Group items tagged

iNACOL Publication; extensive discussion on inputs v outcomes, and summative once-per-year testing. Paper provides an argument for full-time online schools. Dear Partners in Innovation, As a follow-up to our last meeting, I want to share with you a publication that was released last month at the International Association for K-12 Online Learning's (iNACOL) annual meeting. As you know, there have been quality standards for online learning for some time now, but these standards were predominantly inputs-based. Earlier this year, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded iNACOL to tackle the issue of quality from an outcomes perspective. In creating their report, iNACOL held a series of multi-day focus groups with experts from around the country. Over the last several months, Dr. Joe Freidhoff, our Director of Online Learning Research and Innovation, and I were heavily involved with participating in these groups and providing feedback on drafts of the report. The final report recommends discussions surrounding quality assurance using five outcomes-based measures: 1) Proficiency 2) Individual Student Growth 3) Graduation Rate 4) College and Career Readiness 5) Closing the Achievement Gap While the report's scope was limited to quality indicators for full-time and supplemental online learning environments, the multiple outcomes-based measures recommended in the report deserve consideration for their applicability to traditional face-to-face schools. MVU is proud to have been involved with this report, and we view it as another step toward improving the quality of education students receive. The report titled: "Measuring Quality From Inputs to Outcomes: Creating Student Learning Performance Metrics and Quality Assurance for Online Schools" can be accessed online at: http://www.inacol.org/research/docs/iNACOL_Quality_Metrics.pdf Jamey Jamey Fitzpatrick President & CEO Michigan Virtual Univer

July 2012 article on how implementation of PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments might affect poor students and urban schools.  Gives example of how Virginia addressed increased achievement gap after implementing online assessments.

June 2012 article from The Washington Post on the implementation of online assessments; gives background info on funding and previous attempts to implement online assessments in Wyoming and Virginia.

Minimum technology requirements for schools administering Smarter Balanced or PARCC assessments.

November 2012 article about Dell's KACE tools that can help school districts know if they need to upgrade their technology for Smarter Balanced, PARCC and other online assessments.

October 2012 article that discusses the technology school districts might need for Smarter Balanced and PARCC; test designers might require tablets for some portions of assessments; addresses potential issues with tablets and possible solutions (i.e. requiring external keyboard and mouse).

While parts of this diverge from the focus of our SIG, it's really interesting and worth the read. In the tablet vs. computer section, it does discuss potential struggles for test-takers depending on the device. Depending on which one ends up being required (or if both are required), students might need to develop different sets of skills (or two sets of skills).

September 2010 article on SBAC & PARCC; not a whole lot that's new.  Highlights performance-based tasks and optional tests for throughout the school year to help guide learning/curriculum.

February 2010 article re: research study that took place in 2006-2007 w/ 5-7 y.o. in Britain.  Sought to research the combination of low-stakes e-assessments w/ formative assessment; found that e-assessments could be designed to give qualitative feedback that was more helpful than numerical feedback in determining student progress, strengths, weakness and next steps. B/c done via e-assessment, teachers could instantly receive the resulting profiles for each student.

While the mandatory PARCC and SBAC assessments are more summative in nature, I believe the optional mid-year assessments are meant to be more formative - does that seem right, Donna?  Do you  happen to know how schools will receive the results (i.e. score versus qualitative results)?

October 2012 news article that describes sample questions from Smarter Balanced and PARCC assessments.  Also addresses need for continued funding once federal grant runs out.