WELCOME
to the Fall 2014 MCAS-Alt
EDUCATOR TRAINING
MCAS-Alt Update:
What’s New for 2015?
Dan Wiener
Administrator of Inclusive Assessment
With
Measured Progress
MCAS-Alt Educator Training:
Schedule for the Day

Teachers with no prior or recent MCAS-Alt experience:
 Introduction to MCAS-Alt (8:30 am—12:30 pm)

Teachers with MCAS-Alt experience:
 Session 1: MCAS-Alt Update (What’s New?) (8:30—9:45 am)
 Session 2: How to Submit a Complete Portfolio (10:00—11:15 am)
 Session 3: Choice of concurrent sessions (11:30 am—12:15 pm)
 Access Skills and Early Entry Points for students with the most
significant cognitive disabilities
 Competency and Grade-level Portfolios for students working
at or close to grade level

Oct. 7, 8, 15, 16: Administrators Overview (1:30—3:00 pm)
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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In This Session

2014 Statewide MCAS-Alt Results

New and Notable for 2015
 2014 Resource Guides
 Mathematics
 ELA and Literacy
 Science and Technology/Engineering

Technology and MCAS-Alt

MCAS-Alt Security Requirements

Dates to Remember
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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2014 MCAS-Alt
Statewide Participation
 9,103 students in grades 3-12 took MCAS-Alt in at
least one subject in 2014.
ELA = 8,391
Math = 8,580
Sci & Tech/Eng = 3,308
 Total has decreased by 127 since 2013 (9,230)
 In all, 48,060 strands were scored.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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2014 MCAS-Alt:
Statewide Results (All Grades)
English Language Arts
65.61%
n=5,505
Total Assessed = 8,391
20.25%
N=1,699
1.76%
n=148
12.31%
n=1,033
0.07%
n=6
5
Incomplete
Awareness
Emerging Progressing
Needs
Improvement+
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
2014 MCAS-Alt:
Statewide Results (All Grades)
76.45%
Mathematics
n=6,559
Total Assessed = 8,580
14.02%
n=1,203
2.11%
n=181
7.33%
n=629
0.09%
n=8
6
Incomplete
Awareness
Emerging Progressing
Needs
Improvement+
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
2014 MCAS-Alt:
Statewide Results (Grades 5 and 8)
Science & Technology/Engineering
68.46%
n=1,582
Total Assessed = 2,311
14.24%
n=329
1.86%
n=43
15.40%
n=356
0.04%
n=1
7
Incomplete
Awareness
Emerging Progressing
Needs
Improvement+
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
2014 MCAS-Alt: Statewide Results (High School)
Science & Technology/Engineering
Biology
846
56.97%
Intro Physics 50
Grade 9 = 149
Grade 10+ = 848
Chemistry
48
Tech/Eng
53
Total
997
n=568
23.67%
17.55%
n=236
1.00%
n=175
n=10
0.80%
n=8
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Incomplete
Awareness
Emerging Progressing
Needs
Improvement+
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
2012-2014 MCAS-Alt:
Statewide Results
(All Content Areas - All Grades)
79.06%
2012
80.12%
70.09%
2013
2014
17.09%
11.41%
8.53%
10.41%
10.81%
8.41%
.92%
1.88%
.91%
Incomplete
Awareness
.09% .15% .10%
Emerging Progressing
Needs
Improvement+
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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Incomplete Portfolios
Now a distant memory…
 In 2001, 75% of 4,975 portfolios were Incomplete
 In 2002, 44% of 5,286 were Incomplete
 In 2003, 19% of 5,118 were Incomplete
These were once our biggest problems:
 Missing name, date (only 68 in 2014)
 Accuracy and Independence not labeled
(only 103 in 2014)
 Accuracy and independence began at or above 80%
(only 235 in 2014)
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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Reviewing the 2014 Data on Incomplete
Portfolios
These should be easy fixes:
Missing text titles (or samples) (1,162)
Literature and Informational text assessed together
in same strand (279)
Unclear in the strand how percent of accuracy
and/or independence was determined (1,012)
Additional information needed in brief descriptions
(1,272)
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 Expand descriptions: must fully describe what the
student did and how he/she did it.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
The most common reason
for scores of Incomplete
Brief descriptions of activities did not match the
measurable outcome (4,139)
 Assess what you say you will assess.
 Okay to teach related skills, but include only
relevant, aligned activities in the portfolio strand.
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Remember: Use Ctrl + F to locate a word or phrase
What’s New? 2014 Resource Guides
 MCAS-Alt must be based on the updated Fall 2014
Resource Guide in all subjects
All entry points may be used “as is” to create
acceptable measurable outcomes. No need to isolate a
single skill.
 Low-complexity entry points were identified, even for
Math domains that begin at higher grades.
 Access skills are listed (as before) at the lowest grade,
in the strand/domain, and in the context of academic 13
activities
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Overview: 2014 Resource Guides:
 High School Mathematics, based on the Common Core State
Standards, has been added to 2014 Resource Guide, and is
now required for MCAS-Alt.
 Grades 38 Mathematics: New entry points added.
 Science and Technology/Engineering was revised to list
entry points that can be used “as is” to develop acceptable
measurable outcomes.
 Revised STE has been added to Online Forms and Graphs
 ELA:
 Language entry points have been added to L.x.4L.x.6
(Vocabulary Acquisition and Use).
 Reading is “…the understanding of words, phrases, and sentences14
in the context of a text, rather than in isolation.”
 Writing emphasizes use of student’s primary mode of expression
(production) and communication.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
ELALanguage:
Principles for Selecting Vocabulary Words
Principle 1: Select words that children
encounter while reading literature and content
material (not in isolation)
Key words, useful words, interesting words,
vocabulary-building words
Principle 2: Teach words in relation to other
words (not in isolation)
Principle 3: Teach students to relate words
to their own background knowledge
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Robust Vocabulary Instruction:
Four Steps (Beck, 2004)
Step 1:
Introduce the word
Step 2:
Present a student-friendly explanation
(How it is typically used)
Step 3:
Illustrate the word with several examples
Step 4:
Check for understanding
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Features of the 2014 Resource Guide
in High School Mathematics
 Any three of the five “Conceptual Categories” are
assessed on MCAS-Alt.
 Standards and entry points often provide examples to
illustrate and model the standard.
 Other resources on your flash drive and in your schools
 Low-complexity entry points were identified, even for
domains that begin at higher grades.
 Access skills are listed (as before) at the lowest grade
in a conceptual category, in the context of academic
instruction.
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Example of Access Skill in High School Algebra:
“[Student will] grasp materials used to add and subtract known and
unknown quantities.”
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Mathematics Domains (Grades 38) and
Conceptual Categories (HS)
Progression from PreKHigh School
Domain/Conceptual Category
PK
K
1
2
3
4


5
6
7
Ratios and Proportional Relationships


The Number System

8
HS
Counting and Cardinality
Operations and Algebraic Thinking

Number and Operations in Base Ten

Number and Operations - Fractions


Expressions and Equations

Functions

Geometry
Measurement and Data
Statistics and Probability
Algebra
Number and Quantity



KEY
 = Assessed by MCAS-Alt
 = Assess one entry point in
any three Conceptual Categories
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


Options for Creating a Measurable Outcome
Using the 2014 Resource Guide
 Some entry points may include multiple related skills:
For example, “Describe weather changes by day, week, month,
season, and year,” “add and subtract…,” “group objects by 2,
5, and 10…,”
 In those cases, you may either:


Create a measurable outcome with all of the skills; then assess
all skills on every date in the evidence.
OR
Create a measurable outcome using only one of the skills
(e.g., “student will group objects by 2…”)
 For entry points that use “or” or “and/or” to connect related
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skills:

You may assess either or both skills during any activities in
the portfolio strand.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Features of the 2014 Science and
Tech/Eng Resource Guide
 Entry points were revised to be more measurable
and observable.
 All entry points are acceptable “as written” for
creating measurable outcomes.
 No need to isolate a single skill.
 Now available in Online Forms and Graphs
 Standards are based 2001/2006 Curriculum
Frameworks (not “Next Generation Science
Standards”).
 If entry point is too complex, spiral to lower
grades in required discipline.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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What Else is New for 2015?
 Portfolios are due: Thursday, April 2, 2015 (picked up
from school)
 Students designated for alternate assessment will take
MCAS-Alt, regardless of whether the district will
administer MCAS or PARCC in Spring 2015.
 NEW! Use the Competency and Grade-Level
Portfolio Checklist if submitting Competency or
Grade-level portfolio.
 High school competency portfolio requirements
remain unchanged through the class of 2019.
 Review 2015 Educator’s Manual (especially “New and
Notable for 2015”).
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS-Alt and Technology
Digital resources on your MCAS-Alt flash drive
Forms and Graphs Online available at
www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/alt/resources.html
Submitting digital evidence in portfolios
 Submit separate CD, DVD, or flash drive for each student
 Acceptable formats include: PowerPoint, Word, .pdf, .txt,
.jpg (JPEG), standard movie formats
MCAS-Alt News includes information you need
to know!
 Emailed bi-monthly during the school year
 Let us know your topics of interest.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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MCAS-Alt Security Requirements
Educators ensure that:
Pp. 7-8, Educator’s Manual
 Information in portfolio is complete and accurate.
 Student work and other evidence are neither duplicated, altered,
nor fabricated.
 Regardless of similarity of classroom instruction or activities,
evidence for each student reflects student’s authentic abilities and
performance.
 student portfolios are submitted on time and with all required
forms and information.
Principals ensure that:
 Only IEP teams (or 504 plans) designate students for MCAS-Alt.
 Portfolios are compiled appropriately and submitted on time.
 Evidence is authentic (i.e., not duplicated, altered, or fabricated),
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and portrays student’s performance accurately.
 ESE may request a fact-finding investigation, if irregularities
are reported or found.

.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Resources:
MCAS-Alt Training Specialists
Your colleagues who…
 Have experience compiling and submitting MCAS-Alt
portfolios
 Have volunteered to help teachers in their district
 Will lead Department-sponsored portfolio review
sessions in January and March
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Dates to Remember







Educator and Administrator Training Sessions:
Sept. 29, 30, Oct. 1, 2, 7*, 8*, 15*,16*, 2014
* PM  Administrator
“Portfolios in Progress”
Overview Session
(half-day portfolio review sessions):
 January 12-15, 2015
 Feb. 24, 25, March 10, 11
Order MCAS and MCAS-Alt materials: Jan. 5-16
Binders received in schools: last week in Feb.
Portfolios due: Thursday, April 2, 2015
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Preliminary results: posted mid-June
MCAS-Alt Score Appeals deadline: June 26
Contact Information
MA Department of Elementary and Secondary
Education – Student Assessment (781-338-3625)



Dan Wiener – Administrator of Inclusive Assessment
Debra Hand – dhand@doe.mass.edu
General Inquiries – mcas@doe.mass.edu
Measured Progress



MCAS Service Center – 800-737-5103
Kevin Froton – froton.kevin@measuredprogress.org
Terri Rippett – rippett.therasa@measuredprogress.org
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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