Standardized Testing

STANDARDIZED STATE TESTS, DIAGNOSTIC TESTING, LOCAL ASSESSMENTS 

Each fall as a best practice, we conduct diagnostics to gather baseline data on each learner.  This allows us to appropriately match instruction and personalize learning.  The State of Ohio requires such state approved diagnostic testing before September 30th of each year to be reported indicating whether a child is “On Track” or “Not on Track” according to the Third Grade Reading Guarantee.  These data results guide districts in what they are required and should provide to make sure that students who face challenges learning to read receive the help they need.

At Greater Summit County Early Learning Center District (SCOPE PRIMARY) we administer ODE Diagnostic Testing and Local ODE approved assessments each Fall prior to September 30th in the following ways:

Policy No. 3531

State Assessments & Support

In addition to the School’s own assessments, the School shall assess each student in accordance with Ohio law and regulations.  The State’s assessments and diagnostics are designed to ensure that students demonstrate the proper levels of achievement and to assist students if they are not meeting the proper standards.

Administering Diagnostic Assessments

Diagnostic assessments shall be administered as the Governing Authority deems appropriate, but at least once annually.  As required by Ohio law, diagnostic assessments should be performed as described below.

·         To each student who transferred into the School if the applicable diagnostic assessment was not administered at the Student’s previous school.  The diagnostic must be conducted thirty (30) days after the date of transfer.

·         Each kindergarten student shall take the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment.  The assessment must be administered from July 1st through the 20th day of instruction for the school year. The results of the Assessment may not be used to prohibit a student from entering Kindergarten.

·         The Third Grade Reading Guarantee diagnostic assessments for students in grades kindergarten through third grade.

·         All other diagnostics required by law for students in grades kindergarten through three.

After the administration of any diagnostic assessment, the School shall provide the following information to each parent/guardian:  the student’s completed diagnostic assessment, the results of the assessment, any other accompanying documents used during the administration of the assessment, and all documents and information in any plan developed for the student.

The School shall submit the results of each assessment as required by law. 

Ohio Assessments and Tests

The School shall administer all assessments required by Ohio law.  The assessments are to be aligned with the academic standards and model curricula adopted by the state.  The tests shall be administered at the designated times. 

The School may, for medical reasons or other good cause, excuse a student from taking an assessment administered on the date scheduled, but that assessment shall be administered to the excused student not later than nine (9) days following the scheduled date.  The School shall annually report the number of students who have not taken one or more of the required assessments by June 30.

Students receiving special education services may participate in the required testing according to the student’s individualized education plan (IEP). If a student is to take an alternate assessment, the method must be approved by the Ohio Department of Education as conforming to federal law.  See Policy No. 3730, Alternative Assessments for Students with Disabilities.

Intervention Services

The School shall provide intervention services as follows:

Diagnostic Assessment Intervention.  The School shall provide intervention services to students whose diagnostic assessments show that they are failing to make satisfactory progress toward attaining the academic standards for their grade level.

Proficiency and Achievement Tests.  The School shall also provide prevention/intervention services in pertinent subject areas to students who score below the proficient level on a reading, writing, mathematics, social studies, or science proficiency or achievement test. 

Third Grade Reading Guarantee.  The School shall also provide intervention services pursuant to the Third Grade Reading Guarantee, as explained below.

Ohio Graduation Tests.  If the School teaches high school, the School may be required to provide intervention under R.C. 3301.0711.  The School shall provide intervention services to any student whose results indicate the student is failing to make satisfactory progress toward being able to attain scores at the proficient level on the Ohio Graduation tests.  These intervention services shall be provided prior to the end of the school year, during the summer following the ninth grade, and/or in the next succeeding school year. 

Third Grade Reading Guarantee; Intervention and Remediation Services

To assist students in meeting the Third Grade Guarantee, all students in grades kindergarten through third shall be given an English Language Arts diagnostic assessment, which shall include items related to dyslexia identification. Such assessments and comparable tools shall include a sufficient number of items to test phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, rapid naming skills, nonsense word fluency, and correspondence between sounds and letters to identify students who may need further measures to determine if the student has dyslexia.  Additionally, test vendors utilized by the School shall share student performance data on comparable tools related to dyslexia as described above with each district and community, STEM, and chartered nonpublic school and ODE.  The assessment shall identify students who are below their grade level. If the diagnostic assessment indicates the student is “not on track” to be reading at his or her grade level by the end of the year, the School shall provide the parents a written notice.  The written notice shall:

·         indicate that the School has identified a reading deficiency in their child;

·         indicate the current services provided to the student;

·         describe proposed supplemental instruction services;

·         indicate that the Ohio Achievement Assessment for third grade reading is not the only measure of reading competency;

·         indicate that unless the student attains the appropriate level of reading competency by the end of grade 3, the student will be retained; and

·         provide a statement that connects the child's proficiency level in reading to long-term outcomes of success related to proficiency in reading.

Additionally, for each student shown to be “not on track”, the School shall take the following steps:  immediately begin reading intervention that is aligned with the science of reading as defined under Ohio law (see Policy No. 3240, Reading Standards) using research-based reading strategies targeted at the student’s identified reading deficiencies, assign the student to a Credentialed Teacher, and develop a reading improvement and monitoring plan—as described below.  The School will continue to provide the intervention and monitoring plan until the student achieves the required level of skill in reading for the student's current grade level.

All reading improvement and monitoring plans must be developed within sixty (60) days of identifying the child’s disability and shall:

1.  identify the student’s specific reading deficiency;

2.  describe proposed supplemental instruction services that will target the student’s identified reading deficiencies;

3.  include opportunities for the parents or guardians to be involved in the instructional services;

4.  include a process to monitor the implementation of the student’s instructional services;

5.  develop a reading curriculum during the regular school hours that assist the student to read at his or her grade level, provide for reliable assessments, and provide ongoing analysis of each student’s reading progress;

6.  include a statement that unless the student attains the appropriate level of reading competency by the end of grade three, the student will be retained; and

7.  include high-dosage tutoring opportunities aligned with the student's classroom instruction through a state-approved vendor on the list of high-quality tutoring vendors under R.C. 3301.136 or a locally approved opportunity that aligns with high-dosage tutoring best practices. High-dosage tutoring opportunities shall include additional instruction time of at least three days per week, or at least fifty hours over thirty-six weeks.

Credentialed Teacher. Each student who is retained or has a reading improvement and monitoring plan must be assigned to a Credentialed Teacher.  A Credentialed Teacher is a teacher who has been actively engaged in the reading instruction of students for the previous three (3) years, and who either (1) hold a reading endorsement and has attained a passing score on the corresponding assessment, or (2) has obtained a master’s degree with a major in reading.  Additionally, until July 1, 2014, a teacher is qualified if the teacher possess a credential earned from a list of reading instruction programs approved the ODE or was rated “above value added” for the last two years.  Effective July 1, 2014, a teacher is also qualified if the teacher has a passing score on a State-approved reading instruction test. 

Retention Policy. Beginning with students who enter third grade in the 2013 - 2014 school year, the School will retain all students scoring below the designated level on the third grade reading assessment, unless the student qualifies for one of the following exceptions:

1.  The student is a limited English-proficient student who has been enrolled in the United States schools for less than two full school years and has less than two years of instruction in English as a second language program;

2.  The student is a child with a disability entitled to special education and the student’s individualized education program exempts the student from being retained;

3.  The student demonstrates an acceptable level of performance on an alternative standardized reading assessment as determined by the Ohio Department of Education;

4.      The student is a child with a disability entitled to a special education, the student has taken the third grade English Language Arts achievement assessment, the student’s individualized education program or plan shows that the student has received intensive remediation in reading for two school years but still demonstrates a deficiency in reading, and the student previously was retained in any of grades kindergarten through three; and

5.  The student received intensive remediation for reading for two school years but still demonstrates a deficiency in reading and was previously retained in any of grades kindergarten through 3.  The student shall continue to receive intensive reading instruction in grade four.  The instruction shall include an altered instructional day that includes specialized diagnostic information and specific research-based strategies for the student that has been successful in improving reading among low-performing readers.

6.  The student’s parent or guardian, in consultation with the student's reading teacher and building principal, requests that the student, regardless of if the student is reading at grade level, be promoted to the fourth grade. The student will continue to receive intensive reading instruction in the same manner as a student retained under this section until the student is able to read at grade level.

For each student retained in the third grade, the School shall provide Intense Remediation Services until the student is able to read at grade level.  The remediation services shall include at least ninety (90) minutes of reading instruction per day and should be targeted to the student’s identified reading deficiencies. The remediation services must be provided by a Credentialed Teacher and may include, but are not limited to: small group instruction; Reduced teacher-student ratios; More frequent progress monitoring; Tutoring or mentoring; Transition classes containing third and fourth grade students; Summer reading camp; or Extended school day, week or year.

The School must offer the option for students to receive reading intervention services from one or more providers other than the district. The district will screen and improve any provider offered and paid for by the School.

For each retained student who has demonstrated a proficiency in a specific academic ability field, each district shall provide instruction commensurate with student achievement levels in that specific academic ability field.  Academic ability field includes mathematics, science, reading and/or writing, and social studies. 

Each retained student may be promoted mid-year if the student demonstrate he or she is reading at or above grade level. 

The School must report any information requested by the Ohio Department of Education on the reading improvement and monitoring plan as required by the Ohio Department of Education.  The School must submit to the Ohio Department of Education the results of diagnostic assessments and include such information related to the reading assessment and the student’s reading and improvement monitoring plan.

Response to Intervention

Response to Intervention (RTI) is a process the School uses to help children who are struggling academically or behaviorally. The purpose of RTI is to meet students where they are and progress them forward in their skills. This process also helps to distinguish between students who need intervention to advance their skills and students who require specially designed instruction as a student with an identified disability.

With RTI, the School shall identify students at risk for not meeting learning outcomes, provide evidence-based interventions, adjust the intensity and nature of those interventions depending on a student’s responsiveness, and monitor their progress.

RTI is divided into three tiers. In Tier I, students experiencing learning needs are identified through their performance and provided with small group interventions through the core curriculum in the classroom. The teacher monitors their response to strategies and makes adjustments in the delivery of the curriculum to determine if the student’s needs are met or the student needs more intensive interventions. The teacher and other staff members who have regular interaction with the student shall make regular reporting of the student’s progress.

If the child does not respond to the first level of group-oriented interventions, he or she moves to Tier II. The length of time in Tier II is generally a bit longer than in Tier I, and the level of intensity and individualization of the interventions are increased. Child progress is again closely monitored. The child’s teacher will notify the family of their area for concern, how they will intervene with this concern, and how they will track information related to the child’s progress. If the child shows adequate progress, then the intervention has been successful and will continue. It is quite possible that, if the problem is caught early enough and addressed via appropriate instruction, the child learns the skills necessary to continue in general education without further intervention.

Students who do not respond to Tier II instruction move into Tier III instruction. At Tier III a building team will convene, including the parents, to share information on the interventions tried and to present the data collected on the child’s progress. Through discussions at Tier III, teams will make decisions about whether to change out interventions and continue to monitor progress, or to move towards a referral for an evaluation to determine if special education services are needed. The data gathered on the child’s response to interventions in Tiers I, II and III becomes a part of the Evaluation Team Report in making a determination as to whether the child is a child with special needs.

Ohio:  R.C. 3301.071, R.C. 3301.079, R.C. 3301.0711, R.C. 3301.0714, R.C. 3301.0715, R.C. 3313.608, R.C. 3313.6012.

Cross Reference: Policy No. 3240, Reading Standards, Policy No. 3521, Assessing Student Progress; Policy No. 3522, Grading Policy; Policy No. 3532, State Assessments Security & Ethics; Policy No. 3540, Promotion and Retention of Students; Policy No. 3550, Core Curriculum Requirements; Policy No. 3730, Alternative Assessments for Students with Disabilities; Policy No. 3250 Dyslexia Screenings and Multi-Sensory Structured Literacy Certification

Rev. 9/18/2023