Georgia Milestones results could be shock for some students, parents
ATLANTA -- Schools and districts might see lower numbers than they’re used to from the new Georgia Milestones test, but that’s the goal state officials have in mind.
In years past, exams such as the Criterion-Referenced Competency Test had Georgia students performing much higher than they did on national assessments. That inconsistency reflects that the state’s expectations should be higher to match other states, said Melissa Fincher, Georgia’s deputy superintendent for assessment and accountability.
“What we had was a series of testing systems that didn’t send a coherent signal of student achievement,” Fincher said.
Georgia also has among the lowest standards for proficiency in its testing.
In 2013, 93 percent of Georgia’s fourth-graders tested as proficient in reading, according to the CRCT, while just 34 percent of those students tested on the National Assessment of Educational Progress achieved the same type of score.
That same year, 83 percent of Georgia’s eighth-graders scored as proficient in math on the CRCT, but only 29 percent scored that high on the NAEP.
The state administered an end-of-course test in coordinate algebra in 2013, and just 37 percent scored proficient on that assessment. That closer margin to results on national tests is what the state Department of Education is looking for.
“That is what we’re trying to achieve with Georgia Milestones is that alignment,” Fincher said.
Of course, with that alignment will come lower test results at the district level. But the effort to raise the bar for Georgia’s students is worth the temporary shock of fewer students hitting the mark.
“The expectation is that the results are going to be lower than we’ve seen before,” DOE spokesman Matt Cardoza said.
State-level results for the Georgia Milestones assessment are expected to be released in early September, and the district and school results will come out in October.
Anthony Blasingame, a psychometric statistician for Bibb County schools, attended a recent meeting in Atlanta where Fincher discussed the changes in the Georgia Milestones philosophy. While he knew that some parents and other stakeholders might bristle at the notion of fewer students scoring proficient on tests, Blasingame said the move was necessary.
“We need the change,” he said. “We can’t allow ourselves to continue to have standards that are ... lower than other states.”
FOUR LEVELS
Another aspect new to the Georgia Milestones is four levels of achievement in student scores: beginning learners, developing learners, proficient learners and distinguished learners. Students ranked as beginning learners have been deemed unprepared to move on to the next grade, while developing learners can move on but will require additional support.
That developing status is also important because it recognizes students who have made some strides academically but aren’t quite up to speed, Blasingame said.
“One of the things it does is it helps students who have made some progress,” he said. “It gives them something to feel good about.”
Blasingame clarified that the distinction wasn’t merely an empty trophy. He’s hopeful it will motivate students to continue whatever efforts they made to advance to that level.
The proficient level will mark students that are on track, and the distinguished level will be reserved for students that show “advanced proficiency.”
Those levels will be set by a panel of teachers who will score the different items within the test and determine what scores would land students in which area.
“That proficient learner is going to be an important performance level for our state, and it is one that we must get in line with other measures,” Fincher said.
Fincher was asked if the state school board could adjust those levels once student results were known. While she acknowledged that was certainly within the boards’ rights, Fincher made it clear that the teachers’ decision should be respected.
“Typically, you want to honor what the educator panel has recommended,” she said.
The hope is also that more and more of the Milestones assessments will be taken online. That will allow for more variation to the question types, which are already expanded to include extended response-type questions.
“Georgia has left the land of multiple choice,” Fincher said.
Of course, that increased focus on online testing -- with a goal of all tests going online within five years -- will require more digital support for schools.
Cardoza said the schools would be receiving 100 megabytes of bandwidth from the state this year as opposed to 3 megabytes in years past. Further, Data Recognition Corp. has purchased the portion of McGraw Hill that administered the Milestones test, and Cardoza said he’s heard good things about DRC.
“We’re more confident in the technology platform going forward,” he said.
To contact writer Jeremy Timmerman, call 744-4331 or find him on Twitter@MTJTimm.
This story was originally published August 25, 2015 at 6:19 PM with the headline "Georgia Milestones results could be shock for some students, parents ."