Spring 2016
MCAS ELA
Assessment Updates
grades 3-8
Board Approved Decision
Districts that administered MCAS in spring
2015 choose MCAS or PARCC in 2016.
Districts that administered PARCC in spring
2015 will do so again in 2016.
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
2016 MCAS ELA Updates
Grade 10 ELA will continue to administer MCAS
in its entirety assessing:
Reading Comprehension (52 points)
Composition (20 points)
Updated test blueprint for grades 3-8 ELA
Grades 4 & 7 will not administer the Composition.
Writing will be assessed at every grade level (new
timed section: Session 2B)
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS Test Administration
for Grades 3-8
Session 1: MCAS items
Session 2A: MCAS items
Session 2B: PARCC items
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
MCAS Sessions 1 & 2A
Recommended time:
Session 1: 60 minutes
Session 2A: 35 minutes
Item Types:
Multiple Choice: 1 point (4 choices, 1 correct answer)
Short response (grade 3 only): 2 point scale
Open Response: 4 point scale
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
MCAS Sessions 1 & 2A Test Design
Grade
Number of
Multiple-Choice
Items
Number of Short
Response (SR) and
Open-Response
(OR) Items
Total MCAS
Common Points
3
36
4 SR and 1 OR
48
4
36
4 OR
52
5
36
4 OR
52
6
36
4 OR
52
7
36
4 OR
52
8
36
4 OR
52
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS Sessions 1 & 2A
Work Samples
Scoring guides (rubrics) define expectations of
each response for each score point.
Anchor Papers represent the language of the
rubric at each score point.
Annotations are explanations that support
each posted anchor paper.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS Session 2B
PARCC Narrative Writing section
Required time: 60 minutes (with exception for
students with disabilities and ELL students)
Task includes:
1 literary passage,
4 EBSR items, and
1 narrative writing response
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS Session 2B
EBSR items:
Evidence-Based Selected Response (EBSR) items ask
students to show the evidence in a text that led them
to a previous answer.
Each item has 2 parts, for a total of 0, 1, or 2 points
based on the PARCC approved scoring rules.
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
MCAS Session 2B
PARCC Narrative Writing Response:
scored using the PARCC rubrics in 2 domains:
written expression and conventions
grade span rubrics (grades 3, 4-5, and 6-8)
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
MCAS Session 2B Test Design
Grade
3
4
5
6
7
8
Reading
Writing
EBSR
Written
Conventions
Points Expression
8
9
3
8
9
3
8
9
3
8
12
3
8
12
3
8
12
3
Total
Points
20
20
20
23
23
23
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS ELA Test Administration
Grades 3-8: March 28 to April 12, 2016
Grade 10: March 22-24, 2016
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Tips to stay up-to-date
Mark www.doe.mass.edu/mcas as a favorites
page.
Check www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/nextgen for
updates on 2017 plans.
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
SAS Resources
Testing Schedule:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/cal.html
2016 Test Administration Updates Memo:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/news/news.aspx?id
=21393
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
MCAS ELA Resources
MCAS ELA Test Design:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/tdd/ela.html?
section=testdesign
MCAS ELA Work Samples:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/student/
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
PARCC Resources for
Grades 3-8 ELA Session 2B
PARCC Released Items:
https://prc.parcconline.org/assessments/parccreleased-items
PARCC ELA Practice Tests:
http://parcc.pearson.com/practicetests/english/
PARCC ELA Practice Test Keys:
http://www.parcconline.org/assessments/practi
ce-tests/answer-keys
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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PARCC ELA Rubrics for
Grades 3-8 ELA Session 2B
 Grade 3: http://www.parcconline.org/files/89/ELA-
Literacy%20Scoring%20Rubrics/394/Grade3-ELA-LiteracyScoringRubricJuly2015.pdf
 Grades 4-5: http://www.parcconline.org/files/89/ELALiteracy%20Scoring%20Rubrics/393/Grade4-5-ELALiteracyScoringRubric-July2015.pdf
 Grades 6-8: http://www.parcconline.org/files/89/ELALiteracy%20Scoring%20Rubrics/392/Grade6-11-ELALiteracyScoringRubric-July2015.pdf
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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