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Testing
Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments – Second Generation (MCA-II)
The Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCA-IIs) are tests designed to assist districts and schools in evaluating how their curricula prepares students for the state’s content standards. The MCA-IIs are not pass/fail tests. They are challenging tests and provide information about your child compared to state standards. These statewide tests chart the progress of schools and districts over time, generate information for school improvement and school accountability and allow for comparison of schools and districts in Minnesota. The MCA-IIs are the state’s accountability measure required by the federal law “No Child Left Behind.”
All third through fifth grade students will be tested in the state of Minnesota are tested in reading and math. All fifth grade students will take part in the field test for science.
Measures of Academic Progress (MAP)
Our school uses Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) to provide teachers and families with an ongoing record of student progress. MAP are electronically administered and scored achievement tests designed to measure growth for individual students, classrooms, schools, and districts. While most tests simply provide scores that compare and rank students and schools, the MAP tests provide growth information that is vital in classrooms faced with helping students meet rigorous standards. The MAP tests are aligned to Minnesota Academic Standards. All students will take the MAP tests.
Naglieri Non-Verbal Ability Test (NNAT)
The Naglieri Non-Verbal Ability Test (NNAT) is a nonverbal measure of school learning ability that is related to classroom achievement. It is designed to assess ability without requiring students to read, write or speak. Teachers use the information from the NNAT as they plan for the individual needs of each learner. The NNAT is given in January to all kindergarten and second grade students.
English Language Learner Proficiency Tests
The state of Minnesota requires the following assessments for English Language Learners (ELL). The ESL teacher, working in collaboration with classroom teachers, conducts these assessments. - Test of Emerging Academic English (TEAE)
The TEAE is a reading and writing test for English language learners that was designed to demonstrate growth in English from year to year. The TEAE is given to students identified as limited English proficient (LEP) in grades 3-12. - The Test of Emerging Academic English: Listening and Speaking (TEAELS)
TEAELS is a computer-delivered assessment of English language learners’ listening and speaking skills for grades K-12. - The Mathematics Test for English Language Learners (MTELL)
The MTELL is a new series of online assessments that will serve as a bridge to the Math MCA-II for qualifying English language learners in grades 3-8 and 11. The items are written with a reduced language load so ELLs can better demonstrate what they know and can do to meet grade-level math standards
Diagnostic Reading Assessment
In order for teachers to clearly understand each student’s unique needs and abilities, they have to carefully observe what students are doing in the classroom. Teachers also need a clear understanding of what students are expected to know and be able to do throughout their elementary years. Diagnostic Reading Assessment includes everyday observations, standardized test results, and careful classroom reading checks that help a teacher know how well each student is learning. Harambee School staff members consider multiple sources of information when assessing our students’ reading development, and teachers use this information to make sure instruction is close to each child’s current level of development. In this way, we can guarantee that every student in the school is getting the best possible fit between our teaching and each student’s particular needs.
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