One-way St. Joseph School measures students’ academic growth progress is by utilizing Measured Academic Progress (MAP) Testing, which the school began administering this past week. Math and reading tests are taken by all St. Joseph School students in Kindergarten through Grade 8 in the fall, winter, and spring of each academic year. Students in Grades 2 – 8 also receive testing in Language Arts. The school last administered the tests in January, before pivoting to remote learning because of the pandemic. “Due to missing the tests last spring, this fall’s testing is crucial,” stated principal Michael Hackenson. “The tests will re-establish baselines for our students and help us determine their strengths and weakness. We will also utilize the test results to drive improvement across the entire school.”
Although it has been some time since their last tests, students and teachers quickly re-adjusted to the evaluation process. On Monday, Charlotte Dollar and her peers in Mrs. Kayla Maynard’s First Grade Class began the day with a MAP Reading Test. “It was a little easy, but a little hard,” Charlotte exclaimed when asked about the test, “but I like taking them!” Charlotte didn’t realize that her test was dynamically adjusting to her performance and, by doing so, creating a personalized assessment of her reading skills. This feature allows teachers to plan for differentiated instruction, tailor their lessons to challenge all students, and encourage students to take charge of their learning.
In addition to MAP testing, St. Joseph School is off to a busy start! Other educational programs utilized at the school are Khan Academy for fine-tuning math skills and Renaissance’s Accelerated Reader program, which provides engaging quizzes and activities. Plus, new to St. Joseph School students this year, Renaissance’s myON Reader provides students with a personalized literacy environment and gives them access to over 6,000 digital books.
St. Joseph School students are having fun settling back into their in-person learning routines, even though they are challenged with MAP testing and other classwork. They will receive their first quarter progress reports on October 8th.
