It is certainly a secret to no one at this point that our first administration of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is right around the corner in District 109. This assessment will be given in place of the Illinois Standard Achievement Test (ISAT) which was the previous state-mandated test in Illinois. We have been doing much to prepare for this test and have sincere hopes that our participation will give us much in return.
This test comes with a significant time commitment which exceeds the demand of the former ISAT administration. We will take the PARCC Performance Based (PBA) Assessment between March 9th and March 13th. We will take the PARCC End-of-Year (EOY) Assessment between April 27th and May 1st.
The rigor of these assessments far exceeds anything students across the nation have experienced before in the form of a standardized assessment. Our students and staff have participated in the PARCC practice tests in order to get a feel for both the format and the anticipated rigor and it has deepened our preparation and understanding. Parents are encouraged to take these practice tests as well to best understand the experiences of our students. Another great resource for parents is the PARCC Parents’ Guide released by the National and Illinois PTA. This guide includes overviews and sample test items.
We are keenly aware and sensitive to the time we spend on assessment with our students. Our focus is on giving assessments that directly inform our instruction and/or provides critical information regarding our students’ attainment of learning standards. Each assessment that currently exists in District 109 has a specific purpose and we continuously review and reflect upon our assessment cycles to ensure we are maximizing our instructional time with students.
February 1, 2015 at 7:35 pm
Brian,
Thank you for the clear and timely message!
ML