Standardized Testing

Welcome to the alphabet soup of assessments!  This is a brief explanation of the various standardized tests given to our students during their school years at Pembroke Village/Hill School.

The New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) is the result of collaboration among NH, RI and VT to build a set of assessments for grades 3-8 and 11 to meet the requirements of No Child Left Behind.  It is a comprehensive set of tests in Reading, Mathematics and Science.  The Reading and Mathematics are given to our third and fourth graders in October.  The fourth graders are also given a Writing test in October and a Science test in May.

The MAPS testing is a district wide assessment in Reading, Language Arts and Mathematics given on the computer.  The teachers can attain the scores immediately.  These results are used to rank students in their grade level then to determine the intervention needs of our students in accordance to the Response To Intervention guidelines.  It is given to the third and fourth graders in October and May and to the second graders in May.

The AIMSWEB assessment program is a curriculum-based measurement that serves as a method of monitoring our students’ progress through direct continuous assessment of basic skills.  It was used as a pilot this year in grades one and two. The skills of reading fluency, comprehension, writing fluency and mathematic fluency were assessed in grade two.  The Early Literacy skills of phonics and phonological awareness were assessed in grade one.  The results were very valuable in monitoring the progress of our students in these areas.  It will be used next year in grades one thru four.  The Benchmark assessments are given in September, January and May and take approximately 20 minutes to administer.

The ACCESS testing is given to our students with the identification of English Language Learners.  These are students who are exposed to a second language within their home setting.  It is given in January to assess the students understanding of language and directions within the school setting.

The results of all these assessments are shared with you at parent conferences.  If your need any further explanation, feel free to ask the classroom teacher.