Slide 1
Welcome to Using MCAS Growth Reports, Scatter Plots.
Slide 2
In this video you will learn the structure and function of the Scatter Plot growth reports
and the types of questions that can be answered through the interpretation of the data in
the Scatter Plot reports.
Slide 3
Let’s look at some of the Growth Scatter Plot reports. This Student Growth Scatter Plot
shows the distribution of student growth percentiles in ELA from 2008 (grade 5) to 2009
(grade 6) for a specific population – in this case, all Grade 6 students throughout the
district. It is important to note that regardless of what the students bring with them from
5th grade, this report represents the amount of growth that can be attributed to learning
during their 6th grade experience.
The vertical axis represents student achievement in scaled score on the grade 6 MCAS
ELA test, and the horizontal axis represents student growth from the grade 5 MCAS ELA
test to the grade 6 MCAS ELA test in SGPs. Each dot on the graph represents the
intersection of an individual student’s SGP and their scaled MCAS test score.
Slide 4
Students whose SGP places them in the upper right quadrant of the graph
demonstrated higher growth and higher achievement than their peers with similar score
histories. Students toward the lower left demonstrated lower growth and lower
achievement than their peers with similar MCAS test score histories. You can “mouse
over” any point on the graph to identify the individual student who is represented by that
dot in the display.
This student is not only achieving at a high level but is also demonstrating significant
growth from grade 5 to grade 6.
This student is achieving at a low level but is demonstrating relative high growth.
In this example the scatter plot was customized to compare the growth of low income
and not low income students. The green (darker) dots represent students with lowincome status, while the yellow (lighter) dots indicate students without low-income
status. Examination of the distribution of the two sets of color dots shows the difference
in growth pattern for these two sub-populations of students.
Slide 5
The interactivity of the EDW provides the flexibility to also disaggregate the data by
subgroups such as: school, grade level, gender, LEP status, race/ethnicity, special
education status and combinations of these subgroups.
Slide 6
Let’s examine the data displayed in this scatter plot.
One question we might ask is, what was the performance distribution of my 6th grade
students on the 2009 MCAS ELA test?
Observing the scatter plot data shows us that more students in grade 6 are above
Proficient than below Proficient at the school.
We might also wish to consider, is there a relationship between low income status and
achievement?
In this case, there appears to be little correlation between low income status and
achievement.
Slide 7
This is an example of a District scatter plot. This report is similar in basic structure to the
student scatter plot report that displays the distribution of growth for individual students;
however, the growth of individuals is replaced by the median growth of populations.
Since the median SGP is the appropriate statistic to use to compare growth across
populations it replaces the SGP that appeared on the x-axis in the individual growth
scatter plot. Scaled Score is also replaced as a performance measure by the percent of
students in the population who scored at the proficient or advanced level on the most
recent MCAS test (in this example, the 2009 MCAS ELA).
The performance (achievement and growth) of the subpopulation can be compared to
expected performance as represented by the statewide benchmarks. The “X” which
appears on the scatter plot is at the intersection of the percent of students, statewide,
who scored proficient or advanced on the most recent MCAS ELA test and the
statewide median student growth percentile which is, by definition, the 50th percentile.
As with the individual Student Growth Scatter Plot Report, the achievement and growth
relationship for schools (or other subpopulations) can be determined by identifying the
quadrant that the school’s dot falls into. The “X” on the display that represents
statewide achievement and growth can be used as a benchmark.
The table in this report provides important information about the size of the
subpopulations and their actual achievement and growth values.
Note also that “reprompt options” are provided at the top of the report. The current
parameters that delivered our report are shown. The “reprompt” function allows you to
quickly rerun this report to look at other populations by adjusting this internal prompt
page and clicking on “Submit.”
Slide 8
Let's take a look some of the questions this Scatter Plot Report can help us answer.
For example, what was the distribution of aggregate achievement across the schools in the
district?
Here we can see that School C was the highest achieving middle school in the district on the
2009 grade 8 ELA MCAS test. School A had only a slightly smaller percentage of proficient
students and both schools achieved at a slightly higher level than students statewide.
We may also ask, what was the distribution of median student growth percentiles across the
schools in the district?
In this case, School B had the lowest median growth percentile of the three middle schools;
however, the growth was within the “moderate growth” range of 40-60. Schools A and C both
grew at rates slightly above the “moderate” range.
Finally, what was the relationship between achievement and growth across the schools in the
district?
We can see that School B was the lowest achieving middle school in the district in grade 8 ELA
and also had the lowest median growth percentile. Conversely, schools A and C were high
achieving and grew at a slightly higher than “moderate” rate.
Slide 9
There are many resources in the Education Data Warehouse that are designed to help
you effectively use student growth and achievement data to improve teaching and
learning in your school and district. In addition to this video, there two other videos to
help you understand student growth percentiles and how to interpret growth reports in
the Education Data Warehouse.
Additionally, DW203 Using MCAS Student Growth Percentiles is a new course to the
existing data warehouse curriculum. Other resources that specifically address the
growth data are available on the ESE’s website.
Slide 10
During this video we discussed the structure and function of the Scatter Plot growth
reports and the types of questions that can be answered through the interpretation of
the data in the Scatter Plot reports.
Now it’s important for you to take action using your new capabilities and understanding.
Take a few minutes to answer the questions in the “Now What” section. Your responses
will help guide your next steps toward building a culture of data use in your school
and/or district.
Slide 11