Welcome to FSA Parent Night Middle Grades ELA
Florida Standards: What exactly are they? The Florida Standards (FS) are a set of expectations Students will be expected to master the skills in each standard Skills related to media and technology use are incorporated throughout the standards.
Florida Standards and Common Core Florida Standards are a revised version of the Common Core specific to Florida The Florida Standards include skills in addition to the Common Core language arts
Florida Standards More rigorous standards that lead to college and career readiness Clear, consistent, focused standards Depth of Knowledge: increased cognitive complexity and higher-order thinking skills Responses to questions are not based on opinion, students will learn to support their answers with evidence More engagement with students Largely consistent with standards being set across the nation Internationally benchmarked and help ensure our students are globally competitive
Florida Standards – ELA Reading for Literature Reading for Informational Text Reading Foundational Skills Writing Standards Standards for Speaking and Listening Language Standards
Florida Standards Assessment These assessments will provide parents, teachers, policy makers and the general public with information regarding how well students are learning the Florida standards. The assessments include: ELA Assessment Writing Component of the ELA Assessment Math Assessment FSA Assessments are given in grades 3-11
Text-based Writing
Writing Component of FSA No set amount of paragraph requirements Intro, body, and conclusion Each paragraph in the article/stimulus will numbered Must include information from the passages Must use a variety of elaborative techniques Ten point scale (4 points for purpose, focus, organization, 4 points for evidence and elaboration, and 2 points for conventions of standard English) Students must Read the passages Plan their response Write their response Revise and edit your response Write or type their essay in the space provided.
Editing Task Items Multiple Choice Items Multi-select Items Two-part Items Hot Text Items Open Response Items Graphic Response Items (GRID) Open Response Items ELA-Reading: Types of Questions
Editing Task Item
Text with a Series of Questions
Audio Multiple-Choice Item
Multi-Select Items
Two-Part Items
Hot Text Items
Graphic Response Item (GRID)
Open Response Item
FSA ELA Session Timing w.FLDOE.org © 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved. 21 The FSA ELA includes the Text-Based Writing Component, administered separately from the rest of FSA ELA to allow time for handscoring; will be reported as part of a single ELA score. Headphones are required for all students for Grades ELA listening items (CBT). External keyboards are strongly recommended.
FSA ELA – Writing Component ONLY w.FLDOE.org © 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved. 22 *All students (PBT and CBT) receive a planning sheet. **Students may have an additional 30 minutes, if needed. GradeNumber of Items Number of Sessions Number of Days Administration Mode/Test Materials* TOTAL Testing Time** 61 prompt11PBTPBT90 minutes 71 prompt11PBTPBT90 minutes 81 prompt11CBTCBT90 minutes
FSA ELA Writing Component- 8 th Grade ONLY For responding to text-based prompts: Spell check – NO Bold Italics Underline Remove formatting Insert/remove numbered list Insert/remove bulleted list Decrease indent Cut, copy, paste, undo, redo Insert special character w.FLDOE.org © 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved. 23
FSA ELA Reading Component w.FLDOE.org © 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved. 30 GradeNumber of Items Number of Sessions Number of Days Administration Mode in 2015/ Test Materials TOTAL Testing Time 658–6222CBT with worksheet170 minutes 758–6222CBT with worksheet170 minutes 858–6222CBT with worksheet170 minutes
Vocabulary is Vital Half of I-Q is measured in Vocabulary Varied vocab within a class allows for sophisticated writers Writing should be seen as a plain outfit that can be accessorized through vocabulary Arm students with a personal Vocabulary Arsenal Each student needs a vocab list of their own Send them on a journey to create their own word list.
How can parents help? Ensure your child completes all homework assignments Maintain open communication with your child’s teacher Encourage your child to read a variety of materials: fiction, non-fiction, biography, newspapers, brochures, maps, drama, poetry, technical texts, webpages, and etc. Provide opportunities for your child to persuade you with their opinions based on sound arguments Build stamina for assessment by reading for longer periods of time Retell chapters in books both orally and in writing
How can parents help? Strengthen keyboarding skills – all students should be typing on the computer as much as possible using word processing programs. Visit often. Have your child take the training tests. Go over the questions they missed, showing them why the answer they provided was incorrect. Phrase your questions like the assessment questions. Make sure your child can explain how he/she came to the final answer. Have him/her complete i-ready (20 minutes of reading and math each week).
Take the Training Test
Frequently Asked Questions 1. How long does the essay have to be? As long as the student needs it to be to answer the address all tasks presented in the prompt 2. Do the students have to use evidence from all the sources in their essay? Yes 3. Is the essay considered a final draft ? It is considered a revised and edited draft. 4. Can the students underline, take notes on the computer? Yes, students can underline and take notes. 5. Can students cut and paste text from the sources onto their essay? No, students cannot cut and paste text directly from text to their essay, they must learn how to cite using quotation marks and paraphrase 6. Will paragraphs be numbered? Yes, paragraphs will be numbered beginning with the first source and continuously through the last source.