to demonstrate their skills on a
standardized, on-demand, paper and pencil
assessment - Can demonstrate their skills in work samples that
are - more culturally relevant than the WASL
- of more interest
- more hands-on or authentic
- English language-learners with proficient skills
- Are in a program that leads to a industry
certificate - Are motivated!!
8Eligibility and Likely Student Success
- How many students will meet standards using this
pathway? - Difficult to predict, but we are assuming 3-5
- For the Class of 2008
- Estimated 2,400 to 4,000 students statewide
- In MA, only 20-30 of their portfolios are
determined to be proficient
9What might the Guidelines require? Draft
Mathematics guidelines
- Five to ten Work Samples that demonstrate
proficiency in each of the components in EALR 1 - Number sense, measurement, geometric sense,
probability and statistics, and algebraic sense - Work Samples that demonstrate proficiency in each
of the EALRs 2-5 - Solves problems
- Reasons logically
- Communicates understanding
- Makes connections
- Work Samples for EALRs 2 - 5 distributed across
EALR 1 content strands - Tasks of moderate or high complexity to ensure
moderate or high level cognitive demands of the
student - A majority of the Work Samples must be completed
under the direct supervision of a teacher
10Mathematics Collection Matrix
11What might the Guidelines require? Draft Writing
guidelines
- Five to eight written Work Samples that together
demonstrate proficiency in content, organization,
style, and the use of conventions. - The samples must include
- at least one expository or persuasive on-demand
essay, timed and supervised in class - at least one non-timed expository sample
- at least one non-timed persuasive sample
- Writing for a variety of purposes/modes,
audiences, and in a variety of forms - A majority of the Work Samples must be completed
under the direct supervision of a teacher
12What might the Guidelines require? Draft Reading
guidelines
- Six to twelve reading responses that reflect
multiple Reading GLEs and WASL learning strands
and targets - The collection will represent a balance of
reading responses that address a variety of grade
level appropriate - literary genres and periods
- informational texts across the content areas
- The collection will feature one or more of the
samples using information that demonstrates the
ability to integrate multiple sources (e.g.,
research report) - A majority of the Work Samples must be completed
under the direct supervision of a teacher
13 Proposed Collection of Evidence Process (Subject
to State Board Approval) Class of 2008
2 WASL
1 WASL
1 WASL Results
x
x
x
Complete Work Samples
3 WASL
4 WASL
2 WASL Results
3 WASL Results
x
x
x
x
SBE Approval
Panels Meet
Complete Work Samples
Results Returned
Submit Collections
4 WASL Results
5 WASL
5 WASL Results
x
x
x
Panels Meet
Panels Meet
Complete Work Samples
Submit Collections
Results Returned
Results Returned
Submit Collections
.
NOTE Final decisions have not been made
regarding when the scoring panels will meet.
14How will we know its not Moms (or Dads or the
Teachers) work?
- Require a majority of work samples be completed
under the direct supervision of a teacher - Each work sample will indicate if it was/was not
- Require the student and teacher attest that it is
the students work - In the writing collection, require that first
drafts be submitted - Use scorers who have expertise in recognizing
downloaded Internet papers and other forms of
cheating
15Ensuring Comparability of Rigor
- Clear message to teachers and students
- Same standards different ruler
- Scored at the state-level under the direction of
OSPI - WASL assessment content administrators develop
the scoring process - Scoring criteria aligned with the WASL
- Use scorers who have scored the WASL
- Conduct comparability studies and make
refinements, as necessary
16Collection of EvidenceThe Statewide Pilot
- We are currently field testing the Collection of
Evidence process - Twenty schools, Skill Centers, and ESDs
- Small/large, urban/rural, affluent/low income,
East/West - Are compiling collections from approximately 200
students that will be scored in April - Pilot will
- Refine guidelines, scoring criteria,
and process - Identify proficient collections
- Will also are considering conducting
a second pilot this summer
17 State Board Approval
- Must submit guidelines and scoring process to
State Board for approval - State Board must find that the guidelines and
scoring process - Will meet professionally accepted standards for a
valid and reliable measure of the GLEs and EALRs
and - Are comparable to -- or exceed -- the rigor of
the skills and knowledge that a student must
demonstrate on the WASL. - State Board to make decision by December 1, 2006
- However, OSPI to notify students, parents, and
educators of likely guidelines and process in
September 2006
18Collection of EvidenceWhy is it a good idea?
- Consistent with good educational practice
- Students and teachers will focus on WASL content
areas as they develop their collections - Work is produced in a less stressful environment
- Allows students to demonstrate their skills in
different ways are of interest to them - Career and technical education projects/Certificat
es - Projects that are more culturally relevant
- Projects that are more fun
19Challenges
- Increased workload on teachers, principals and
counselors - Funding provided to reimburse a portion of
additional costs - Not setting students up for failure
- Clarifying what type of help teachers can provide
- Editing? Pre-teaching?
- Creating a scoring system that is reliable and
has comparable rigor - Making sure it has educational benefits beyond
getting students across the bar
20WASL/Grades Comparison How it works
- Compares grades of the student with the grades of
other students in the school - Who took the same mathematics or English/language
arts courses in the high school and - Who met or slightly exceeded the standard on the
WASL - If the cohort has six or more students and the
students grades are above the average grades of
the cohort, the student would meet the standard
- Will not work in small schools
- In these cases, students would use the Collection
of Evidence -
21WASL/Grades Comparison
- Highest Math WASL score 390
- Took Algebra I and Geometry
- Average grades for the two classes 2.9
22Possible WASL/Grades Worksheet
23The WASL/Grades Comparison Model Grading
Practices in Different Schools
Cohort Group (Min. 6)
3.6
Cohort Group (Min. 6)
2.3
Hypothetical GPA needed in the two different
schools
24WASL/Grades Comparison
- OSPI to identify criteria for which classes may
be included - Should we require only aligned courses?
- Online spreadsheet will be available this fall to
make the calculations - District personnel will be required to identify
students who took the same classes and their WASL
scores - In September 2007, we plan to have an online tool
that will automatically identify the students and
make the calculation - Will only work if school districts submit
course-taking data
25WASL/Grades Comparison Why is it a good idea?
- Allows grades to be a consideration in getting a
Certificate of Academic Achievement - Addresses several of the major problems of using
grades - Differences in class rigor
- Between-school differences
- Maintains a focus on the mathematics, reading,
and writing standards - Not a Cumulative GPA
- Encourages students to do their absolute best in
core academic courses - Is less work than a collection
26Guidelines and Appeals
- Three types of guidelines and appeals were
approved - Transfer students For students who transfer into
a high school in their junior or senior year - Special cases Students who are close to the
standard but have special, unavoidable
circumstances (e.g., health issues but are close
to standards) - Score appeals Parents/students who think their
assessment was incorrectly scored
27Mathematics scores on the PSAT, SAT, and ACT
- Allows a student's PSAT, SAT, or ACT score to be
used as an alternative to the WASL in mathematics
- State Board of Education to identify scores
students must achieve to meet the state standard
by December 1, 2006 - Score must be equivalent to the WASL
- Funds were provided to reimburse students who
take one of these exams for use as an alternative
assessment
28Mathematics Assessment in segments
- Governor wanted to provide students hope
- Funds were provided to divide the mathematics
assessment into segments - OSPI plans to create a model year-long class with
the assessments embedded - Aligned course objectives, lesson plans,
instructional materials - Development will begin this summer
- Assessments will not be available until
at least 2008-09, but the model
classes will be available
in 2007-08
29Other news
- SPI to explore the feasibility of having the
mathematics assessment in additional languages - Legislature also directed the Washington Public
Policy Institute to - Analyze why students are not meeting standards
- Identify additional alternative assessments
- Transcripts
- Removed WASL scores, met/did not meet standard,
Scholars designation, and CAA by Alternative
Assessment or WASL - Left the Certificate of Academic Achievement or
Certificate of Individual Achievement
30Web-based Information
- CAA Alternative Methods
- www.k12.wa.us/assessment/CAAassess.aspx