Assessments in District 41
CLICK FOR THE 2022-23 ASSESSMENT CALENDAR
Illinois Snapshot of Early Literacy (ISEL)
The ISEL test is administered to all kindergarten and grade 1 students in the fall and spring. For those students who scored below the 50% in the fall, they will also be assessed in the winter to monitor their progress.
Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Test
The MAP test is a computer-based assessment that measures student achievement in reading and math. It is a personalized assessment because it adapts to each student’s learning level. The MAP test is administered to all students in grades K - 8, three times a year and allows us to monitor individual student progress over time. All of your child’s MAP results are viewable in Skyward. You can access them as follows:
Parents and guardians can also see the reports in Skyward Family Access. Here's how:
- Log into Skyward Family Access.
- On the left, click Report Cards (+ other reports).
- A list of reports will appear (mostly old report cards). Click on the link NWEA-MAP Student Progress Report.
- The report will open in Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Additional information to further understand the scores.
What is a RIT Score?
A RIT Score is a way of measuring in equal units. The RIT scale score shows a student’s current achievement level. Students who perform in specific RIT ranges typically demonstrate specific skills. Please understand that a RIT score is not tied to a specific grade or age level. It is tied to specific skills. When we know the RIT range a student is performing in, we know the skills that the student should have mastered. Because many students have taken the MAP, we have a general idea of how a child should progress in a year. Scores are reported in a range. Students seldom receive the same score if retested but they will probably receive a score within the same range.
Your child’s Progress Report provides you with your child’s RIT range as well as the average RIT range for students in your child’s grade in the district. It also provides you with the RIT for the Norm Group Average. This is a very large group of students who took the test for the given year.
What is a Percentile Score?
The Percentile Score is another way to compare your child’s results with other children in the norm group. The percentile shows how your child ranks when compared with the norm group. It shows the percent of students who had a RIT score less than or equal to your child’s score. A percentile score of 75% for a fourth grader means that the fourth grader scored better than 75% of the fourth graders nationally who have taken MAP.
Goal Areas
The content for each of the assessments is categorized into “goal areas”. Each goal area is further divided into skills. The Progress Reports provide a breakdown on how your child did in each goal area. The goal areas have been aligned to the new Common Core Standards.
Lexiles
Lexiles are another type of score. They are found under the Reading Goals Performance. A Lexile is a universal unit of measurement for matching a child’s reading level to the correct level of books. Many librarians, book publishers and other organizations providing print materials are now listing the Lexile level. If a student has a lexile range of 600 – 750, reading materials in that range could be checked to see if they will be too easy or too difficult to read. Lexiles are a guide. They should never be the sole factor in determining reading materials for a student. Lexiles in combination with the student’s interests should be considered.
What Parents Can Do
MAP scores are only one measure. Classroom work and other tests should help to shape your child’s learning profile. Never make big assumptions based upon one MAP score.
Use the Lexile scores to assist your child with choosing print materials at the right level. Again, these scores are just a guide.
If there is a concern about your child’s performance, ask your child’s teacher for the specific skills that your child is supposed to know. A list of skills for each test and each RIT range is available.
For additional parent resources, CLICK HERE.
Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System (F & P)
The Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System is used as an informal universal reading assessment in District 41. Developed by nationally-recognized literacy leaders Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, this assessment focuses on oral and silent reading, literal and inferential comprehension, and identifying author’s craft in writing. The student reads orally(and silently in intermediate grades) from a text written exclusively for this assessment. The teacher listens and observes carefully, noting both what the student does well and what he or she has difficulties with. A comprehension conversation follows, during which the teacher asks a series of questions to understand how the student thinks about his or her reading. Because this is an informal assessment and not a standardized test, teachers can administer it as needed throughout the school year to monitor student progress and adjust instruction accordingly.
Following the assessment, the teacher can use the Fountas and Pinnell Continuum of Literacy Learning to determine strategies and texts that will help the student develop as a reader. Students who need extra support may receive instruction that uses the Leveled Literacy Intervention program, which was also created by Fountas and Pinnell. These components complement the assessment system and help teachers provided unified instruction that meets the rigor of the Common Core State Standards.
FOR INFORMATION ON IAR (The Illinois Assessment of Readiness) and Common Core CLICK HERE!
