1. District Test Coordinator’s Meeting February 08, 2016

2. Education Accountability Act Excerpts from Section 59‑18‑325  All students entering the eleventh must be administered a college and career readiness assessment as required by ◦ the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act and ◦ by Title 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.  Results to meet federal and state accountability requirements.  Students subsequently may use the results of these assessments to apply to college.

3. Procurement  Request for Proposals (RFP) released  No award

4. A JOINT RESOLUTION TO REVISE APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN STUDENT ASSESSMENT STATUTES FOR THE 2015-2016 SCHOOL YEAR. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina: SECTION 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 59-18-325, Section 59-18-355, and the South Carolina Consolidated Procurement Code, all public high schools and, where necessary, career centers, shall offer a state-funded college entrance assessment to each student entering the eleventh grade for the first time in school year 2015- 2016. The test must be available in both a computer-based format and a paper-based format. Accommodations must be provided in a manner approved by the testing company when students receiving the accommodations subsequently use the results of the assessment to apply to college, or in the manner set forth by the student's individualized education program when the results will not be used to apply to college.

5. SECTION 2. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 59-18- 325(C)(3), students must not be required to take additional assessments in the ninth and tenth grade in the 2015-2016 school year above what was offered in the 2014-2015 school year. SECTION 3. Notwithstanding another provision of law, school districts shall administer formative assessments in K4 and K5 during the 2016- 2017 school year as those assessments are administered in the 2015- 2016 school year. The Department of Education need not issue a procurement for new assessments in Fiscal Year 2015-2016. SECTION 4. This joint resolution takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

6.  ESEA Waiver amendment request ◦ Approved by USDE January 29, 2016 ◦ English 1 and Algebra 1  Alternate Assessments – NCSC in grade 11 ◦ All students must be taught and tested  English 2 and Geometry will NOT be administered

7.  Science and Social Studies  Grades 4-8

8.  Contract Award: December 1, 2015  ELA and Mathematics  Grades 3-8  Education Accountability Act ◦ Spring 2016: Online and Paper/Pencil ◦ Spring 2017: Online only

9.  Norm-referenced TerraNova items  Items aligned to S. C. College- and Career-Ready Standards developed and field tested by contractor

10.  Administered over two days ◦ Session 1 and Session 2  Approximately 2 ½ hours per day

11. Gr 3Gr 4Gr 5Gr 6Gr 7Gr 8 ELA (total points)84 96 Writing/Inquiry46 Reading Total38 50 Reading-Literary Text19 21 Reading-Informational Text19 29

12. GradesItem Type 3–8Selected Response (SR) Students select their responses from a list of possible answer options.

13. GradesItem Type 3–8Evidence-Based Selected Response (EBSR) Students read a piece of text or passage and choose the best answer from the answer choices. Students will then be asked to support their response with evidence from the text—e.g., select multiple evidence statements, place multiple steps in correct sequence, place multiple punctuation marks correctly, etc.

14. GradesItem Type 3–8Text-Dependent Analysis (TDA) Students read a piece of text or passage and draw upon that text for their extended written responses—e.g., support their responses with evidence from the text.

15. 4 – Demonstrates effective analysis of text and skillful writing 3 – Demonstrates adequate analysis of text and appropriate writing 2 – Demonstrates limited analysis of text and inconsistent writing 1 – Demonstrates minimal analysis of text and inadequate writing Effectively addresses all parts of the task to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the text(s) Strong organizational structure and focus on the task with logically grouped and related ideas, including an effective introduction, development, and conclusion Thorough analysis based on explicit and implicit meanings from the text(s) to support claims, opinions, and ideas Substantial, accurate, and direct reference to the text(s) using an effective combination of details, examples, quotes, and/or facts Substantial reference to the main ideas and relevant key details of the text(s) Skillful use of transitions to link ideas within categories of textual and supporting information Effective use of precise language and domain-specific vocabulary drawn from the text(s) Few errors, if any, are present in sentence formation, grammar, usage, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation; errors present do not interfere with meaning Adequately addresses all parts of the task to demonstrate a sufficient understanding of the text(s) Appropriate organizational structure and focus on the task with logically grouped and related ideas, including a clear introduction, development, and conclusion Clear analysis based on explicit and implicit meanings from the text(s) to support claims, opinions, and ideas Sufficient, accurate, and direct reference to the text(s) using an appropriate combination details, examples, quotes, and/or facts Sufficient reference to the main ideas and relevant key details of the text(s) Appropriate use of transitions to link ideas within categories of textual and supporting information Appropriate use of precise language and domain-specific vocabulary drawn from the text(s) Some errors may be present in sentence formation, grammar, usage, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation; errors present seldom interfere with meaning Inconsistently addresses some parts of the task to demonstrate a partial understanding of the text(s) Weak organizational structure and focus on the task with ineffectively grouped ideas, including a weak introduction, development, and/or conclusion Inconsistent analysis based on explicit and/or implicit meanings from the text(s) that ineffectively supports claims, opinions, and ideas Limited and/or vague reference to the text(s) using some details, examples, quotes, and/or facts Limited reference to the main ideas and relevant details of the text(s) Limited use of transitions to link ideas within categories of textual and supporting information Inconsistent use of precise language and domain-specific vocabulary drawn from the text(s) Errors may be present in sentence formation, grammar, usage, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation; errors present may interfere with meaning Minimally addresses part(s) of the task to demonstrate an inadequate understanding of the text(s) Minimal evidence of an organizational structure and focus on the task with arbitrarily grouped ideas that may or may not include an introduction, development, and/or conclusion Minimal analysis based on the text(s) that may or may not support claims, opinions, and ideas Insufficient reference to the text(s) using few details, examples, quotes, and/or facts Minimal reference to the main ideas and relevant details of the text(s) Few, if any, transitions to link ideas Little or no use of precise language or domain-specific vocabulary drawn from the text(s) Many errors may be present in sentence formation, grammar, usage, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation; errors present often interfere with meaning

16. PLAN before you write Make sure you read the question carefully. Make sure you have read the entire passage carefully. Think about how the question relates to the passage. Organize your ideas on scratch paper. Use a thought map, outline, or other graphic organizer to plan your response. FOCUS while you write Analyze the information from the passage as you write your response. Make sure you use evidence from the passage to support your response. Use precise language, a variety of sentence types, and transitions in your response. Organize your response with an introduction, body, and conclusion. PROOFREAD after you write I wrote my final response in the response box. I stayed focused on answering the question. I used evidence from the passage to support my response. I corrected errors in capitalization, spelling, sentence formation, punctuation, and word choice. Grades 4-8: Uses the word “essay" rather than the word “response”

17. Write an essay analyzing how the author’s organization of the passage helps the reader to understand the tasks. Use information from the passage to support your response.

18. Trekking the Trail by Linda White Finally, you’re ready to take a hike. What will you see? Whether you hike in the forest, the desert, or near a swamp, you’re sure to see many wonders of nature. As you go on your first hike, don’t rush. Walk at a leisurely pace. You’ll soon fall into a comfortable stride. This first hike might be just to observe. Take in the sights, sounds, and smells of the area. What do you see? At each place you hike, you will see different things. Watch for bird nests, snake skins, feathers, nursery logs, mushrooms, fish, animal tracks. Soon you’ll realize that much of the fun of hiking is in studying nature and much of the fun of studying nature is in the detective work. Who made these tracks? What kind of bird dropped this feather? Every good detective takes notes. How about making a hiking journal for your trek? You can include notes on the date of the hike, weather conditions, where you are going, and a diagram of the landscape. Sketch the animal tracks you see along the creek, add a feather you found, draw the tadpole you saw in the big puddle. Maybe later you can find out how long it will be before the tadpole becomes a frog. You can also add photographs from your hike—like the chipmunk that chattered at you while you ate lunch, and your family members when they jumped into the creek.

19. Hiking Journal A hiking journal can be as simple as a pocket-sized spiral notebook with a pencil attached to it by a cord. But if you cover it like you might cover a school book, with paper cut from a brown paper bag, you can decorate the journal with your favorite hiking memories. 1. Cut a piece of heavy brown paper bag or decorative paper six inches wider and six inches taller than your opened notebook. 2. Place opened notebook on the paper so there is about the same amount of paper showing on the top and bottom and on each side. 3. Mark the paper along the top and bottom of the notebook. 4. Fold the top down and the bottom up along the lines you just marked. Your paper should now be the same height as your notebook. 5. Curl the last three inches of one side forward and insert the notebook cover into the flaps created at the top and bottom. Fold neatly and tape the cover flap to the cover at the top and bottom. Do the same with the other side. 6. Decorate with markers, crayons, colored pencils, or watercolors. It’s hard to decide on a design. You could draw a mountain sunset, a rainbow trout, or something of your own choosing. Can’t decide? Make several.

20. Hiking Stick A hiking stick gives you something to lean on when the trail is steep or rocky, steadies you when you cross a stream, and provides something to hang onto at the end of the day when you are too tired to go any farther. Be sure to ask an adult for permission before starting this project. 1. Select a straight sturdy stick about shoulder height. 2. If you want, peel off the bark carefully. Cut away from your body, watching out for your knees. 3. Wrap the grip area with a soft leather strip to cushion your hand. Tuck ends under the wrapped strip. 4. Personalize your stick by adding designs with markers or paint or by carving patterns. Be careful. When people share the woods with bears, one can scare the other. When hiking in bear country, it’s a good idea to whistle, talk in a loud voice that can be heard a long distance, or carry a walking stick adorned with jingling bells. With a little warning, bears have a chance to depart before you even know they were there. To make your walking stick a bear stick, tie three or four loud bells onto a cord or leather boot string. Wrap that around the grip of the stick and tie securely.

21. Write an essay analyzing how the author’s organization of the passage helps the reader to understand the tasks. Use information from the passage to support your response.

22.  Grades 3–5: No Calculators  Grades 6–8 ◦ Two test sections: a calculator section, followed by a no-calculator section ◦ Online  Grades 6 and 7: Students will have access to a built-in basic four-function calculator.  Grade 8: Students will have access to a built-in basic calculator and a scientific calculator.

23. ◦ Online and Paper/Pencil  Students may use a handheld school- or student-owned calculator four-function, scientific, or graphing calculator except for those that have any of the features below.  Calculators with built-in computer algebra systems (CAS), including:  Texas Instruments: all model numbers that begin with TI-89 or TI-92 and the TI-Nspire CAS [Note: The TI-Nspire (non-CAS) is permitted.]  Hewlett-Packard: HP 48GII and all model numbers that begin with HP 40G, HP 49G, or HP 50G  Casio: Algebra fx 2.0, ClassPad 300 and ClassPad 330, and all model numbers that begin with CFX-9970G  Handheld, tablet, or laptop computers (unless being used for online testing), including PDAs  Calculators with wireless capability, such as Bluetooth or an infrared data port  Electronic writing pads or pen-input devices  Calculators built into cell phones or any other electronic communication devices  Calculators with a typewriter keypad (letter keys in QWERTY format)  Calculators that “talk” or otherwise make noise, such as the AudioCalc

24. ◦ Security  Students may not share calculators during testing  Securing school- or student-owned calculators  Reset memory to factory default values. All data and programs are erased. OR  Activate features such as Test Guard and Press-to-Test. All applications and programs will be disabled.

25. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 3 (50 total points) 7–91. Number Sense and Base Ten 7–92. Number Sense - Fractions 13–163. Algebraic Thinking and Operations 7–94. Geometry 13–165. Measurement and Data Analysis

26. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 4 (56 total points) 10–121. Number Sense and Base Ten 11–142. Number Sense and Operations - Fractions 11–143. Algebraic Thinking and Operations 8–104. Geometry 11–145. Measurement and Data Analysis

27. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 5 (56 total points) 10–131. Number Sense and Base Ten 10–122. Number Sense and Operations - Fractions 10–133. Algebraic Thinking and Operations 10–124. Geometry 11–145. Measurement and Data Analysis

28. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 6 (60 total points) 12–151. The Number System 8–102. Ratios and Proportional Relationships 12–153. Expressions, Equations, and Inequalities 8–104. Geometry and Measurement 11–135. Data Analysis and Statistics

29. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 7 (60 total points) 13-151. The Number System 8–102. Ratios and Proportional Relationships 12-143. Expressions, Equations, and Inequalities 11–134. Geometry and Measurement 13–155. Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability

30. Points Possible per Reporting Category Reporting Categories Grade 8 (62 total points) 9–111. The Number System 11–142. Functions 12–163. Expressions, Equations, and Inequalities 12–164. Geometry and Measurement 9–115. Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability

31. GradesItem Type 3–8Selected Response (SR) Students select their responses from a list of possible answer options.

32. GradesItem Type 6–8Short Answer (SA) or Gridded Response (GR) For online testers, students will key a numeric response (short answer). For paper/pencil testers, students will grid a numeric response (gridded response) on the answer document.

33. GradesItem Type 6–8Technology Enhanced (TE) Students interact with the item (online only) to provide their responses—e.g., drag and drop, hot spot, graphing, etc. Comparable SR items will replace TE items on the paper/pencil assessments.

34. http://ed.sc.gov/