Here is a website that may help you understand what each section means a little better.
http://www.powayusd.com/projects/edtechcentral/maps/parents.htm
Northwest Evaluation Association
(NWEA) is a not-for-profit organization committed to helping school districts
throughout the nation improve learning for all students. NWEA partners with more
than 2,200 school districts representing more than three million students. As a
result of NWEA tests, educators can make informed decisions to promote your
child’s academic growth.
Where can I learn more about NWEA? Visit the website www.nwea.org
Which grades are being tested? We are presently testing all students in
grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
What is the MAP NWEA Assessment? MAP— NWEA’s computerized adaptive
tests are called Measure of Academic Progress, or MAP. When taking a MAP test,
the difficulty of each question is based on how well a student answers all the
previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions become more
difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions become easier. In
an optimal test, a student answers approximately half the items correctly and
half incorrectly. The final score is an estimate of the student’s achievement
level.
What is RIT? Tests developed by NWEA use a scale called RIT to measure
student achievement and growth. RIT stands for Rasch UnIT, which is a
measurement scale developed to simplify the interpretation of test scores. The
RIT score relates directly to the curriculum scale in each subject area. It is
an equal-interval scale, like feet and inches, so scores can be added together
to calculate accurate class or school averages.
What is the average score? RIT scores range from about 140 to 300.
Students typically start at the 140 to 190 level in the third grade and progress
to the 240 to 300 level by high school. RIT scores make it possible to follow a
student’s educational growth from year to year.
What subjects does MAP assess? We are using the MAP tests in the area
of mathematics and reading.
How long does it take to complete a test? Depending on the grade
level, it can take students anywhere from 15 minutes to 60 minutes to complete a
test.
When will my student be tested and how often? Districts have the option
of testing their students up to four times a year. Districts typically test
students at the beginning of the school year in fall and at the end of the
school year in spring. Some districts may also choose to test students in the
summer. Currently, MSAD #11 tests in Sept-October and May-June.
Do all students in the same grade take the same test? No. NWEA
assessments are designed to target a student’s academic performance in
mathematics, reading, language usage, and science. These tests are tailored to
an individual’s current achievement level. This gives each student a fair
opportunity to show what he or she knows and can do. If a school uses MAP, the
computer adjusts the difficulty of the questions so that each student takes a
unique test.
What can I do as a parent? Three kinds of parental involvement at home
are consistently associated with higher student achievement:Actively organizing
and monitoring a child’s time.Helping with homework.Discussing school
matters.
What are NWEA assessments used for? NWEA assessments are used to
measure your student’s progress or growth in school. You may have a chart in
your home on which you mark your child’s height at certain times, such as on his
or her birthday. This is a growth chart. It shows how much he or she has grown
from one year to the next. NWEA assessments do the same sort of thing, except
they measure your student’s growth in mathematics and reading. The scale used to
measure your child’s progress is called the RIT scale (Rasch unIT). The RIT
scale is an equal-interval scale much like feet and inches on a yardstick. It is
used to chart your student’s academic growth from year to year.
How do teachers use the test scores? NWEA tests are important to
teachers because they keep track of progress and growth in basic skills. They
let teachers know where a student’s strengths are and if help is needed in any
specific areas. Teachers use this information to help them guide instruction in
the classroom.
What are some ways that I can help my child prepare for this test?
Meet with your child’s teacher as often as needed to discuss his or her
progress.
What
are some ways I can help my child with language?
What are some ways I can help my child with reading?
Did you know?
Parents cannot assume that schoolwork makes up for too much TV. Children of all ages
watch as much TV in one day as they read for fun in an entire week. Overall,
children under age 13 spend 90 minutes a day in front of the TV—one-quarter of
their free time. – U.S. Department of Education
What are some ways I can help my child with math?
Web
sites for Kids and Parents - Mathwww.aaamath.com Math practice and
activitieswww.coolmath.com Interactive math gameswww.funbrain.com Great site for kidswww.aplusmath.com A+ Mathhttp://mathforum.org/dr.math/ Ask Dr. Mathwww.gomath.com On line math helpwww.tangram.i-p.com/ Interactive tangramswww.mathleague.com/help/help.htm Math League help
topicswww.edhelper.com Help for all subjects
Language
Arts/Readingwww.funbrain.com Language Arts games
and morewww.m-w.com/game/ Merriam Webster Word Game of the
Daywww.vocabulary.com Vocabulary activitieswww.superkids.com/aweb/tools/words Vocabulary
buildershttp://helponenglish.homestead.com
English helpwww.writesite.org Interactive Language Arts and
Journalismwww.lexile.com Lexile Frameworkwww.kidsreads.com Book reviews, games, authors, and
more
What
is a Lexile Level? A Lexile is a unit for measuring text
difficulty that is linked to the reading RIT score. Lexile is reported on an
equal interval scale, like the RIT scale. 10L is at the low end of the scale and
1700L is at the high end. Books for beginning readers are listed as BR on the
scale. The Lexile range is included on individual student progress reports. It
allows educators and parents to find books, periodicals, and other reading
material that is appropriately challenging for each student. Students are
considered to be at an appropriate level when they can comprehend approximately
75% of the material they read. This ensures that students are neither frustrated
nor bored, and are stimulating their learning processes while rewarding their
current reading abilities. A Lexile measures syntactic complexity—the number of
words per sentence. We know that longer sentences are more complex and require
more short-term memory to process. A Lexile also measures semantic difficulty—a
measure of vocabulary. This measure looks at the frequency of words in a text
compared to a body of over 400 million words. This is the largest repository of
text in the world and is quickly approaching 500 million words.
The Lexile database currently includes over 30,000 books. You can access the Lexile web
site at www.lexile.com. You can search titles (both Spanish
and English) at the web site free of charge. The regular search feature allows
you to search by title, author, ISBN, subject, or Lexile range. By using the
detailed search on the same page, you can also search by theme, interest, or
content area. Other features of the web site include frequently asked questions,
the Lexile Times Newsletter, a parent link, and a reading calendar. Check it
out! It is very important for parents to keep in mind that Lexile does not
evaluate genre, theme, content, or interest. Even though a student might be able
to read books at a certain Lexile, the content or theme of the text may not be
appropriate for that particular student because of his or her age or
developmental level. Also, a student may be able to read more difficult content
if it is an area of interest for that child since he or she may already be
familiar with some of the vocabulary necessary to comprehend the
text.
Some Examples of BooksGreen Eggs and Ham 30L Harry
Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 940LAmelia Bedelia 140L Hatchet 1020LClifford,
the Big Red Dog 220L Pride and Prejudice 1100LBony-Legs 370L The Adventures of
Robin Hood 1270LCurious George 400L Little Women 1300LNWEA Parent Toolkit Page 6
of 6© 2006 Northwest Evaluation AssociationSarah, Plain and Tall 560L Profiles
in Courage 1410LCharlotte’s Web 680L The Good Earth 1530LJurassic Park 710L The
Principles of Scientific Management 1670LThe Fellowship of the Ring 860L
Discourse on the Method and Meditationson First Philosophy
1720L
Commonly Used Terms
http://www.powayusd.com/projects/edtechcentral/maps/parents.htm
Northwest Evaluation Association
(NWEA) is a not-for-profit organization committed to helping school districts
throughout the nation improve learning for all students. NWEA partners with more
than 2,200 school districts representing more than three million students. As a
result of NWEA tests, educators can make informed decisions to promote your
child’s academic growth.
Where can I learn more about NWEA? Visit the website www.nwea.org
Which grades are being tested? We are presently testing all students in
grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
What is the MAP NWEA Assessment? MAP— NWEA’s computerized adaptive
tests are called Measure of Academic Progress, or MAP. When taking a MAP test,
the difficulty of each question is based on how well a student answers all the
previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions become more
difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions become easier. In
an optimal test, a student answers approximately half the items correctly and
half incorrectly. The final score is an estimate of the student’s achievement
level.
What is RIT? Tests developed by NWEA use a scale called RIT to measure
student achievement and growth. RIT stands for Rasch UnIT, which is a
measurement scale developed to simplify the interpretation of test scores. The
RIT score relates directly to the curriculum scale in each subject area. It is
an equal-interval scale, like feet and inches, so scores can be added together
to calculate accurate class or school averages.
What is the average score? RIT scores range from about 140 to 300.
Students typically start at the 140 to 190 level in the third grade and progress
to the 240 to 300 level by high school. RIT scores make it possible to follow a
student’s educational growth from year to year.
What subjects does MAP assess? We are using the MAP tests in the area
of mathematics and reading.
How long does it take to complete a test? Depending on the grade
level, it can take students anywhere from 15 minutes to 60 minutes to complete a
test.
When will my student be tested and how often? Districts have the option
of testing their students up to four times a year. Districts typically test
students at the beginning of the school year in fall and at the end of the
school year in spring. Some districts may also choose to test students in the
summer. Currently, MSAD #11 tests in Sept-October and May-June.
Do all students in the same grade take the same test? No. NWEA
assessments are designed to target a student’s academic performance in
mathematics, reading, language usage, and science. These tests are tailored to
an individual’s current achievement level. This gives each student a fair
opportunity to show what he or she knows and can do. If a school uses MAP, the
computer adjusts the difficulty of the questions so that each student takes a
unique test.
What can I do as a parent? Three kinds of parental involvement at home
are consistently associated with higher student achievement:Actively organizing
and monitoring a child’s time.Helping with homework.Discussing school
matters.
What are NWEA assessments used for? NWEA assessments are used to
measure your student’s progress or growth in school. You may have a chart in
your home on which you mark your child’s height at certain times, such as on his
or her birthday. This is a growth chart. It shows how much he or she has grown
from one year to the next. NWEA assessments do the same sort of thing, except
they measure your student’s growth in mathematics and reading. The scale used to
measure your child’s progress is called the RIT scale (Rasch unIT). The RIT
scale is an equal-interval scale much like feet and inches on a yardstick. It is
used to chart your student’s academic growth from year to year.
How do teachers use the test scores? NWEA tests are important to
teachers because they keep track of progress and growth in basic skills. They
let teachers know where a student’s strengths are and if help is needed in any
specific areas. Teachers use this information to help them guide instruction in
the classroom.
What are some ways that I can help my child prepare for this test?
Meet with your child’s teacher as often as needed to discuss his or her
progress.
- Ask the teacher to suggest activities for you and your child to do at home
to help prepare for tests and improve your child’s understanding of schoolwork.
Parents and teachers working together benefits students. - Provide a quiet, comfortable place for studying at home.
- Make sure that your child is well rested on school days and especially the
day of a test. Children who are tired are less able to pay attention in class or
to handle the demands of a test. - Give your child a well-rounded diet. A healthy body leads to a healthy,
active mind. - Provide books and magazines for your child to read at home. By reading new
materials, a child learns new words that might appear on a test. Ask your
child’s school about a suggested outside reading list or get suggestions from
the public library.
What
are some ways I can help my child with language?
- Talk to your child and encourage him or her to engage in conversation during
family activities. - Give a journal or diary as a gift.
- Help your child write a letter to a friend or family member. Offer
assistance with correct grammar usage and content. - Have a “word of the week” that is defined every Monday. Encourage your child
to use the new wordthroughout the week. - Plan a special snack or meal and have your child write the menu.
- After finishing a chapter in a book or a magazine article, have your child
explain his or her favoriteevent.
What are some ways I can help my child with reading?
- Provide many opportunities for your child to read books or other materials.
Children learn to read best when they have books and other reading materials at
home and plenty of chances to read. - Read aloud to your child. Research shows that this is the most important
activity that parents can do to increase their child’s chance of reading
success. Keep reading aloud even when your child can read independently. - Make time for the library.
- Play games like Scrabble, Spill and Spell, Scattergories, and Balderdash
together. - Follow your child’s interest—find fiction and nonfiction books that tie into
this interest. - Work crossword puzzles with your child.
- Give a magazine subscription for a gift.
Did you know?
Parents cannot assume that schoolwork makes up for too much TV. Children of all ages
watch as much TV in one day as they read for fun in an entire week. Overall,
children under age 13 spend 90 minutes a day in front of the TV—one-quarter of
their free time. – U.S. Department of Education
What are some ways I can help my child with math?
- Spend time with kids on simple board games, puzzles, and activities that
encourage better attitudes and stronger math skills. Even everyday activities
such as playing with toys in a sandbox or in a tub at bath time can teach
children math concepts such as weight, density, and volume. Check your
television listings for shows that can reinforce math skills in a practical and
fun way. - Encourage children to solve problems. Provide assistance, but let them
figure it out themselves. Problem solving is alifetime skill. - The kitchen is filled with tasty opportunities to teach fractional
measurements, such as doubling and dividing cookie recipes. - Point out ways that people use math every day to pay bills, balance their
checkbooks, figure out their net earnings, make change, and how to tip at
restaurants. Involve older children in projects that incorporate geometric and
algebraic concepts such as planting a garden, building a bookshelf, or figuring
how long it will take to drive to your family vacation destination. - Children should learn to read and interpret charts and graphs such as those
found in daily newspapers. Collecting and analyzing data will help your child
draw conclusions and become discriminating readers of numerical
information.
Web
sites for Kids and Parents - Mathwww.aaamath.com Math practice and
activitieswww.coolmath.com Interactive math gameswww.funbrain.com Great site for kidswww.aplusmath.com A+ Mathhttp://mathforum.org/dr.math/ Ask Dr. Mathwww.gomath.com On line math helpwww.tangram.i-p.com/ Interactive tangramswww.mathleague.com/help/help.htm Math League help
topicswww.edhelper.com Help for all subjects
Language
Arts/Readingwww.funbrain.com Language Arts games
and morewww.m-w.com/game/ Merriam Webster Word Game of the
Daywww.vocabulary.com Vocabulary activitieswww.superkids.com/aweb/tools/words Vocabulary
buildershttp://helponenglish.homestead.com
English helpwww.writesite.org Interactive Language Arts and
Journalismwww.lexile.com Lexile Frameworkwww.kidsreads.com Book reviews, games, authors, and
more
What
is a Lexile Level? A Lexile is a unit for measuring text
difficulty that is linked to the reading RIT score. Lexile is reported on an
equal interval scale, like the RIT scale. 10L is at the low end of the scale and
1700L is at the high end. Books for beginning readers are listed as BR on the
scale. The Lexile range is included on individual student progress reports. It
allows educators and parents to find books, periodicals, and other reading
material that is appropriately challenging for each student. Students are
considered to be at an appropriate level when they can comprehend approximately
75% of the material they read. This ensures that students are neither frustrated
nor bored, and are stimulating their learning processes while rewarding their
current reading abilities. A Lexile measures syntactic complexity—the number of
words per sentence. We know that longer sentences are more complex and require
more short-term memory to process. A Lexile also measures semantic difficulty—a
measure of vocabulary. This measure looks at the frequency of words in a text
compared to a body of over 400 million words. This is the largest repository of
text in the world and is quickly approaching 500 million words.
The Lexile database currently includes over 30,000 books. You can access the Lexile web
site at www.lexile.com. You can search titles (both Spanish
and English) at the web site free of charge. The regular search feature allows
you to search by title, author, ISBN, subject, or Lexile range. By using the
detailed search on the same page, you can also search by theme, interest, or
content area. Other features of the web site include frequently asked questions,
the Lexile Times Newsletter, a parent link, and a reading calendar. Check it
out! It is very important for parents to keep in mind that Lexile does not
evaluate genre, theme, content, or interest. Even though a student might be able
to read books at a certain Lexile, the content or theme of the text may not be
appropriate for that particular student because of his or her age or
developmental level. Also, a student may be able to read more difficult content
if it is an area of interest for that child since he or she may already be
familiar with some of the vocabulary necessary to comprehend the
text.
Some Examples of BooksGreen Eggs and Ham 30L Harry
Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 940LAmelia Bedelia 140L Hatchet 1020LClifford,
the Big Red Dog 220L Pride and Prejudice 1100LBony-Legs 370L The Adventures of
Robin Hood 1270LCurious George 400L Little Women 1300LNWEA Parent Toolkit Page 6
of 6© 2006 Northwest Evaluation AssociationSarah, Plain and Tall 560L Profiles
in Courage 1410LCharlotte’s Web 680L The Good Earth 1530LJurassic Park 710L The
Principles of Scientific Management 1670LThe Fellowship of the Ring 860L
Discourse on the Method and Meditationson First Philosophy
1720L
Commonly Used Terms
- District Average—The average RIT score for all students in the school
district in the same grade whowere tested at the same time as this student. - Lexile—A Lexile is a unit for measuring text difficulty. This unit is linked
to the reading RIT score. By determining the level of text difficulty students
can comprehend, Lexiles can be used to determine student reading ability. - MAP— Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) are a series of computerized
adaptive tests that measure a student’s general knowledge in reading, language
usage, mathematics and science. - Norm Group Average—The average score observed for students in the norm
group. - Percentile Range—Percentiles are used to compare one student’s performance
to that of the norm group. - Percentile means the student scored as well as or better than that percent
of students taking the test in his/her grade. There is about a 68% chance that a
student’s percentile ranking would fall within this range if the student tested
again relatively soon. - Percentile Rank—The percentile rank is a normative statistic that indicates
how well a student performed in comparison to the students in the norm group.
The most recent norm sample was a group of over 2.3 million students from across
the United States. A student’s percentile rank indicates that the student scored
as well as, or better than, the percent of students in the norm group. In other
words, a student with a percentile rank of 72 scored as well as, or better than
72% of the students in the norm group. - RIT—Tests developed by NWEA use a scale called RIT to measure student
achievement and growth. RITstands for Rasch UnIT, which is a measurement scale
developed to simplify the interpretation of testscores. The RIT score relates
directly to the curriculum scale in each subject area. It is an
equal-intervalscale, like feet and inches, so scores can be added together to
calculate accurate class or school averages. - RIT scores range from about 140 to 300. Students typically start at the 140
to 190 level in the third gradeand progress to the 240 to 300 level by high
school. RIT scores make it possible to follow a student’s educational growth
from year to year. - Standards— Standards are statements, developed by states or districts, of
what students should know and be able to do, related to specific academic
areas.