Starting the week of October 3rd, 2022, MS 839 will begin administering the MAP Growth Assessment in both reading and math. The MAP assessment is a computer based adaptive assessment that gives our school a quick snapshot of each child’s performance in specific areas of reading and mathematics.
You can expect your child to sit for about 45-60 minutes for reading and another 45-60 minutes for math. The first time a child takes the assessment sometimes takes longer, but subsequent administrations move much more quickly.
Why MAP Assessment?
MS 839 has been using the MAP Growth Assessments since 2018, as one piece of our toolkit for tracking student progress, identifying students in need of specific supports and interventions, and evaluating the efficacy of various school programs. We also use it as an additional metric to hold ourselves accountable for academic progress for all students.
This assessment has allowed us to quickly and accurately track the progress of 350+ students, identify trends, and implement interventions. We break down the results to track progress of all sub-groups of students, from students with special needs to gender, racial and ethnic groups.
One quick example of how a team has used this information in the past: after the fall assessment, our 6th grade team identified a small sub-group of students with IEPs who were struggling with particular math standards, designed a series series of push-in and pull-out interventions that led to this group making significant progress in closing the gap with their grade level peers. This is happening across the school in grade level and department teams.
How Will The Results Be Used?
MAP assessment results will not be used in any high stakes manner. We will use them as a starting point for determining students in need of additional support in concert with teacher observations and classroom assessments. We will share the results with families during Student Led Conferences.
Should We Opt-Out of MAP Assessments?
While MS 839 has historically had a high opt-out rate for state ELA, Math and Science exams, we have never had a family opt their child out of MAP Assessments. We respect the right of families to opt-out and make decisions that are in the best for their child with respect to testing. That said, we find the MAP assessment to be a powerful tool for our school-based team and would encourage you to have your children sit for the assessment, regardless of your stance on high stakes testing or your plans to opt-out of the New York State exams. If you have specific questions or concerns, we are happy to discuss in more detail.
Thank you for your continuing support,
Michael Perlberg & Lauren Shookhoff