Mildred's Mailbox

Question

I have two classes that were engaged with the Academy of READING and Academy of MATH for the fall semester. In January, they will no longer be taking the reading and math intervention class but many of them have not finished all of the skills in their assigned individualized training program (ITP). How can I measure gains and demonstrate their progress to date?

Answer

With regard to the Academy of READING, it is recommended that the post-test occur after a student has spent at least 10-15 hours on the program as well as having mastered at least 20 skills.  This could in fact coincide with the end of an implementation cycle such as the end of a semester as in the case above.  Similarly, with the Academy of MATH, a natural time to administer a post-test is after the student has mastered ten subjects or one full level of content in their respective ITP.  

A great benefit of administering a post-test is that you are able to measure concrete gains in student achievement on the Placement Test.  You may have other ways in which you are able to measure their progress in reading and math and these should be used as well.  These gains are a great motivation for students who have improved their reading or math skills in addition to motivating all educators who have invested a lot of time to help them through their progress.  Further, you will be able to share with parents and your principal about your students’ success and progress to date.

Steps for Administering a Post-Test in the Academy of READING or Academy of MATH

The dates that tests were completed and post-tests are scheduled are shown on the Class Test Schedule page on the Classes Tab. You can select one or more students and change their dates for the next post-test by completing the following steps:

1. Click on the Classes tab and then click Test schedules. The Class Test Schedule page appears.
2. Select Academy of READING or Academy of MATH from the drop-down list for subject.
3. Select a School from the drop-down list if applicable. System Administrators and District Administrators can select a school. (AutoSkill Coordinators and Teachers can see only their own school.)
4. Select a Class from the drop-down list.
   
   Note:  System Administrators and AutoSkill Coordinators can select any class in the school. Teachers can select only their own classes.

5. Select the checkbox beside one or more students.
6. In the Select a new post-test date area below the students list, select the date for the post-test.
7. Click Apply new date. The new date is entered in the Next test scheduled column for the selected students.

Measuring Gains Achieved

• To view the Class Gains report click the Reports tab. From the Class menu, click Gains. From the Class drop-down list, select the class. Select Gains details or Gains summary. Click on Printer Friendly and choose Print.
• To view the Student Gains report click the Reports tab. From the Student menu click Gains. From the Class drop-down list, select the class. From the Student drop-down list, select the student. Print a report for each student.
• To view the Student Test report click on the pre and post test hyperlink. Note the changes in the independent, instructional and frustration levels.

Printing Reports Upon Completion of Post-testing

• After all post-testing is completed, it is important to print out reports that show students’ progress in the Academy of READING and/or Academy of MATH. The program maintains an up-to-date set of reports that provide detailed information and overviews of the progress of student training.  You should print a class level report as well as individual student level reports.
• If students perform more poorly on the post test, check the time on test as often you will find they were not attending to the task at hand.

Post-testing Tips

We encourage teacher involvement and direction in both pre- and post-testing environments. Here are a few tips to help guide you when preparing students for post-testing:

• Ensure that students know that this test will reflect their improvements and they need to do the best that they can.
• Try not to test at the end of a day or week, or when students are tired.
• Testing near holidays or other fun activities can result in weak attention to the task and results in poor outcomes.
• Students need to be in a good frame of mind. If the student is having a bad day, their scores will reflect this.
• Have students read the entire reading comprehension passage silently before answering any questions. Remind students to check their work.
• Monitor students as they take the test to ensure that they understand the task and are engaged with the test.
• Watch for students who are going through the test too quickly. Tell them not to rush and to read the text first. Time is not a factor. Look at their pre test times for guidance. We suggested that you allow a full class period for administration of the post-test; however, some students may require more than one period to complete the test.
• Post-testing should not occur on the same day that a student has completed their training stream. Have students begin the test the next time they log into the program, on a subsequent day.

 

Mildred Papi is the Intervention Specialist for AutoSkill. A former Reading Specialist, Mildred draws from her 20 years of teaching experience in New York and New Jersey, to help educators around the country have successful and smooth implementations of their AutoSkill programs. In her travels, Mildred has learned many best practices from educators which she is happy to share in her monthly newsletter article "Mildred's Mailbox."