Starting this year, parents of students at Schalmont will be more informed than ever about how their children are performing in school. That is because all New York State school districts will now issue special "parent report" cards on individual students’ results for standardized English and math tests administered in grades three through eight.

The new parent report breaks down a student’s scores in three ways: by numerical score, by performance level and by performance on content strands.

The first breakdown is simply the student’s score based on a scale specific to that exam (for example, ELA scores range from 452 – 800).

The second breakdown, performance level, helps you interpret the significance of the scale score by indicating whether or not your child is meeting the NYS Education Department’s learning standards. There are four levels of performance:

1) Not meeting learning standards,

2) Partially meeting learning standards,

3) Meeting learning standards, and

4) Meeting learning standards with distinction.

The parent report also explains the school’s required response in relation to your child’s performance level.

A student’s performance on content strands is presented as a Standard Performance Index (SPI) number. This third breakdown essentially evaluates how your child uses his or her English and math skills. Scores are not comparable from strand to strand, so the key element to focus on is whether or not your child’s score falls within the SPI target range for that strand.

These reports are an important tool in education, but parents should remember to view them as a complement to other information about their children’s academic performance. Director of Curriculum Susan Cook said, "These exams do not fully reflect a student’s capabilities, so be sure to consider information from things like progress reports, classroom projects, homework, and teacher conferences."

Visit www.NYSParents.com for more information on parent reports, state exams, educational activity ideas, and a variety of tips to help your child(ren) succeed at school.

nySTART for Schools
(from Fall 2006 district newsletter)

The nySTART tool offers administrators and teachers access to results from the NYS Testing Program (NYSTP, which provides English language arts and math testing in grades three through eight), NYS Alternative Assessment (NYSAA, which usually tests students with severe cognitive disabilities), and NYS English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT). Beginning with the 2006-07 school year, regents exam scores will also be reported on nySTART.

Superintendent Valerie Kelsey said, "It is our hope that having access to the performance data will encourage an active dialogue between parents, teachers and administrators about education in our district. Parents should always feel comfortable speaking with us about their children’s test scores."

Not all nySTART users have access to all data, though. Superintendents and principals act as a gateway for determining what information can be seen by whom. Generally, users can only see test data for their own school or district as well as limited comparison data, like district and state averages. For example, teachers can see individual student data, but only for their specific grade level at their assigned school.

The nySTART system provides three broad types of reports: verification reports, assessment reports and accountability reports.

The first type allows district officials to review and verify the accuracy and completeness of the data (test scores, enrollment numbers, demographics, etc.) reported on their schools.

The second type, assessment reports, is meant to enable teachers and administrators to make strategic decisions and implement plans that improve student achievement. They come in three sub-types:

Finally, the accountability reports are what are known as "School Report Cards" – the basis for the U.S. Department of Education’s decision on which schools are in need of improvement.