Strand 1:
How To
The focus of Strand 1 is to provide attendees with information they need to successfully deliver assessments in the spring of 2021.
Day 1
9:15 - 10:15
Session Title: Standards-Aligned Assessment Systems
Presenters: Stephanie Swigart and Michelle McCarthy
10:45 - 11:45
Session Title: Understanding Statewide Assessments/Balanced Assessment
Presenter: Duane Schlabach
12:45 - 1:45
Session Title: Five Things You Must Know about ACT/PreACT/College Access This Year
Presenter: Angela McLean, Travis Anderson, Jeannie Origbo, and Marcy Fortner
2:00 - 3:00
Session Title: Who are Montana's ELs? Identifying English Learners and Serving Their Needs
Presenter: Jacob Barto
Session Description:
This session will cover how our state assessments connect to our Montana Content Standards. We will be looking at our Montana Content Standards, revision process, connections to priority standards.
Session Description:
This session provides an overview of the required state-wide assessments and uses one of these assessment systems (Smarter Balanced) as an example of what a balanced system of assessments looks like at the district level. The five steps of the Instructional Cycle along with links to formative and interim tools will be provided.
Session Description:
This session will provide an overview of the five things you must know about this year’s ACT with Writing state assessment in addition to information about how the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education based programs, GEAR UP and Montana Educational Talent Search, are working with the OPI and schools across Montana to support post secondary opportunities.
Session Description:
This session is designed to inform educators about Montana's English learner population (demographics, history, trends), to instruct on using the WIDA screener assessments to identify them, and to promote discussion on how to understand their unique needs and serve them.
Day 2
9:15 - 10:15
Session Title: Five Things You Must Know About WIDA/MSAA/AMSA This year
Presenter: Jacob Barto and Duane Schlabach
2:00 - 3:00
Session Title: Five Things You Must Know about Smarter Balanced This Year
Presenter: Duane Schlabach
Session Description:
This informational session will cover the fundamentals and must-know news about WIDA assessments, the Multi-State Alternate Assessment, and the Alternate Montana Science Assessment for the 2020-2021 school year.
Session Description:
In this session we will cover the five things that are most important to know and understand as we prepare for the Montana Science Assessment (MSA).
Session Description:
The session will include best practices for schools and districts to monitor locally for proper test security and will take a look at the steps the OPI takes to perform desktop monitoring for the suite of MontCAS Assessments. The session will also include an overview of past monitoring results.
Session Description:
This informational session will cover the fundamentals and must-know news about ELA and math assessments for Grades 3-8 for the 2020-2021 school year. This session will provide details on the new Montana-Specific Shortened Form test blueprint.