Testing Department Newsletter
September Edition
2020-2021 ASSESSMENTS CALENDAR
TRAININGS
REMIND
- Due to so much uncertainty during the start of the 2020-2021 school year, the Testing Office is requesting that both Principals and Coordinators please sign up for emergency notifications through the App Remind.
- Messages will only be sent in the case of a testing emergency (eg. technology issues etc.) and NOT for routine matters
- To sign up for the Remind App, please use the following link = http://rmd.me/b?rid=3149256
- Then join the Principal / Coordinator group using the following class code c6ka24d.
Student Testing Devices / In-Person Testing
As we embark on bringing students in for assessments, we will need information from campuses;
- What devices your students are using that are learning at home?
- For each student given an assessment on the campus, please complete the following Qualtrics Survey. We will need this information as we look at data that is gathered for students testing in person vs. remotely. Please do not fill in this survey until students have arrived for testing, or have completed testing (you can make it part of your check-in process, or sign out process). If you have tested students on your campus prior to this e-mail, please complete the survey for those students. The survey is by student ID, so it should not take long.
Accelerated Testers Waiver
- In May 2020, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) requested a waiver of the ESEA, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), to broaden the advanced mathematics exception to include all middle school students administered the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR®) end-of-course (EOC) assessments in mathematics, reading/language arts, and science. The U.S. Department of Education (USDE) approved this waiver request on July 20, 2020 eliminating the need for double testing.
- Beginning in the 2020–21 school year, a middle school student, who is completing instruction in a high school course that has a corresponding EOC assessment, will be administered the corresponding EOC assessment (not the grade-level assessment). The STAAR EOC assessment may be used to fulfill the student’s graduation requirement and will be used for the campus’ and district’s accountability calculations. This waiver aligns assessment requirements with students’ instruction, where possible. As required now, students who have completed STAAR EOC assessments while in middle school must take either the ACT or the SAT once in high school to fulfill federal testing requirements.
- For example, a grade 8 student who receives instruction in Algebra I would take the Algebra I EOC and either a mathematics SAT or ACT in high school. A grade 7 student who receives instruction in Algebra I would take the Algebra I EOC in grade 7, the mathematics STAAR in grade 8, and either a mathematics SAT or ACT in high school.
Student Success Initiative (SSI)
- Due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor and the commissioner of education waived the requirements regarding grade promotion for students in fifth and eighth grade for the 2020–21 school year. Students enrolled in grades 5 and 8 are still required to take the appropriate STAAR assessments once. Regardless of their score, retest opportunities will not be provided.
Districts are still responsible for providing accelerated instruction and supports for students that fail to perform satisfactorily on STAAR. Furthermore, although students in grades 5 and 8 will not be retained solely on the basis of STAAR results, school districts and open-enrollment charter schools will remain accountable for student performance.
As a part of this waiver, there will only be one administration of the STAAR grades 5 and 8 mathematics and reading assessments for the 2020–21 school year. This administration will be in May to coincide with the administration of other STAAR grades 3–8 assessments.
TELPAS
Principals can access the TELPAS Report Cards, campus rosters, summary reports, and data files through the TELPAS Assessment Management System. Please notify the testing department @ 210-554-2465 or e-mail TestingDept@saisd.net if you need support accessing or downloading reports.
- The Student Portal is updated with the latest assessment information. Parents can access their child’s results using a unique access code, which can be found on any previous state assessment Report Card. Additionally, parents can view their child’s performance relative to the campus, district, and state.
- Raw score to scale score conversion tables are posted here.
Programmatic Assessments
LAS - Links / Pre-LAS
LAS Links Reclassification testing must be completed by September 11.
preLAS and LAS Links testing for identification purposes must still be completed within 4 calendar weeks from the the student's date of enrollment.
Circle Pre-K Assessment
Teacher Training
- Teachers were required to completed the CLI Engage training as of August 28, 2020. CIRCLE Coordinators must request and secure copies of each teacher's Certificate of Completion and maintain on the campus for future reference.
BOY
- CIRCLE Campus Testing Plans are due by September 9
- CIRCLE Pilot Testing - Week of August 31 to September 4
- BOY Testing window - September 9 to October 8
- September 19 CLI Engage will present remotely at the districts first EPIC Saturday of the year. Registration for the event will be emailed directly to coordinators
- CIRCLE Timeline
CIRCLE Resources
LAP-3 - Please inventory and secure all LAP-3 materials. We will send a notice to all campuses requesting that all materials be brought to testing at a later date.
MAP
Active monitoring is always essential when administering MAP assessments. With teachers and students working remotely this is even more critical. It is imperative that proctors are verifying students as they are confirming the start of a test for students. Students should also be closely monitored for rapid guessing. Communication with parents and students about the purpose of MAP testing and the importance of students completing it entirely on their must take place prior to testing. When students receive assistance from those in the home, accurate data to address student needs is not there. This can cause students not to receive needed support in the areas of weakness.
In order to test remotely we are not using the app (MAP Icon) on laptops, desktops, or on Chromebooks. Please direct student to https://test.mapnwea.org
Screen resolution and pop up blockers seem to be a hurdle for some proctors and testers – see videos and one pagers in MAP Google Classroom. Please practice changing screen resolution before conducting a live test session with students.
Please follow STAAR allowable accommodations when providing accommodations for students on MAP. The system will only provide the Text-To-Speech accommodation for students. All others are to be provided by the campus.
Reports for MAP are ready the day after testing. You can also contact your assigned Educational Systems Analysts for any help needed to interpret reports. Their information and campus assignments are in the Google Classroom for MAP Coordinators.
New students and teachers are imported daily through roster importing.
MAP Fluency is now scheduled to open on September 28, 2020. This of course is dependent on the delivery and distribution of headsets to campuses.
MAP Science is still available for campuses that wish to purchase this additional assessment. The cost is $2.50 per student. Please fill out the form to receive a quote: MAP SCIENCE INTEREST
Friendly Reminder: Remote MAP Testing is not available at this time on I-pads
TSI
- Campuses are to continue to test following all security guidelines put in place by The Texas Higher Education Board and College Board.
- High School Testing Coordinators are to sign up for training for TSIA2 beginning near the end of September. Instructions on how to sign up are posted on the homescreen of www.Accuplacer.org
- Vouchers are to be created by Site Managers only. Please remember to secure all credentials.
- Please submit your campus plan to administer TSI by submitting information via email to squesada1@saisd.net and jbrown12@saisd.net.
AP
- Set up and registration should be completed. Please ensure all students have been provided the correct class join code.
SAT/PSAT/NMSQT
Late Lunch requests must be sent to Child Nutrition by September 11.
PSAT/NMSQT and SAT orders need to be updated by Sept 14.
Any EL support requests for SAT are due by Sept 14.
SAT/PSAT testing plans are due September 18
Deadline for students to declare for the SAT test is September 24.
ACT
- ACT is scheduled to be administered in person on October 6, 2020. The make up day is scheduled for October 20, 2020. Please remember to order make up materials by October 9, 2020
- The accommodation deadline is set for September1, 2020 for all accommodations in ACT
- Non-Test activities are allowed to be completed on test day as per ACT. This will be considered an irregularity and the proper paperwork will be need to be completed
- High School Testing Coordinators are currently planning logistics for in person testing. Assignments for Room Supervisors and Proctors should be taking place now.
- Materials are scheduled to arrive September 14, 2020
- Fee Waivers are available for 11th and 12th grade students. Please contact Stephanie Estrada for more information.
Credit by Exam (CBE)
Testing's Mission Statement
Email: testingdept@saisd.net
Website: http://www.saisd.net/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5777&Itemid=0
Location: 1700 Tampico Street, San Antonio, TX, USA
Phone: 210-554-2465