This page details the various assessments that students who are enrolled in the Oxford Public Schools will take during any given year and throughout their time in our district. MCAS The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) is the commonwealth's statewide standards-based assessment program designed in response to the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993. All students educated in Massachusetts by public money are mandated to participate in the MCAS assessment. Massachusetts fulfills the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act by administering MCAS tests in Mathematics, English Language Arts, and Science and Technology. The MCAS schedule below lists the subjects, grade levels, and approximate dates for the 2010 tests.
Note: The grades 5 and 8 History and Social Science test and the high school U.S. History test will not be administered in the spring of 2010. Click here for more information. MAP Testing Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) are adaptive formative assessments created by NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association) that are aligned to the Massachusetts state standards. All students in grades 3 through 9 take the computerized assessments in both reading and mathematics three times each year. Students are assessed in September, December and June. Individual students progress is monitored throughout the year. Assessments are composed of multiple choice questions aligned to state standards. Because the tests are adaptive, if a student gets a question wrong the next question will be easier until the student's instructional level is determined. No two tests are the same. Click here to go to the NWEA main webpage. DIBELS The Dynamic Indicator of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) are a set of measures to assess the acquisition of early literacy skills. The assessments are short (one minute) measures used to monitor the development of early reading skills. In Oxford, the assessment is given three times each year; in September, December and April. Students in kindergarten through grade 3 participate in this testing program. Click here to go to the DIBELS main webpage. Click here to view DIBELS activities. |