April 10 and 11, 2006

Move Your Data! Spring Conference in Saratoga Springs NY

Paul Zachos presented two sessions: From Standards to Valued Outcomes: Overview and Methods and a breakfast roundtable presentation Equity and Assessment. Rebekah Rice presented From Standards to Valued Outcomes: A Case Study.

From Standards to Valued Outcomes: Overview and Methods

This presentation highlights some of the necessary requirements for putting standards based reform efforts (such as No Child Left Behind) on a practical footing. A number of neglected features, such as practical learning goals, are identified which need to be in place in order to successfully bridge the gap between state policies and classroom efforts. The presentation shows how one can successfully use information generated by formative assessment of students to unify instructional decisions at the classroom level with accountability and resource allocation decisions at the district and state levels.

From Standards to Valued Outcomes: A Case Study

How can a teacher move from the State’s standards and their school’s curriculum guides to build practical learning goals that will serve as a basis for crafting assessments to improve teaching and learning?

Sun & Shadows – an innovative assessment that measures higher order thinking skills in math, science, and technology – will serve as a case study.

Participants in the sessions will directly experience a number of Sun & Shadows assessment and instructional activities. It will include of longitudinal and comparative results of student performance on the assessment. We will review how Sun and Shadows was built from an integration of state standards, local school district standards and AAAS benchmarks and show how assessment results have led to changes in curriculum and instruction.

For more information, visit www.wswheboces.org/data.