Beginning of the Year Teacher Data Strategies

First Steps

As the school year begins, teachers are greeted by a new class or classes of students. The teacher will get to know the students and begin identifying students' learning and social interaction styles. Frequently teachers will do some beginning year informal assessments to identify skill strengths and needs. This is a terrific first step, and it begins the process of collecting and interpreting student performance data.

A step that principals sometimes require is that the teacher reviews each student file and records previous test data. I had one principal tell me during a data consultation that the teachers are required to record on 3 by 5 cards the previous scores. The principal wanted the scaled score, the achievement level, and the percentile rank. I questioned that approach because. In North Carolina, the scaled scores are not on a continuous scale and they are not equivalent to the same percentile rank from grade to grade, in both reading and math.   

What I suggest is that the teacher writes down the percentile rank scores for each year and CONVERT these scores to Normal Curve Equivalent (NCE) using a table that is readily available online. 

The Analysis

When the teacher examines the NCE differences from year to year, it will reveal the growth made by the student. Students with lower NCE scores than the previous year have not made a year's growth and should be a student who may need extra attention. students who have a pattern of negative growth will need some very special attention. 

The Importance

 With the increased emphasis on growth as part of the emerging North Carolina teacher career ladder proposal, it is essential to identify students who are not performing at grade level AND who are not making an annual growth target. In the next blog entry, the increased emphasis on EVAAS growth will be explained.