Test-based accountability policy in the US has resulted in increased availability and use of assessment systems to support instructional decision making. Though limited, literature to date suggests an important role for these systems as tools, mediating teacher knowledge and action. We examine system log data from NWEA's MAP assessment to better…

When Dr. Tonya Williams set out to improve the assessment program for the Georgia Leadership Preparatory Academy, she knew she had to develop a strategy that respected her teachers' time. "Students need and want to grow," she explains, "and that happens through improved teacher pedagogy. But to make that a reality, you have to give…

This series of rapid briefs is being developed by the Wisconsin-Minnesota Comprehensive Center - Region 10 (WMCC10). The purpose of these briefs is to provide succinct and timely guidance on best practices for schools and school-based early learning programs regarding the assessment of student learning, with the goal of informing instructional…

To help provide context to MAP® Growth™ normative percentiles, this document includes multiple College and Career Readiness (CCR) benchmarks, including those from ACT®, SAT®, and Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced). The comparative data in the tables presented in this report can be used as data points for instructional…

Sources of longitudinal achievement data are increasing thanks partially to the expansion of available interim assessments. These tests are often used to monitor the progress of students, classrooms, and schools within and across school years. Yet, few statistical models equipped to approximate the distinctly seasonal patterns in the data exist,…

When superintendent Rudy Hernandez first arrived at Cicero School District 99, he knew he had challenges to address across the district. With a near-90 percent poverty level and a student population made up of 50 percent English language learners, he knew he needed to work with teachers to build a data-driven support system to affect change.…

Research consistently has found teachers' use of assessment data for instructional purposes challenging and inconsistent. To support teachers' use of data, we need to develop shared knowledge about how data are and can be used to advance teaching and learning. However, the literature on the specific actions teachers take is inconsistent, creating…

Blue Valley, the fourth largest school district in Kansas, covers 91 square miles. More than 20,000 K-12 students attend its 34 schools (five high schools, nine middle schools, and 20 elementary schools). Blue Valley began using MAP® Growth™ in 2005 to track students' academic growth over time and independently of grade level. In 2010 the district…

A few years ago, Marnie O. Malone and her team at Elmira City Schools found themselves facing a challenge that's all too common: How can we best support students who we know aren't likely to meet grade-level standards? To find an answer, they looked to the MAP® Suite of assessments from NWEA®. This brief case study describes how Malone and her…

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created an unprecedented set of obstacles for schools and exacerbated existing structural inequalities in public education. In spring 2020, as schools went to remote learning formats or closed completely, end-of-year assessment programs ground to a halt. As a result, schools began the…

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created an unprecedented set of obstacles for schools and exacerbated existing structural inequalities in public education. In spring 2020, as schools went to remote learning formats or closed completely, end-of-year assessment programs ground to a halt. As a result, schools began the…

This study identified the impact of elementary teachers' perceptions and the change that data-driven instruction had on student achievement on the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessment in English language arts and mathematics in an urban elementary charter school. The researcher secured an inner-city charter school in Tennessee to…

This is the final report of a large-scale independent evaluation of the Building Assets and Reducing Risks (BARR) model in ninth grade in eleven high schools in Maine, California, Minnesota, Kentucky, and Texas. This sample of schools included large and small schools in urban, suburban, and rural areas, serving students from a wide range of…

The basic concept of personalized learning (PL) -- instruction that is focused on meeting students' individual learning needs while incorporating their interests and preferences -- has been a longstanding practice in U.S. K-12 education. Options for personalization have increased as personal computing devices have become increasingly affordable…