Transcript Opening Doors

Opening Doors
All students deserve access to a world-class education that will
prepare them for success in college and careers. To work
toward that goal, Massachusetts voluntarily adopted new,
more rigorous academic standards in 2010. Local school
districts have developed their own curriculum to meet the new
standards, and teachers have enhanced their daily instruction
to help our students stay on track.
Save the Date!
Testing window begins in March for
PARCC part 1:
The performance-based open-ended
response assessment.
However, higher standards alone are not enough to ensure that
our students receive the excellent education they are entitled
to. We also need high-quality assessments to measure
students’ progress toward the new standards. The
organization that is responsible for developing the assessments
in our state is the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for
College and Careers (PARCC).
These assessments serve as an educational GPS system,
identifying where a student is excelling and where they
may need extra help to get where they need to be. Highquality assessments help us ensure that all students, regardless
of income or family background, have equal access to an
education that will prepare them for success in college and
careers.
Your student will take his/her first PARCC assessment on
3/23/15. Here are some key facts about PARCC assessments
for you to keep in mind:
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PARCC assessments were developed by educators.
Classroom teachers from elementary, middle and high
schools and educators from universities in Massachusetts
have contributed thousands of hours over the past four
years to develop the test that is replacing our previous state
tests.
PARCC assessments test students in grades 3-11 in math
and English language arts.
Testing window begins in May for
PARCC Part 2:
The end-of-year assessment.
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These tests not only evaluate a student's progress, but show
teachers and parents exactly where a student needs help so
they are able to personalize instruction to meet individual
student needs.
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PARCC assessments do NOT test rote memorization.
Instead, they measure the skills that really matter for
college and career success: reasoning, critical thinking,
problem solving and writing.
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Technology is changing the way today’s students learn, and
it’s crucial that students develop computer skills. That’s
why many PARCC assessments are taken on the
computer, instead of on paper.
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PARCC assessments are more engaging than traditional
standardized tests. The math section contains multi-step
problems that ask students to reason through real-world
situations. The language arts section asks students to read
passages from real texts – fiction and non-fiction – and
sometimes watch video or listen to audio. All of the skills
assessed on the test are based on age-appropriate standards.
Tips for hosting a PARCC family night in Elementary School
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The PARCC assessment is one test with two parts.
Students take the first part, known as the performancebased assessment (PBA), in early spring. This test
measures critical thinking, reasoning and application skills
through “extended tasks” such as written answers or multistep math problems. The end-of-year assessment (EOY)
follows in late spring, consisting of short answer questions
and questions that measure skills like reading
comprehension, vocabulary and math proficiency.
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PARCC assessments also provide parents with much more
detailed score reports and feedback on their child’s
performance than previous standardized tests did.
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You can visit parcconline.org to try one of the practice
tests for yourself!
PARCC assessments give students the time they need to
think and reason through problems.
Before your child’s PARCC assessment, the best way to help them succeed is to talk with their teacher to determine
which skills to reinforce at home. Attend parent/teacher conferences and talk with teachers about your child’s strengths
and weaknesses. We can work together to ensure that your child is ready to pursue any path in the future!