No. 71         Office of the Superintendent

Attachment 1 - Site Test Coordinator Designation Form (Acrobat PDF)
Attachment 2 - Sample Parent Information Letter/Permission Form:
     (Acrobat PDF) • English - Español    (Word) • English - Español

For the past three years, middle schools have been involved in some testing activities occurring early in the spring as part of the evaluation of the "Program for Student Achievement" sponsored by the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation. The intrusion of classroom time is minimal -- approximately 20 to 30 eighth grade students at most school sites will be tested in mathematics and a like number in reading using National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)-like instruments during single one-hour settings. The testing window will be February 26 through March 9, at your convenience.

NAEP testing of eighth grade performance in reading and math provides a nationally recognized benchmark for assessing local performance in these core subjects. Compared to other standardized measures, NAEP scores are especially useful because the NAEP test items are based on existing content standards developed by national content area organizations such as the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. In addition, NAEP uses a standards-based reporting system that makes its results especially relevant for assessing standards-based education reform.

For over 25 years, the NAEP has served as a unique resource, providing United States educators with reliable information about what our students know and can do in key subject areas. NAEP is the only ongoing national project to track trends in our students’ achievement in elementary, middle school, and high school levels. In large part, NAEP owes its success to the tremendous support from the local educators who acknowledge its importance and reliability.

Each school site is requested to designate a site testing coordinator who will function as the site’s liaison and administer the reading and mathematics tests. Since this testing is essentially the same as last year, it would seem advisable for each school to designate the same coordinator as last year, if possible. The site testing coordinator also will be asked to set aside time prior to the test for training in test administration procedures. This mandatory meeting will occur on February 20th, from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Roosevelt Junior High Media Center. Complete and return Attachment 1 (PDF) to the Testing Office, Annex 3, Eugene Brucker Education Center by January 12, 2001.