CIA Educator Update
September 2015
Wayne Learns 2015 Highlighted Presenters
- Carl Anderson - author of several books on writing instruction, conferring with writers, and assessment in the writer’s workshop including How’s It Going? and Assessing Writers. Offering 2 long sessions on using mentor texts to support writing instruction and conferring with writers.
- Dr. Renee Azziz - Do you see what I see? Changing Our Lenses: Making The Invisible Visible. Audience would be anyone who want to engage in experiential learning activities about unconscious bias. Indiana U
- Roy Dobbs, Young Men of Purpose - Thinking about beginning a mentoring program or strengthening an existing one? This is a great introductory session! Young Men of Purpose
- Dr. Banks, Reaching Every Student: Strategies to Develop Cultural Responsiveness - energizing session for all!
- Joy Edwards - Mrs. Edwards is back to address equity issues from a different perspective...gender equity. Come learn how analyzing situations from an equity lens is always critical to success.
Education Foundation Celebrations!
INTESOL Conference November 14, 2015
Indiana Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages conference is fast approaching. If you are interested in attending this conference and learning more about English Learners, please email Dr. Denita Harris to share your interest.
Those interested can also visit www.intesol.org for more detailed information.
College Go!
FACT: Federal statistics indicate that 40% of admitted and enrolled students take at least one remedial course, reducing dramatically their probability of graduating and costing up to an estimated $1 billion per year. While the precise number of students requiring remediation is difficult to ascertain, we acknowledge it is an issue nonetheless throughout the country!
- REALITY: National statistics indicate that only one in three will enroll in college, and only one in seven will earn a bachelor’s degree (Bedsworth, Colby, & Doctor, 2006; Conley, 2005).
FACT: Federal statistics indicate that 40% of admitted and enrolled students take at least one remedial course, reducing dramatically their probability of graduating and costing up to an estimated $1 billion per year. While the precise number of students requiring remediation is difficult to ascertain, we acknowledge it is an issue nonetheless throughout the country!
- REALITY: National statistics indicate that only one in three will enroll in college, and only one in seven will earn a bachelor’s degree (Bedsworth, Colby, & Doctor, 2006; Conley, 2005).
Great Articles on Behavior
What If Everything You Knew About Disciplining a Child is Wrong? This article was in the Squire Wire shared with her from one of her amazing teachers and such a great reminder about how our students in Wayne really require the Wayne Habits of Success.
The “Kids Do Well, If They Can” article shares information about how kids with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges lack important thinking skills and strategies for addressing those.
Educational Leadership, the October volume has an article by Minahan and Baker called The Skill-Building Lens which asks us to shift our conversation when it comes to disruptive students.
Assessment Updates
ACCESS 2.0 Information
WIDA ACCESS 2.0 will be administered to our English Language Learners from January 11 through February 27.
- The IDOE has stated that they will NOT extend the testing window.
- Kindergarten Students: Paper/Pencil One on One assessment
- Grades 1-5 Students: Online testing for listening for reading, speaking and writing (writing: read the prompt on the computer and write out response)
- Grades 6-12 Students: Online testing for listening, reading, speaking, writing
- The online assessment is an adaptive assessment.
- The assessment must be given in order to determine the correct tier. The listening and reading assessments will determine the tier for speaking and writing.
- A small group of students can take the speaking portion of the assessment in the same room; however, WIDA recommends at least 6 feet between students.
- For special education EL students: If their state accountability is online, they should also take the ACCESS assessment online.
Accuplacer Updates
Testing window is divided into two parts
- Part 1 October 2 through November 25
- Part 2 February 15 through April 1
Part 1 Participation Criteria
- Schools should plan to administer the assessment to juniors who meet the State Board adopted criteria during Part 1.
- In preparation for the ACCUPLACER Part 1 test administration, the attached graphic has been designed to assist school in determining Grade 11 student participation.
Accuplacer Accommodations:
- Reading section cannot be read aloud
- Math section can be read aloud for those with an accommodation.
- Since Accuplacer is an adaptive test student taking it online will not be seeing the same questions making it impossible to read aloud to a group.
- In order to provide the read aloud accommodation for online math, we plan to have staff available to read over the shoulder for those that request a question to be read aloud.
Acuity Readiness Updates
After working with Acuity regarding “extra” problems showing on the reading and math assessments as well as “randomized” problems on the math assessment, we were informed that both of these issues are due to pilot questions in the assessments (for future use). Acuity stated that there will be 3-4 pilot questions per assessment but we have already seen 4-8 extra questions appear.
These extra questions will not impact a child’s overall score. Thanks for making adjustments to your testing times to allow for additional questions. Each student may see these questions at a different time throughout the assessment so you cannot plan to skip the last several (these may not be pilot questions for all students).
We are continuing to work with our technology department to utilize Google Read & Write for providing the read aloud accommodation. Until we are able to find a solution for Google Read & Write, we will continue to float and provide the read aloud accommodations for the math assessment (since all students will not see the same question at the same time).
Acuity Performance Tasks
ISTEP+ Grades 3-10 IDOE Assessment Committee
ACT and SAT Changes Ahead!
The new SAT, scheduled to roll out in March 2016, will “focus on vocabulary that students are likely to use again in college and career,” according to an article published this week in Forbes Magazine. No more words like “prevaricator” and “sagacious!” The test will be more aligned to the lessons teens learn in high school, writes Jim Montoya, a vice president of the College Board. In addition, students will no longer be penalized for guessing.
The College Board, which oversees the SAT, partnered with Khan Academy to release practice materials for the new test. Students can download a rull, full-length SAT practice test, and get even more practice using the interactive questions.
Changes are also ahead for the ACT. Starting this fall, students who take the essay portion of the exam will be asked “to evaluate multiple perspectives on a complex issue and to generate an argument based on reasoning,” according to the test website. Previously, the ACT’s writing test was considered an “exercise in classic persuasion.” The new test seeks to measure the writing skills that students will need in college and in the workplace, according to ACT.
Preparing for the NEW PSAT
College Board Powerpoint:
- What Is the New PSAT/NMSQT?
- Skills Tested on the New PSAT/NMSQT
- How to Prepare for the New PSAT/NMSQT
- Sample New PSAT/NMSQT Questions
- Resources
What’s Changing?
- Total testing length: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Personalized SAT® practice through Khan Academy ® with your own PSAT/NMQST scores
- No penalty for guessing or blank responses also known as “rights-only scoring”
- Scale ranges for the scores are 320 – 1520 for the total score
Latest IDOE Updates
A-F Grade Process and Timeline IDOE Memo
- This memo has important dates and information regarding the release of ECA and ISTEP+ results.
ISTEP+ 2015 Results
- Assessment Development Journey - IDOE Powerpoint
ISTEP+ 2016
- Early estimate of testing times and testing modes IDOE Memo
ISTEP+ Test Administration Memo
- This memo includes early estimates of total testing time by subject for ISTEP+ both part 1 and part 2
ISTEP+ Test Administration Comparison Memo
- This memo compares the length of testing time 2016, 2015, and 2014. Interestingly enough there is a decrease in length of test administration for all areas but science and social studies. (Note the chart moves from left to right 2016, 2015, 2014).
Wayne Disability Alliance
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Sign up to volunteer and please share this and invite families to attend.
What: Families, community members and educators working together to increase positive outcomes for individuals with disabilities. (Dinner, GIANTS ZONE, Spanish Interpretation)
When: November 2nd 6:00-8:00
Where: BDU Cafeteria/WTP Multi-Purpose Room
Format:
6:00-6:30 Dinner
6:30-7:30 Speaker from ASK: Life with Stress, Balance and a Plan
7:30-8:00 Networking
Monday, Nov 2, 2015, 06:00 PM
Ben Davis University High School, South High School Road, Indianapolis, IN, United States
Wayne Habits of Success
Hispanic Heritage Month
Hispanic Heritage Month runs from September 15 - October 15. This year’s theme is “Honoring our Heritage. Building our Future.” Need an idea for your classroom? Check out this information link.
Indiana Statehood Celebration
The Indiana State House Tour Office in conjunction with the Indiana Center for the Book and the Indiana State Library is hosting an essay competition to commemorate Indiana Statehood Day 2015, a celebration of Indiana's 199th birthday and the kick-off celebration for our 200th birthday! This year's theme is Hoosier Bicentennial Celebrations! Winners of the Hoosier Bicentennial Celebration essay contest will be honored at the Statehood Day Celebration at one of four participating locations on Friday, December 11, 2015.
PBS Friday Zone
HOSTS Updates
We’re sharing this 2015-2016 HOSTS Cancellation Procedures document with all of our mentors this week.
- Please note that we will make a district decision about cancelling HOSTS due to state assessment schedules.
- As in past years, we WILL NOT be cancelling HOSTS for Acuity. Because we value our mentors’ time, we will not be sending 1st or 4th grade students to HOSTS to sub for our 2nd and 3rd grade students.
- Thank you for working your Acuity schedule around HOSTS.
- Thanks for working to be sure our HOSTS tutor schedule is not interrupted.
myON Update
- All classroom teachers and students that were enrolled prior to Aug. 31 should now be enrolled in the system. K-6 classroom teachers should see their students connected to their class list.
- New students (enrolled after Aug. 31) will be added to the system by Alyson McLaughlin. Teachers should send an email to Alyson that includes the student’s first and last name, grade level, and teacher. Please let Aly know if the student is new to the district or has moved from another Wayne school.
- All other certified staff (Title I, EL, Sped) can create groups and add students into their groups. This document shows how to create groups. Creating a Group
- Teachers can share login information with parents so students can login at home too. Two different sample letters are attached. Teachers will need to complete the school and username information for each student. English myON letter Spanish English Parent myON Letter Spanish Parent myON Letter
- Students’ usernames are their standard district logins. Teachers can download students’ usernames from the myON system by clicking the Classroom tab - Students icon - Download in the teacher’s class box.
Pebble Go Update
Our district PebbleGo accounts have been activated! PebbleGo is a database for students in grade K-2 that includes articles, videos, and information about Animals, Biographies, Science, and Social Studies. All users in a school will login with the same username and password. Anne will share the school-specific usernames and passwords to each All Staff email list. Please share the usernames and passwords with students, families, and teachers in your school only. The following Parent Letter could be used to communicate information about PebbleGo with parents of students in grades K-2. Please note that the username and password would need to be added before sending it home!
- PebbleGo Parent letter: As an added bonus, we were able to get access to PebbleGo Next. This database includes information about states and Native Americans, and will be helpful to our 4th and 5th grade teachers and students for research. Schools may also choose to send home the following PebbleGo Next Parent letter for students in grades 4 and 5.
- PebbleGo Next Parent Letter: We will have access to PebbleGo for the next 3 years, through September 2018. Please contact Anne with any questions.
Core Data Base Reminders
- Please DO NOT change the file names or make copies of the files . When we export the data from the database, it creates errors when there have been filename changes.
- If there are 1-2 students missing from your roster, you can add them at the bottom of the list (using the student's official full name, please). Please find the student number that is in the same format as the ones included on the spreadsheet, and carefully add that ID number. If you want help with this, please contact Thelma Webb.
- If there are students listed who are not currently in your class, you can backspace within the cell to erase the name. Please don't delete cells or rows.
- If students leave your class in the middle of the year, please just leave their BOY data in the spreadsheet and the other fields in that row blank. Please don't delete them from your spreadsheet.
- If there are issues or problems with your class roster, beyond those listed above, please contact Thelma Webb. If there are issues with the spreadsheet, please contact Anne Olson.
Technology Corner
Google Read and Write
Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Team
Dr. Anne Olson: Elementary, ELA
Dr. Denita Harris: Middle School, AVID, Equity, LAP
Ms. Sandy Plyley: High School, Math, Assessment System
Special Education
Dr. Tara Rinehart: Director of Special Education
Mrs. Jill Lambert: Assistant Director for PreSchool and Secondary Schools
Mrs. Jennifer Garrett: Assistant Director for Elementary
Director of College and Career Readiness
Ms. Wendy Skibinski
eLearning Coordinator
Dana Lile: Tech Department but a valuable resource for us
Assistant Superintendent of Academics
Judy Stegemann
Email: judy.stegemann@wayne.k12.in.us
Website: www.wayne.k12.in.us
Phone: 317-988-8600
Twitter: @stegCIA