Massachusetts Reading First

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Massachusetts Reading First

• Leadership Meeting
• April 26, 2007
• Worcester Hotel Conference Center

2
Objectives

• To continue the conversation about MCAS that we
  began at the last Leadership Meeting
• To focus on the content of the assessment
  including test development
• To outline our plan for providing professional
  development on open-response questions beginning
  this summer

3
Objectives

• To share ideas with colleagues about improving
  student achievement
• To present The Massachusetts PreK 12 Literacy
  Plan Report and Recommendations of the Literacy
  Task Force
• To discuss what went well this year, and what
  youd like the Office of Reading to consider for
  next year

4

• Overview of MCAS
• Content NOT Statistics

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MCAS Overview

• Question types and points
• Grade 3 is a little different from the grades 4-8
  and 10 test
• Grade 3 test
• 7 passages (3-4 of each long and short)
• 40 multiple choice items (1 point each)
• 2 open-response items (4 points each)

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MCAS Overview

• Grades 4-8 and 10
• 6 passages (3 long and 3 short)
• 36 multiple choice items (1 point each)
• 4 open-response items 4 points each
• Grades 4, 7 and 10 also include a writing
  component- the long composition

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Literary Text and Informational Text

• For example 2006 grade 3 test

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Literary Text and Informational Text

• For example 2006 grade 3 test

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Authors 50 must come from Appendices A and B

• Appendix A Suggested Authors, Illustrators, and
  Works Reflecting Our Common Literary and Cultural
  Heritage
• Some examples
• George Selden Thompson -Ellen (2005, grade 3)
• Robert Louis Stevenson- My Shadow (2005, grade 4)
• A.A. Milne - Waiting at the Window (2006, grade
  3)
• Rachel Field- Some People (grade 4, 2004)
• Ian Fleming Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (grade 4,
  2003)
• Lewis Carroll Alice in Wonderland (grade 4,
  2002)

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Authors 50 must come from Appendices A and B

• Appendix B Suggested Authors and Illustrators of
  Contemporary American Literature and World
  Literature
• Some examples
• Johanna Hurwitz - The Recital (2006, grade 3)
• Patricia McKissak Now That I Have A Green Thumb
  (2004, grade 3)
• Paul Fleischman Gonzalo (2004, grade 4)
• Jane Yolen- Homework (2003, grade 4)
• Jack Prelutsky The Snail (2004, grade 3) and
• The Pack Rat (2003, grade 3)

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Authors 50 must come from Appendices A and B

• Appendix Balso includes books from the following
  award listsThe Newbery Medal
• The Caldecott Medal
• ALA Notable Books
• The Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards
• Examples
• Kate DiCamillo Because of Winn Dixie (2006,
  grade 4) 2001 Newbery Honor book
• Robert OBrien Mrs. Frisby and The Rats of NIMH
  (2005, grade 4) 1972 Newbery Award

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Blueprint

• Approximately 6-7 language questions per test
• Standard 4 Vocabulary
• A word from the passage and students must
  identify the meaning from the context of the
  sentence. The word is usually 1-2 grade levels
  above tested grade
• A word with multiple meanings taken from the
  passage and students have to identify the
  appropriate meaning of the word

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Blueprint

• Approximately 6-7 language questions per test
• Standard 5 structure and origins of modern
  English
• Parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adjectives at
  grade 3)
• Mechanics (apostrophes, commas, question marks,
  complete sentences, capitalization)

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• Questions about the content of the test

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Test Development

• Assessment Development Committee - about 12
  members on each committee
• Members' Responsibilities
• Assist the DOE in reviewing
• MCAS reading passages (ELA and Reading only)
• test items and
• scoring rubrics

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Test Development

• MCAS items are reviewed for
• alignment with the Massachusetts Curriculum
  Frameworks and MCAS performance standards
• clarity and precision of language
• content accuracy
• developmental appropriateness
• instructional worthiness

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Test Development

• Committee members are charged with reviewing all
  questions prior to field-testing and making
  suggestions for refinements.
• After items have been field-tested, committee
  members review the items again along with item
  performance data.
• ELA committee members also review writing prompts
  and make recommendations regarding their
  selection for use on MCAS tests.

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Test Development

• Meetings
• 8 to10 full days of meetings throughout the year,
  including summer meetings
• Districts are reimbursed up to 100 per day for
  substitute expenditures
• If the meeting is more than 70 miles from members
  home lodging is provided

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Test Development

• Application Procedure
• Commissioners Update in September announces
  recruitment for committees
• Application must be completed and signed by the
  Superintendent
• Current résumé
• Statement of interest (1-2 pages)
• Notified in November, begin with winter meetings

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Test Development

• Lifecycle of an Item
• Steps involved in the development of MCAS items

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Long Composition vs. Open-response

• Open-response
• assesses reading comprehension
•  
• student must answer the question
•  
• answers found in reading passage
• supported with details from the text
• the explanation and support from the text matter
  much more than style and organization
•  
• conventions are NOT scored
• scored in one domain
• worth 16 total points (4 ORs, each worth 4 pts at
  grade 3, 2 Ors worth 8 total points)
•  

• Long Composition
• assesses writing 
• a starting point to initiate students own
  thoughts
•  
• no correct answer
•  
• supported by students own experience or ideas
•  
• style and organization are important to the score
  
•  
• conventions are scored
• scored in 2 domains Topic Development
• and Conventions worth a total of 20 points
•  
• worth 20 total points

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• Turn and Talk

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Written response to text

• Our summer professional development plans
• Selecting text that is appropriate for an
  extended written response
• Understanding text structures and features and
  aligning them to the ELA standards
• Creating items that measure a clear learning
  target (standard)
• Develop scoring guidelines

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Written response to text

• Next year
• Review student work samples
• Compare your scores to those of your colleagues
• Rewrite items
• Plan focused lessons

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Literary text (fiction, literary non-fiction and
  poetry)
• Essential Characteristics
• Ability to engage readers
• Well-written rich text
• Recognized literary merit
• Theme/topic appropriateness by grade level
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Literary text (fiction, literary non-fiction and
  poetry)
• Grade Appropriateness
• Complexity of characters
• Vocabulary
• Sophistication in use of literary devices
• Complexity of dialogue
• Point of view
• Complexity of theme
• Use of time (flashbacks, progressive/digressive)
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Literary text
• Balance
• Reflective of our literary heritage
• Style
• Variety of sentence and vocabulary complexity
• Classical and contemporary
• Representative of varied historical periods,
  cultures, socio-economic backgrounds, etc
• Genre
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Informational Text
• Exposition, argumentation and persuasive text,
  and procedural texts
• Essential Characteristics
• Ability to engage readers
• Well written, considerate text
• Coherence
• Theme/topic appropriateness by grade level
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Informational Text
• Exposition, argumentation and persuasive text,
  and procedural texts
• Grade Appropriateness
• Topic
• Vocabulary
• Concepts (number, familiarity, abstractness)
• Curricular appropriateness at grade level
• Integrity of structure
• Explicitness of perspective
• Style
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Considerations for Selecting Material

• Balance
• Varied content areas
• Style
• Genre
• Variety of sentence and vocabulary complexity
• Appropriateness of mode
• Adapted from NAEP 2009 Reading Framework
  (pre-publication draft)

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Munchkin

• Genre/Type of Text
• Realistic Fiction
• Text Features
• Characterization
• Standard 12Standard 12 Fiction
• Students will identify, analyze, and apply
  knowledge of the structure and elements of
  fiction and provide evidence from the text to
  support their understanding.
•   
•       Identify personality traits of characters
  and the thoughts, words, and actions that reveal
  their personalities.
•  

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Literary Text Example

• Munchkin
• Grade 3, 2006
• Type of text
• Describe how the gardener's feelings toward
  Munchkin change from the beginning to the end of
  the story. Use important information from the
  story in your answer.
• What element of the text is being analyzed

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Literary Text Example

• Munchkin
• Grade 3, 2006
• Statewide
• 2.19
• Blank/0 6
• 1 19
• 2- 36
• 3- 29
• 4 -11

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Informational Text Example

• Bone
• Grade 3, 2003
• Identify genre/type of text
• Identify element of the text to be analyzed
• Written response to text

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Break
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Lessons from Reading First Schools

• Southeast, Central
• Salvatore Cammarata, Garfield School Revere
• Colonial
• West
• Holly Hatch
• East Somerville Community School, Somerville
• Cotillion
• Northeast, Greater Boston
• Steven Mammone, Fall Brook School, Leominster
• Stay here

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Looking Forward to Next Year

• At your tables.
• 3, 2, 1 Activity