1. How Do We Ensure Tennessee Succeeds?
2018 SCORE Fellows
Commissioner Candice McQueen

2. Purpose: Reorient ourselves to the story of education in Tennessee
Share: we can pause for questions whenever you have one.

5. Tennessee Timeline

7. Tennessee Timeline

8. Tennessee Timeline

9. Tennessee Timeline

10. Tennessee Timeline

11. State of Education

12. Our Vision
Districts and schools in Tennessee will exemplify excellence and equity such that all students are equipped with the knowledge and skills to successfully embark on their chosen path in life.

13. Standards, Assessment, and Accountability – we will focus our time today on this foundational priority area
Early Foundations and Literacy – R2BR, Ready with Resources, CORE literacy learning walks
HSB2PS – ACT retake, new counseling standards, 21 new industry certification, more students are enrolling in postsecondary
AMA – TN Leaders for Equity Playbook, ACCESS, ILPs for ELs, RTI funding
Educator Support – Diversity Innovation grants, continued increase in funding for teacher salaries, improving EPPs and principal pipeline
District Empowerment – new online dashboard, school safety and security funding $30M, new planning tool
School Improvement – established first Partnership Network with HCDE, new ASD leader, revised needs assessment and planning tool for districts with Priority and Focus schools

14. We’ve Made Progress Toward Our Goals

15. Our State is Showing Historic Success
We have incredible economic strength
Education is a reason why
Record low unemployment rate
#1 in small business job growth 
Our state is showing historic success, and we believe education is the reason why

16. Tennessee’s Progress Literally Stands Out

17. We’ve Closed the Gap Between NAEP & TNReady

18. We’ve Continued to Earn National Recognition

19. Our Policy Foundation Makes This Possible
What were going to focus on today is one measure of success: TNReady. I want to have a discussion on
Why TNReady and how teachers are involved
Why students take ACT and TNReady
What improvements we are making based on the challenges we faced last year

20. Standards, Assessment, Accountability
More than 7,000 teachers were trained on new science and fine arts standards, and hundreds were retrained on math.
We developed a new phase-in plan for online assessment, which maintains the state’s transition and adjusts based on proof points.
We announced new TNReady Ambassadors program, which will bring 30+ educators into a partnership with us to inform TNReady development and support implementation and communication.
We met with hundreds of stakeholders to develop a new school accountability dashboard.
Where are we now -

21. Why TNReady?
TNReady measures specific grade-level or course content, so we can get an apples-to-apples picture across the state of how all students are performing.
TNReady is designed so that all students can show what they know and have learned over the course of the school year.
Tennessee teachers carefully review the questions for bias and sensitivity to make sure that stimuli and test items are fair for various groups of test takers.
2018 TNReady results show that historically disadvantaged student groups often grew faster than their peers, and they frequently bucked the trend when overall progress was down.
TNReady is a better, more authentic test.
Reiterate the importance of assessment and what makes TNReady different.

22. Why TNReady?
Standardized testing provides value:
metric used in district, school, and teacher accountability
can provide useful comparisons across schools and classrooms
can provide useful comparisons between student groups (ethnicity, SES, special needs, etc.)
clearly defines what needs to be taught
objective in nature
93% of studies on student testing, including the use of large-scale and high-stakes standardized tests, found a "positive effect" on student achievement, according to a peer-reviewed, 100-year analysis of testing research completed in 2011 by testing scholar Richard P. Phelps.

23. How are Tennessee Teachers Engaged in TNReady?
Standard setting
Rangefinding
Item writing
Item review
Passage review
Assessment logistics advisory committee
TNReady ambassador program
User Acceptance Testing (UAT) process
Provide brief explanation of each opportunity

24. Assessment Lifecycle Assessment Blueprints Item Development Item
Reviews
Field
Testing
Scoring and Performance review
Create operational test forms
Test administration
Equating and comparability studies
Standard setting
Finalizing
cut-scores (SBE Approval)
Score Reporting
Technical Reports
This is the overall assessment lifecycle, and where standard setting fits into the process. This defines TN’s process from a highlevel. Important to note that standards setting recommendations will be considered by Commissioner before making final recommendations to State Board of Education (SBE). The State Board must approve the cut scores before recognized for score reporting. 24

25. Discussion How do you use assessments in your classrooms?
What information do you wish you was accessible?
What reports are the most useful?

26. Why Do We Need TNReady and ACT?

27. Different Assessment Programs Serve Different Functions
Possible functions:
Make instructional decisions for students
Make course placement decisions for students
Predict college readiness
Make teacher professional development decisions
Measure student achievement on state standards
Hold schools and districts accountable
Measure state performance against other states
Evaluate teachers
Evaluate school or district programs and/or policies

28. Although the two tests measure similar constructs at a rigorous level, they serve different functions.
TNReady Subject Tests
What TNReady Measures
Why it’s Important
ELA
Four subparts, including writing, multiple item types
Grade-level state academic standards in reading comprehension, writing, vocabulary, and language conventions
Assessing literacy provides educators a view of student progress toward 21st century communication skills. Two-thirds of salaried positions require extensive writing (report of the National Commission on Writing), so this skill should be assessed annually.
Math
Three subparts, calculator and non-calculator
Grade-specific math expectations, including application of formulas and multi-step problems
Assessing grade-specific mathematics standards each year provides educators valuable information on students’ progress in problem solving application and procedural fluency.
Science
One to two subparts, based on grade
Grade-specific scientific content knowledge, as well as embedded engineering and technology skills
Information on specific content knowledge affords teachers the ability to identify and address gaps in understanding that may limit student success in STEM-related occupational fields.
Social Studies
Three parts for U.S. History
Grade-specific social studies content knowledge and analytical skills
Assesses student understanding of American history and their ability to analyze interconnectivity of historical events.

29. Although the two tests measure similar constructs at a rigorous level, they serve different functions.
ACT Subtests
What ACT Measures
(not grade specific, measures K-12 standards)
Why it’s Important
English
75 questions
45 minutes
Conventions of language, organization of ideas, and word choice and sentence elements
Recognizing and using standard English is key to effective communication
Reading
40 questions
35 minutes
Use and comprehension of complex text
Reading comprehension is a required skill for all occupations, as a cornerstone of training, development and communication
Science
Reasoning: Ability to find information, interpret data, and synthesize different viewpoints
Ability to quickly locate and synthesize information is typical of problem solving skills required in the workforce and postsecondary
Math
60 questions
60 minutes
Basic numerical computation and problem solving skills
Demonstrating basic numeracy skills and applying those skills in context is a typical requirement for workforce and postsecondary

30. TNReady Measures Tennessee Standards & Is Designed for Tennessee
TNReady and ACT measure similar constructs but not equivalent standards. Also, the design and functions are different.
annual content knowledge (depth) versus K-12 survey knowledge (breadth)
criterion versus norm referenced results
TNReady End-of-Course tests measure Tennessee standards.
ACT is a survey test that measures academic readiness for college based on ACT benchmarks from K-12.

31. Discussion What are your priorities related to high school assessment?
What other recommendations would you make to the Assessment Task Force?
How can we make high school assessment more beneficial for students?

32. How Are We Improving TNReady?

33. Discussion What was your experience with TNReady this year?
What improvements do you want to see for future years?
What were the successes for you and your students?
Wayne will also be covering this later in the day, so you do not need to focus on this as much.

34. We’re Working to Improve TNReady
We developed a new phase-in plan for online assessment.
We are working on a number of improvements to TNReady and hearing from educators across the state through a listening tour led by Gov. Haslam:
Less time
Easier logistics
Better technology
Right vendor
We announced new TNReady Ambassadors program, which has brought 30+ educators into a partnership with us to inform TNReady development and support implementation and communication.
We have informed Questar that the department is reducing the invoice for our spring online administration by $2.5 million.
We are developing a new Request for Proposals (RFP) to identify the vendor(s) that can successfully administer the state test in and beyond.
We are amending the state’s current contract with Questar to improve the assessment experience in , including transitioning all test development to ETS.
We are adjusting the pace of TN’s transition to online testing.
At our request, Questar is working with a third-party expert to do an in-depth analysis of their technological capabilities.
We are making a variety of other behind-the-scenes adjustments to streamline administration.

35. We Must Get Testing Right.

36. We are Moving Forward on Our Vision for What All Students Deserve
So That We Move Forward on Our Vision for What All Students Deserve
We are Moving Forward on Our Vision for What All Students Deserve 1
To be reading on grade level by the end of third grade 2
To have an effective teacher – supported by an effective principal – every year 3
To be set up for success on a path to a career

37. State of Education