1. 2017 MCAS/Student Achievement
Presentation to the School Committee on October 25, 2017 Dr. James Demers – Westport JR/SR High Mr. Tom Gastall – Westport Elementary School Mrs. Carolyn Pontes – Macomber School Mr. Brian Abdallah – Director of Curriculum Mrs. Elaine Santos – Special Education Director Dr. Ann Marie Dargon - Superintendent

2. INTRODUCTION to MCAS RESULTS
PURPOSES OF MASSACHUSETTS ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (MCAS)
Measure student progress toward meeting academic standards delineated in the MA Curriculum Frameworks
Providing student academic achievement data to school districts
HOW WE USE MCAS DATA
Analyze school district MCAS data, as one very important data point
Compare our year-to-year MCAS results, when applicable
Review test item analyses provided and give aggregate student information to teachers
Provide teachers with individual student test results
for analysis
Modify curriculum, instruction, and/or assessment practices, if necessary
Provide students with additional services, as may be needed
Use MCAS in conjunction with other student and school data to possibly make other programmatic changes or modifications

3. MCAS Introduction (continued)
IMPORTANT MCAS TERMS
Composite Performance Index (CPI) - Massachusetts uses the 100‐point Composite Performance Index (CPI) to measure progress towards this goal of narrowing proficiency gaps. The CPI assigns 100, 75, 50, 25, or 0 points to each student participating in MCAS and MCAS‐Alternate
Assessment tests based how close they came to scoring Proficient or Advanced. The CPI is calculated by dividing the total number of points by the number of students in the group. The result is a number between 0 and 100. A CPI of 100 means that all
students in a group have scored in the proficient range or higher. For 2017 reporting, CP data are reported only for high schools.
MCAS (Legacy) - Previous version of MCAS comparisons to previous MCAS results can be made
MCAS 2.0 (Next Generation) – New more challenging MCAS test given to grades 3-8 in No accountability level or change for this school year based upon 2017 MCAS (Next Generation) results.
Westport Junior Senior High school is not ranked for accountability based upon 2017 MCAS results. Grades 7 & 8 took MCAS 2.0 (Next Generation) test and grade 10 took MCAS (Legacy) test.

4. Percentage of Students at Each Achievement Level at WES (as of October 18, 2017)

5. Percentage of Students at Each Achievement Level at WJSHS (as of October 18, 2017)

6. What is the Next-Generation MCAS?
Updated version of the nearly 20-year-old MCAS assessment
Focuses on students’ critical thinking abilities, application of knowledge, and ability to make connections between reading and writing
Gives a clearer signal of readiness for the next grade level or college and career
Designed to be given on a computer (though paper versions remain available)
First given in spring 2017 in grades 3-8 in English language arts and math
Will eventually replace all older (“legacy”) MCAS tests in grades 3-10
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

7. Computer-Based Testing
Spring 2017:
60% of all grades 3-8 students took the test on computers; >93% in grades 4 and 8
Phasing in computer-based testing by grade level
Spring 2017: Grades 4 and 8 English language arts (ELA) and math
Spring 2018: Grades 4-5 and 7-8 in ELA and math and grades 5 and 8 in science and tech/eng
Spring 2019: All tests in grades 3-8, grade 10 ELA and math
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

8. MCAS Achievement Levels
Legacy
Next-generation
Advanced
Students at this level demonstrate a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of rigorous subject matter, and provide sophisticated solutions to complex problems.
Proficient Students at this level demonstrate a solid understanding of challenging subject matter and solve a wide variety of problems.
Needs Improvement Students at this level demonstrate a partial understanding of subject matter and solve some simple problems.
Warning Students at this level demonstrate a minimal understanding of subject matter and do not solve simple problems.
Exceeding Expectations A student who performed at this level exceeded grade-level expectations by demonstrating mastery of the subject matter.
Meeting Expectations A student who performed at this level met grade-level expectations and is academically on track to succeed in the current grade in this subject.
Partially Meeting Expectations A student who performed at this level partially met grade-level expectations in this subject. The school, in consultation with the student's parent/guardian, should consider whether the student needs additional academic assistance to succeed in this subject.
Not Meeting Expectations A student who performed at this level did not meet grade-level expectations in this subject. The school, in consultation with the student's parent/guardian, should determine the coordinated academic assistance and/or additional instruction the student needs to succeed in this subject.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

10. Assessment Highlights at Alice Macomber Primary School
Areas of Strength
significant improvement in Grade 1 PSF (+14%)
improvement in Grade 2 NWF CLS (+6%) and NWF WWR (+8%)
improvement in Grade 2 DORF (+5%)
improvement in Grade 1 MNF (+8%)
75% of Grade 1 students at or above average for 2 of the math measures
Grade 1 students strong in computation skills

11. Assessment Highlights at Alice Macomber Primary School
Areas in Need of Improvement
Some test measures below our target of 75%
Many measures approach 70%; still short of target
Kindergarten FSF scores lowest in last 5 years
Many more K students showed difficulty with basic number sense than previous years (-23%)
Grade 2 computation skills need improvement

12. Assessment Highlights at Alice Macomber Primary School
Actions Taken/ Next Steps
Continue to implement tiered instruction model
Increase the amount of intervention periods (2 more sessions for math for grades 1/2)
Implement math/reading enrichment room to provide an additional 50 minutes of academic support to students of all levels of achievement
Analyze data to determine best steps for individualized lessons
Lexia Core 5
Assessment Calendar (created this year)
SPS/progress monitoring
Redesign common planning periods for teacher collaboration
Teachers have prep periods at same time
Continue to support teachers with common planning time
Provide teachers with time for curriculum development (PLCs)
Implementation of STEM program for all students to develop critical thinking, problem solving, and creative thinking skills
Pilot Next Generation Science Standards based program

13. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Elementary School
Mathematics
Grade 3: 60% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs.
the State Average of 49%.
Grade 4: 63% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs.
Grade 5: 60% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs.
the State Average of 46%.
Grade 6: 53% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs.
Areas of Strength: Selected Response, Geometry (Grade 4,5)
Develop understanding of statistical variability (Grade 6)
Areas in Need of Improvement: Constructed Response , and
Applying and extending previous understandings of multiplication and division to divide fractions by fractions

14. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Elementary School
Science
Grade 5: 58% of WES students in Grade 5 Met or Exceeded
Expectations vs. the State Average of 46%.
Areas of Strength:
Adaptations of Living Things, Characteristics of Plants and Animals, Energy and Living Things, Forms of Energy, Magnetic Energy,
Materials and Tools
Science Areas in Need of Improvement:
Rocks and Their Properties, Weather, Structures and Functions,
and Engineering Design

15. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Elementary School
English Language Arts
Grade 3: 51% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs. the
State Average of 47%.
Grade 4: 50% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs. the
State Average of 48%.
Grade 5: 45% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs. the
State Average of 49%.
Grade 6: 50% of WES students Met or Exceeded Expectations vs. the
State Average of 50%.
Areas of Strength in all grades: Vocabulary Acquisition and use, Determining the meaning of a word in context, and Craft and Structure
Areas in Need of Improvement in all grades: Writing a Narrative, and
Essay Writing Conventions & Idea Development

16. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Elementary School
Action (s) Next Steps
ELA
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks
Make adjustments to areas of concern that were identified by staff during item analysis
Monitored Utilization of the Achieve 3000 reading program
Math
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks
Science
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks
Implement Pearson Science Program in all grades

17. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Junior Senior High School
Areas of Strength
Grade 10 ELA % proficient/advanced increase of 5% from 2016
Composite Proficiency Index (highest in 4 years)
Grade 10 Math % proficient/advanced
Composite Proficiency Index (highest in 4 years)
Grade 10 Science % proficient/advanced
Grade 8 ELA % proficient/advanced
Grade 8 Math % proficient/advanced
Comments:

18. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Junior Senior High School
Areas in Need of Improvement
Grade 10 ELA % needs improvement
Grade 10 Math % needs improvement
Grade 10 Science 14% needs improvement
Grade 8 ELA % needs improvement
Grade 8 Math % needs improvement
Comments:

19. MCAS/Assessment(s) Highlights at Westport Junior Senior High School
Action (s) Next Steps
ELA
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks.
Analyze the item analysis report to make further adjustments as needed.
Math
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks.
Provide EPP and monitoring for students who scored below proficient.
Science
Complete curriculum overview templates to ensure alignment to the frameworks.
Provide tutoring for students that will retake the MCAS
Comments: