Assessments Bulletin
May 1, 2023 |
Audra Ahumada
Deputy Associate Superintendent
of Assessments |
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It is time to take a deep breath and focus on the next "plateau." The statewide test windows are all now closed. Thank you to all District/Charter Test Coordinators (DTCs) for your hard work, coordination, and support to your teachers.
Approximate number of completed tests at the end of the test windows:
AZELLA Reassessment: 101,000
AzSCI: 245,000
ACT Aspire: over 430,000 (content areas) completed
ACT: 80,800
AASA: Over 1,239,000 tests completed (all ELA and Math)
MSAA: 5,600
ADE is also gearing up for Standard Setting Committees for AZELLA and Alt ELPA. Because these are new assessments, performance levels/cuts need to be set. The AZELLA Standard Setting Committees will be made up of Arizona educators.
MSAA will also be conducting another Standard Setting for Science as only provisional cuts were recommended last spring.
Reporting for the following assessments will be delayed due to Standard Setting.
- AZELLA reports will be available July 10.
- Alt ELPA reports will be available September 2023.
- MSAA Science reports will be available October 16 - 27.
If you are interested in being a part of any of our Educator Committees, please make sure you have submitted an application form. If you know of other educators who might be interested, forward the link to submit an Educator Committee Application.
Each year, the Assessments Unit requests a new District/Charter Test Coordinator (DTC) and Security Agreement Form. Please submit this form with the names and contact information for each of the assessments - Achievement Assessments, Alternate Assessments, and AZELLA - by June 30, 2023. The form must be signed by the Superintendent/Charter Representative and each designated District Test Coordinator prior to the start of any 2023-2024 state assessments. This form can be found on the District Test Coordinators webpage.
The bi-annual Assessment Accommodations Survey is currently open. The results are used to inform future discussion regarding the use of instructional accommodations and considerations for additional allowable accommodations or universal tools. We are seeing responses from all educators. If you have not done so already, please forward the survey to your educators. The survey will close June 1, 2023.
Finally, as requested, the Assessments Overview document has been updated with 2023 - 2024 Statewide Testing Windows.
We hope you are able to take some time to rejuvenate yourselves and maybe we will see some of you at summer committees! |
Audra Ahumada
Deputy Associate Superintendent of Assessment
Arizona Department of Education |
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Joseph M. Guzman, Ph.D.
Associate Superintendent of Assessment, Standards, Accountability and Research
Arizona Department of Education |
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Spring 2023 Assessment Materials
Test Coordinator's Manuals and Test Administration Directions for AASA, AzSCI, ACT Aspire, and ACT are non-secure test materials and can be discarded locally at your site. Used scratch paper and testing tickets are secure test materials and must be securely destroyed for AASA, AzSCI, and ACT Aspire. ACT test administration tickets and scratch paper should have been returned to ACT following testing.
Achievement Training Management System
The Achievement Training Management System (ATMS) will close for school year 2022-2023 on June 15, 2023. If you need to download ATMS reports from Spring 2023 trainings, please do so before that date. Training modules for Spring 2024 will launch in Fall/Winter 2023 in Pearson's new Arizona Learning Management System (ALMS). The new ALMS will replace the ATMS.
Reporting from Spring 2023 Assessments
A new Spring 2023 Reporting Infographic has been posted on our website. This new infographic includes all of the Achievement reporting dates in one location for easy access!
Two copies of each individual student report will be sent to districts and charters. One copy is to be distributed to parents/guardians, and the other copy is to be placed in the student's secure file.
Achievement testing score reports are not embargoed. However, it is important to remember that individual student scores can only be shared with those who have an educational need to view them and with parents/guardians.
Please note the following as scores are published over the coming weeks.
- All AASA ELA test units must be valid to receive an AASA ELA score.
- All AASA Math test units must be valid to receive an AASA Math score.
- All AzSCI test units must be valid to receive an AzSCI score.
- For ACT and ACT Aspire, the English, Reading, and Writing tests must be valid to receive an ELA score. The Math test must be valid to receive a Math score. The ACT STEM score is a combined score for the Math and Science tests.
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Student Data File Layouts
The Student Data File Layout for each Achievement assessment is posted on the Achievement District Test Coordinator page of our website, under the "Reporting" dropdown for each assessment.
Reporting Guides
Resources for interpreting ACT and ACT Aspire reports are located on the ACT-hosted website, under Step 7: Interpretation.
Move on When Reading (MOWR)
Move on When Reading (MOWR) will be featured on the AASA Grade 3 score reports. In order to determine whether third grade students met the MOWR requirements for promotion to the fourth grade, please complete the following after scores are published:
- Download the AASA Student Data File for your school or district/charter.
- Filter the "Move on When Reading Requirement" column.
- Any student who has "N" in this column did not meet the cut score for MOWR.
Grade 3 Oral Reading Fluency (ORF)
As a reminder, the Grade 3 Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) test unit was field tested again in Spring 2023 and will not appear on score reports, will not be included in the overall ELA score, and will not count for Move on When Reading in Spring 2023. At this time, a decision has not been made regarding the inclusion of the ORF items on the Grade 3 ELA test. This decision will be made by the Arizona State Board of Education.
Grade 8 ACT Predictive Score
Grade 8 ELA and Math score reports will include a "Predicted ACT Score" chart. This chart will include the student's "score" and "score range." The "score range" included is the score the student would likely receive if they were to be tested again. Students who score at or above the ACT score indicated on the AASA score report are more likely to be successful in college courses taken by first-year students.
AASA Parent Portal
The AASA Parent Portal is an optional resource schools and districts/charters may use to allow families to securely access and view their student's AASA score reports online. The Parent Portal is available for AASA only. Hard copies of individual student reports will still be sent to districts/charters and should be provided to parents.
In order for families to access their student's score reports in the AASA Parent Portal, a claim code will be required. The claim code can only be obtained from the student's school; however, schools are not required to distribute Parent Portal claim codes.
A claim codes file (in CSV format) is available in PearsonAccessNext, under Reports > Operational Reports > Students & Registrations > Claim Codes, to users with the following user roles: AASA District Test Coordinator, AASA District Report Only, AASA School Test Coordinator, and AASA School Report Only.
A Parent Portal User Guide is published on the AASA website and can be used to distribute claim codes to parents/guardians.
If your district/charter or any of your schools utilized the AASA Parent Portal following Spring 2022 testing, or if you utilize it for sharing Spring 2023 AASA results with parents/guardians, please share feedback and tips with us at AASA@azed.gov. We will compile any feedback received to share with other District Test Coordinators!
AASA District Data File
Per ยง 15-741.F, districts may request a district data file for AASA. The Spring 2023 district data file will include student and item information and other relevant data points not contained in the standard data file, including item type, theta scores by reporting category, scale score by reporting category, and number of items by reporting category. For a district or charter to receive an AASA district data file, a request must be submitted to ADE by June 9, 2023 by completing the following request form:
New This Year for AASA Reporting
In addition to the electronic score reports, student data files, and On Demand Reports available in PearsonAccessNext, new AASA Longitudinal and Historical Score Reports will also be available this year. A Quick Guide for accessing the AASA Longitudinal and Historical Score Reports will be published soon! Please see the AASA DTC Important Tasks Checklist or the new Reporting Infographic for associated reporting dates.
New This Year for AzSCI Reporting
In addition to the electronic score reports and student data files, a new AzSCI Summary File (.txt format) with summary performance data will be available in PearsonAccessNext this year for district and school level user roles. Please see the AzSCI Reporting Guide for additional details and the AzSCI DTC Important Tasks Checklist or the new Reporting Infographic for associated reporting dates.
New This Year for ACT Reporting
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Achievement Assessments Corrections Application
Unmatched AASA, AzSCI, ACT Aspire, and/or ACT test records will begin to appear in the ADEConnect Corrections Application beginning in late May. To review and update test record demographics in the Corrections Application, you must have the "Achievement District Test Coordinator" role in ADEConnect. Automated weekly emails will be sent to Achievement District Test Coordinators to inform of any outstanding records in the Corrections Application. Please review and correct any test records in the Corrections Application as quickly as possible. The deadline to complete corrections is June 30, 2023. |
Looking Ahead to Spring 2024
Arizona's measures of academic success in Spring 2024 include administering:
- Arizona's Academic Standards Assessments (AASA) - the statewide achievement test for Arizona students in Grades 3-8. AASA assesses the Arizona English Language Arts and Arizona Mathematics Standards.
- Arizona Science Test (AzSCI) - the statewide achievement test for Science, administered in Grades 5, 8, and the 11th grade cohort (Cohort 2025).
- ACT Aspire - statewide high school assessment administered in the 9th grade cohort (Cohort 2027).
- ACT - statewide high school assessment administered in the 11th grade cohort (Cohort 2025).
New - More Online Test Days for ACT in Spring 2024
Arizona will continue to have two test windows available for ACT testing in Spring 2024. However, there will now be nine online test days in each window rather than six. Online testing may take place Tuesday - Friday of the first week in the window and Monday - Friday of the second week. There will continue to be one paper test day in each window.
Schools may use both published state ACT test windows in order to assess all Cohort 2025 students. Schools are encouraged to administer ACT during the first test window and may also use the second test window, as needed, to complete any makeup testing. Schools administering ACT on paper may also use the online test dates for makeup testing. Any schools that choose to administer the ACT during only the second test window will not have an additional ACT test window to use for makeup testing. Test window selection will be made in ACT's PearsonAccessNext platform in Fall 2023. |
TestNav System Requirements 2023-2024
Pearson has published the TestNav System Requirements 2023-2024 Technical Bulletin. Links are included below.
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Accommodations
As your Special Education staff conduct their IEP meetings this spring and at the beginning of the school year, please remind them to review the Accessibility manuals posted on the Accessibility page of our website. Accommodations considerations should be based on what the student routinely uses during instruction and is allowable on the statewide assessments. All accommodations should be documented in the student's plan and used routinely in instruction. If an accommodation is not deemed necessary to access content during instruction, the accommodation should not be requested for assessment purposes only.
District Test Coordinators may submit accommodations requests for Spring 2024 assessments for students with an IEP or 504 plan beginning in the fall. Accommodations requests should not include requests for universal tools or supports as detailed in the Accommodations Manual. Requests for AASA, AzSCI, and ACT Aspire accommodations will be submitted to ADE for review. Requests for ACT accommodations will be submitted directly to ACT for review. Additional details will be provided in the August Assessments Bulletin. |
MSAA Updates
The MSAA system is now closed. Over 5600 students completed MSAA testing. Please ensure any incident reports are submitted in ADEConnect. Instructions are included in the State Specific Policy. The MSAA system is closed until reporting in July. |
Securely Shredding and Deleting MSAA Test Materials
Test Coordinators are responsible for ensuring that printed test materials have been securely shredded after the close of the testing window. Downloaded folders and test materials (DTAs, PDFs of the test, written student responses, etc.) must be deleted from the desktop. Test Administration Manuals (TAMs) are not secure test materials and do not have to be shredded. These materials may be discarded. Do not send any materials to ADE.
MSAA Professional Development Hours Certificate
Professional Development (PD) hours certificates were e-mailed to Alternate Assessment Test Coordinators in April. Please distribute the PD certificates to those individuals who completed the MSAA Test Administrator (TA) and/or Test Coordinator (TC) training modules. There are separate certificates for Test Coordinators and Test Administrators. Please contact us if you need a list of your test administrator training status at AlternateAssessment Inbox - AlternateAssessment@azed.gov
MSAA Reports
The MSAA reporting portal will be open from July 17 - September 8, 2023. Reports will be available for ELA and Mathematics. Reports are available at the District of Attendance (DOA) so tuitioned-out and privately placed students will not be included in your reports. Please work with the DOA to get the results. More information on downloading reports and receiving hard copies of the student reports will be sent to the district/charter test coordinator prior to July 17, 2023.
Because the MSAA Science test is a new assessment, we will be conducting a standard setting to set cut scores, and the Arizona State Board of Education must approve the cut scores before we can generate the reports. This is causing the delay with the Science reporting window this year. More information on MSAA Science reporting will be available this summer.
Alt ELPA Updates
As a new assessment, we will also be conducting a standard setting to set cut scores for Alt ELPA. This process will delay the Alt ELPA reporting window this year. The Alt ELPA reporting window is tentatively scheduled for September 2023. More information will be sent to Alternate Assessment Test Coordinators this summer.
1% Threshold
Under federal regulation, the state is required to "provide appropriate oversight to each LEA that the State anticipates will assess more than 1% of its assessed students...using alternate assessments aligned with alternate academic achievement standards." An LEA may test students who qualify for alternate assessment, even if that participation means that the LEA will exceed 1%.
Alternate Assessment Test Coordinators will be notified of your LEA's percentages and provided next steps.
Resources
Please continue to use the MSAA States Website to access resources for families, educators, and students. Resources range from writing rubrics, sample items, Core Content Connectors, the Learning Progression Frameworks, and more. The website contains information for all states that participate in the consortium. Please do not use the website to contact the Alternate Assessment Unit as the communication is not directly sent to the Alternate Assessment Team.
TIES Center also has some great resources on instruction, information for parents, and communication and behavior supports.
School and Parent resources for understanding Alternate Assessment for students with significant cognitive disabilities will be available on the Assessment Parent Resource Page under MSAA Parent Resources soon. |
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Calling All EL Coordinators, Teachers, Coaches, and AZELLA DTCs
AZELLA Standard Setting Committee
ADE will conduct standard setting activities for AZELLA in May. We are seeking your availability to participate in the committee meetings, as well as your recommendations for educators who have ELD expertise, are well versed in the 2019 English Language Proficiency Standards, and have instructional experience with English learners, to participate in the committee meetings. Please provide us with the names and contact information of your district's educators who meet the characteristics described above, and we will send them the link to the committee application.
Participants selected to serve on the AZELLA Standard Setting Committee will set performance level scores for the following grades and grade bands: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grades 2 - 3, Grades 4 - 5, Grades 6 - 8, and Grades 9 - 12. The committee meetings will be held at the Marriott Phoenix Chandler May 22 - 25, 2023 from 8:00am to 4:30pm. A stipend of $175 per day or the substitute rate will be paid. Breakfast and lunch will be provided, and overnight hotel accommodations and dinner are available if the educator's commute extends over 50 miles from the meeting location. Mileage will also be reimbursed for participants.
Educator representation from all regions of Arizona is critical for this important work!
If you have questions regarding this committee, please contact Rose Alvarez via email at rose.alvarez@azed.gov or by phone at (602) 542-2448. |
Important Upcoming Tasks
May 3 | Pearson's KG-2 survey must be submitted
May 12 | Last day to download PD certificates from the ATMS and Understand Scoring
May 12 | Placement Test window closes
May 15 | Pack up Placement Test materials and return them to Pearson no later than May 18
Last day of school | Download and print your EL73 reports
June 1 | Placement Test Cycle 12 and FY23 Cumulative electronic reports and Student Data Files available in PearsonAccessNext (PAN)
June 8 | Paper copies of the Placement Cycle 12 Reports arrive at districts and charters
June 30 | 2023 - 2024 Assessment Test Coordinator and Security Agreement due
July 3 - Week of | Annual and Placement Test training modules; Understand Scoring trainings
July 10 - Week of | Spring 2023 Reassessment electronic reports and Student Data Files available in PAN
Spring 2023 AZELLA Reassessment Results
The electronic results of the Spring 2023 AZELLA Reassessment Test will be available after Standard Setting has been completed. ADE is anticipating these results to be available in PAN during the week of July 10, 2023. |
Returning Placement Test Materials to Pearson
AZELLA Kindergarten Placement Test (KPT) Student Response Sheets
All districts and charters that received KPT materials for the 2022 - 2023 school year must return the unused KPT Student Response Sheets to Pearson by May 18, 2023. Unused Student Response Sheets are the only KPT items that districts must return to Pearson. Please retain all other KPT materials. Pearson is updating these response sheets to include the new KPT Stopping Rules.
There will be an Errata sheet sent to DTCs that must be inserted into every KPT Student and Test Administrator Test Book for the 2023 - 2024 school year. DO NOT RETURN THE KPT TEST BOOK TO PEARSON.
Districts and charters that tested Kindergarten students and returned their unused KPT Response Sheets will receive an automatic shipment of the new KPT Response Sheets and the KPT Errata sheet in early July from Pearson provided the April 2023 Pearson survey was completed.
Both the new Student Response Sheets and the Errata sheet will be available to order through PAN during the 2023 - 2024 school year under Setup >> Orders & Shipment Tracking.
Stage II Placement Test Materials
All unused Stage II (cat on the cover) Student Test Books, TADs, CDs, and DVDs must be returned to Pearson by May 18, 2023. These materials are being retired at the end of the 2022 - 2023 school year. Districts and charters that administered the Placement Test to Grades 1 and 2 students during the 2022 - 2023 school year and returned their Stage II Placement Test materials will receive an automatic shipment of the new Grade 1 and Grades 2-3 Placement paper test materials in early July from Pearson provided the April 2023 Pearson survey was completed. These new Placement Test materials will be available to order through PAN during the 2023 - 2024 school year.
Looking Forward to 2023 - 2024
It is the AZELLA DTC's responsibility to periodically check the AZELLA DTC web page for information and updated documents that will be used for the 2023 - 2024 school year.
AZELLA Training and Qualifications 2023 - 2024
The new Arizona Learning Management System (ALMS) for the 2023 - 2024 school year is anticipated to open during the week of July 3, 2023, for the AZELLA Annual and AZELLA Placement training modules. The new ALMS will be replacing the ATMS system, and Pearson will create the AZELLA DTC accounts for this new ALMS.
The Understand Scoring training and qualifications for the Kindergarten Placement Test Administrators and the Grade 1 and Grades 2-3 Placement short response and extended Writing Scorers will open during the week of July 3, 2023. All Understand Scoring users must create their own accounts after it opens for the new school year.
PearsonAccessNext (PAN) DTC Accounts 2023 - 2024
ADE will work with Pearson to enable AZELLA DTC PAN accounts for the 2023 - 2024 AZELLA Placement Test administration once ADE verifies that the DTC has completed the training requirements.
2023-2024 Placement Test Administration
- New test for Grades 1-12
- Grade 1 is a paper-pencil test with a Unit 5 telephone Speaking test
- Grades 2-3 is a hybrid test with Units 1, 2, 3, and 5 administered online; Unit 4 is paper-and-pencil
- Grades 4-12 are all online computer-based tests
The Placement Test administration opens on the district's first student instructional day of the school year and runs throughout the school year ending in mid-May. Districts and charters may use an ADE-approved 2-calendar week jump-start to begin the administration of the Placement Test before their first instructional day only when the DTC, STCs, and TAs have completed the requirements for the AZELLA Placement Test administration.
The following groups of students must be administered the AZELLA Placement Test within the first two calendar weeks (or within the two weeks prior to the start) of the 2023 - 2024 school year:
- Students who received an "Undetermined" AZELLA record from the 2022 - 2023 school year
- Students who should have been administered the Spring 2023 Reassessment Test but were not tested
- Students who have the red font quick alert message on their EL70 Report
- Students associated with EL Group 8 on the EL73 Report
- IMPORTANT NOTE: Students will not be showing on the EL73 Report until the district has synchronized their school enrollments to AzEDS
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Student Testing Questions and Concerns
If you have questions about whether a student requires any of the AZELLA tests, please send your inquiry to AZELLA@azed.gov. You must include the student(s) SSID number(s). |
AZELLAology
Join the AZELLA team for AZELLAology, an hour long, informal, live customer service question-and-answer video call in Microsoft Teams.
The dates, times, topics, and invitation links will be posted on the AZELLA DTC webpage under the AZELLAology section.
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If you have any questions about AZELLA, please contact us at AZELLA@azed.gov. |
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The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has big plans for the 2023-2024 school year!
- It will be a "big state" NAEP year as the mandatory Math and Reading assessments of Grades 4 and 8 will take place. Arizona has a great 10-year trend in NAEP, and we are hopeful that NAEP 2023-2024 will showcase Arizona and our upward trajectory thanks to all the hard work put in by the educators in Arizona.
- A High School Transcript study involving Grade 12 students will take place. After graduation, NAEP will collect the transcripts of all 12th grade students and do an analysis of their high school experience.
- A Middle School Transcript study is being conducted next academic year. Students who are chosen for the 8th grade assessment will have their transcripts collected and analyzed, and reports of their middle school experiences will be reported and analyzed by the National Commission of Educational Statistics.
- The National Indian Educational Student (NIES) is taking place in the 2023-2024 school year, and Arizona is a big part of this study. Arizona does receive state-specific data on our Native American students as so many Native American students call Arizona their home. Students selected to take the NAEP assessment who are identified as Native Americans will be given an extra survey of their educational experiences to better understand the educational context around their education. The NIES study is conducted every 4 years. Results from the 2019 study can be found here: The National Indian Education Study 2019.
In addition to a school coordinator, all schools selected in the NAEP sample will need to provide a school or district technology specialist. This is a new role for NAEP and its data collection. NAEP is moving towards the future and will be using some school resources to support the assessment activities. NAEP will always meet schools where they are at to ensure the uniform and consistent procedures of NAEP data collection are met.
A question I will be receiving soon is, "Why are we selected to take NAEP again?"
NAEP is a sample; however, if you have a large school or serve a unique population, there is a higher chance you will be selected for NAEP. The Arizona Department of Education does not have any say in the sample. It is drawn by the statisticians that work off the Common Core of Data that the National Commission of Educational Statistics keeps on all schools in the United States. They will draw a sample that is representative of Arizona, and if selected, you are required to participate as it is a requirement once a state takes federal funds for education. |
If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Gary McIlvaine, AZ Director of NAEP and International Assessments:
602-364-1538
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The Assessments Bulletin is published electronically every August, November, February, and May for distribution to Test Coordinators in Arizona schools. Test Coordinators are responsible for disseminating information in The Assessments Bulletin as appropriate.
Arizona Department of Education - Assessment Section
602.542.5031 |
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