2011- 2012 Testing and Assessment

Our school maintains a focus on academic achievement as a priority at all times.     There are many different methods of assessments and tools the staff utilize to   measure the progress of each individual student.  Some of them are listed below:

ISTEP+
All Wayne Township School’s participate in the Indiana State Testing of Educational Progress assessment.  The Spring 2012 administration of ISTEP+ will consists of two testing windows.  The first testing window which consists of the writing portions will occur from March 5 – March 14, 2012.  The second testing window which consists of multiple choice questions will occur from April 30 – May 9, 2012.  All students will take both English and Math, with the 7th graders also testing in Social Studies.  Please feel free to visit the Indiana Department of Education website at http://www.doe.in.gov for further information.

End-of-Course Assessments
Beginning with the Graduating Class of 2012, the Algebra I and English 10 End-of Course Assessments will replace the existing Graduation Qualifying Exam (GQE).  Students will need to pass the End-of-Course Assessments for both Algebra I and English 10 to graduate from high school.  ALL 7th and 8th grade students who take Algebra will take their Algebra exam at the end of school year.  If you are a 7th grader who does not pass the exam, you will receive intervention throughout the school year, and re-take the exam in December 2012 and/or the end of your 8th grade year.  ALL 8th grade students who take Biology will take the Biology exam at the end of the school year.  The official testing window is from April 23 – June 6, 2012.  Chapel Hill is required to designate four days in May when we will administer the test.  Those dates will be announced in April 2012. 

As the year progresses, more information will be given on these assessments or one can visit the Indiana Department of Education website http://www.doe.in.gov for further information.  

Acuity
Acuity is an on-line assessment tool paid for by the Indiana Department of Education. The assessments are aligned to state standards/indicators. There are predictive, diagnostic, and tailored diagnostic test options. Students in grade 7 and grade 8 will take part in the predictive strand to best prepare for ISTEP.  Students will test in the areas of English, Math, and Social Studies three times this year.  The testing windows have yet to be determined for the 2011-2012 school year.

MSD of Wayne Township District Common Assessments
In an effort to improve the teaching and assessment of all students in the building,  common assessments  administered throughout the year have been collaboratively created to ensure that all students in Chapel Hill are assessed using the same instrument.  At the end of first and second semester, all students are given the same assessment in the following courses: Math, Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, Foreign Language, and Computer Applications.  These assessments are then used to generate data on what some of the best teaching practices are within the building so that they can be replicated.  This ensures that all students are receiving the very best education possible regardless of which teacher or team they are assigned.

During the course of the semester, teachers at Chapel Hill 7th & 8th Grade Center have created and will implement mini common assessments to gauge where students are in their academic progress.  This allows teachers to focus their instruction and differentiate their lessons to the individual needs of each student.  Teachers assess students’ prior knowledge and find out exactly which standards they have already met proficiency and which standards students need additional work.  Teachers of common grade level subject matter (7th science, 8th social studies, 7th English, etc.) meet several times a week to create engaging lessons, common assessments, and collaboratively score student work.  In addition, individual plans are made and discussed during Team RTI (Response to Instruction) meetings.