What’s all of the
“fuss” about the
ARMT+ Reading ?
Objectives
• To provide an overview of ARMT+ Reading,
including item difficulty, new item formats,
and sample test questions.
• To suggest strategies to improve reading
comprehension instruction across the
curriculum.
Mission: Career/College Ready
Graduates
Believe…..
What every man needs, regardless of his job
or the kind of work he is doing, is a vision of
what his place is and may be. He needs an
objective and a purpose. He needs a feeling
and a belief that he has some worthwhile thing
to do. What this is no one can tell him. It must
be his own creation. Its success will be
measured by the nature of his vision, what he
has done to equip himself, and how well he
has performed along the line of its
development.
-Joseph Morrell Dodge
Blueprints
ARMT
Content Standards
The Reading section of
the ARMT is aligned to
the 2007 English
Language Arts Course
of Study.
Blueprints
ARMT
Types of Reading Assessed
Literary/recreational
stories and poetry
Textual/informational
subject texts
Functional
manuals, brochures, etc.
Blueprints
ARMT+
SAME
Item Types
ARMT
Multiple Choice Questions
• Stand-alone questions
• Passage-based questions
– Key words underlined
(Grade 3)
– Key words italicized
(Grades 4-8)
Item Types
ARMT
Open-ended Questions
Item Type
ARMT+
SAME
Scoring Guidelines
ARMT Multiple Choice Questions
Valued at one point each
Scoring Guidelines
ARMT Open-ended Responses
• Open-ended Responses
– Valued at 3 points each
• Score point 3demonstrates a
thorough
understanding
• Score point 2demonstrates a
general understanding
• Score point 1demonstrates a limited
understanding
• Score point 0- no
attempt to address the
prompt
Scoring Guidelines
ARMT
• Open-ended Responses must…
– Address the question by including
details and examples from the
passage for support.
– Be legible.
– Stay within the confines of the
box.
Scoring Guidelines
ARMT
Open-ended Responses
• Scanned to the computer
• Sent to scorer
–
–
–
–
–
–
A trained professional
4 Yr. degree
Intensive project specific training
Pass a test, qualifies
Uses anchor papers for each score point
Scores one subject
Scoring Guidelines
ARMT+
SAME
Cut Scores
ARMT
Levels
Reading
Mathematics
Grade
Cut Scores
ARMT+
SAME
Item Format
Item Format
ARMT+
• Passages may be 1-2
pages in length.
• All multiple choice
questions have four
choices.
• All open-ended
response questions
have consistent
wording.
RIGOR
What is Rigor?
• “Challenging all students with high expectations”(Gates
Foundation Web site)
• Active, deep, and engaging learning (Small Schools Project)
• “Academic rigor is based on expectations established for
students and staff that ensure that students demonstrate a
thorough, in-depth mastery of challenging and complex
curricular concepts. In every subject, at every grade level,
instruction must include commitment to a knowledge core and
the application of that knowledge core to solve complex realworld problems.” (North Carolina State Board of Education,
2005)
(Edmunds 2006)
Rigor
Evaluation
Creating
Synthesis
Evaluating
Analysis
Analyzing
Application
Applying
Comprehension
Knowledge
Understanding
Remembering
Rigor
• Increased vocabulary
• Use of words such as mainly, most likely, probably,
and best
• Answer choices ( words, examples, or excerpts from
passages and poems)
• Comparisons (poem/poem, poem /passage,
passage/passage, or chart [table, graph,
etc.]/passage)
• Previously used formats in upper grades may
appear in lower grades.
Rigor
Open-ended Responses
•
Thorough
– Specific
– Multiple examples and support (list, portions of a conversation, line(s)
from a poem(s), etc.)
– All steps provided within a sequence of steps or events
•
General
– Basic
– Few examples and limited support (2 of 4 ideas listed, a word from a
line in a poem, etc.)
– Some steps provided within a sequence of steps or events
•
Limited
– Vague or incomplete
– One incomplete part of a two part question (compare, but does not
contrast; a cause with no effect)
– Random step(s) provided within a sequence of steps or events
– Glimmer
•
No attempt to address the prompt
Provide Opportunities to Write
Everyday is a great day for a writing experience.
•
•
•
•
•
Various audiences
Multiple purposes
All modes
Different forms/types
Multiple topics
Types of Writing
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Freewriting
Journals
Notetaking
Questions
Explanations
Summaries
Definitions
Memos
Letters
Reviews
Editorials
Books
Stories
Poems
Reports/
Research
papers
• Essays
• Plays
•
•
•
•
•
•
Global Skills
Non-exhaustive List
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Drawing conclusions
Sequence of events/information
Making inferences
Fiction/nonfiction
Fact/opinion
Previewing/predicting
Following directions
Vocabulary
Grade 3
Spelling possessives
Dictionary use
Vocabulary (Standards 2-4)
Literary elements and devices- identify
characters and similes
• Text features
• Genres- stories, trade books, and
poems
•
•
•
•
Grade 3
Text Features
Why does the author use bold print?
A. To make the dates easier to read
B. To describe the food
C. To get the attention of the reader
D. To give the history of the fair
Grade 3
ARMT Sample
An apple is a
A. vegetable.
B. meat.
C. fruit.
D. dairy product.
Grade 3
ARMT+ Sample
The words brick and yard are put
together to make a word that means
A. An area where bricks play.
B. A piece of material used for sewing.
C. An area where bricks are made.
D. One who enjoys bricks.
Grade 4
• Vocabulary- Standards 2 and 3
• Comparing and Contrasting
• Genres- novels, short stories, poetry, and trade
books
• Literary elements and devices- identify characters,
similes, main idea, and author’s purpose
• Using text features- titles, headings, glossary,
boldface, index, table of contents, and tables
• Use of bias/recognizing persuasive techniques
• Notetaking
Grade 4
ARMT Sample
Grade 4
ARMT Sample
Grade 4
ARMT+ Sample
+
Compare and contrast the Sun and the Moon.
Use specific details from the story to support your answer.
Write your answer in the answer document.
Grade 4
ACTIVITY
Grade 5
• Vocabulary- Standards 1, 2, and 4
• Literary elements and devices- Recognize setting,
character traits, stated purpose, metaphors,
personification, and implied purpose(identify)
• Tables and charts
• Reference materials
Grade 5
ARMT+ Sample
Dreams
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
Langston Hughes
Grade 5
ARMT+ Samples
Which line from the poem is an
example of a metaphor?
A. “Hold fast to dreams”
B. “Life is a broken winged bird”
C. “For when dreams go”
D. “Frozen with snow.”
What is the effect of the
author’s use of images?
Use details from the poem
to support your answer.
Write your answer in the
answer document.
Grade 5
ARMT+ Sample
Which sentence shows possession?
A. Johnny can’t reach the box on the top shelf.
B. Jafaar’s books are in the brown backpack.
C. Kenyatta didn’t call me last night.
D. I’ve always combed my hair to one side.
Grade 6
• Vocabulary-Standards 1
and 3
• Interpreting character’s
behavior
• Literary elements and
devices- Interpret implied
main idea, conflict,
personification, and
climax(identify)
• Complex predictions
• Cause-effect
relationships
Grade 6
ARMT Sample
Grade 6
ARMT+ Sample
+
Which of the following reveals the climax of the story?
A. “As the two friends headed for the trees on the far side of
the field, they heard Butch barking.”
B. “He agreed that the wing was broken.”
C. “The bird hopped slowly to the opening and then suddenly
flew out.”
D. “… I don’t want to let it go too soon and have it not able to
live on its own.”
Grade 6
ARMT+ Samples
+
Sample stems:
Who is the intended audience for the passage?
How does the author organize the passage?
Grade 6
ARMT+ Sample
+
Identify the climax. Explain how the story’s events
lead to this climax.
Use details from the story to support your answer.
Write your answer in the answer document.
Grade 7
• Vocabulary- Standards 1 and 4
• Literary elements and devices- main idea and
supporting details, climax, point of view, imagery,
mood(determine), and flashback(recognize)
• Genres and subgenres- Distinguish among poetry,
short stories, novels, plays, biographies,
autobiographies, folktales, myths, parables, fables,
and science fiction
Grade 7
“The Road Not Taken”
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted
wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost
Grade 7
ARMT+ Sample
Which statement is most likely
true about the author?
A. The author likes to travel.
B. The author enjoys futuristic
stories.
C. The author examines his
choices before making
decisions.
D. The author cannot read a map.
The mood of “The Road Not
Taken” can be best described
as
A. somber
B. cautious
C. inviting
D. impolite
Grade 8
• Literary elements and devices- Evaluate the impact
of setting, mood, and characterization on themecomponents of plot
• Poetry- ballads, lyric poems, epics, haiku, and
limericks- rhythm and rhyme scheme (identify)
• Confirming author’s credentials
Grade 8
ARMT+ Sample
What can the reader infer
about Moss’s dedication to
African elephant research?
Use details from the
passage to support your
answer.
Write your answer in the
answer document.
Grade 8
Poetry- Langston Hughes
A Dream Deferred
What happens to a dream
deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore-And then run?
Does it stink like rotten
meat?
Or crust and sugar over-like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
Dreams
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
Grade 8
Poetry
• Students are responsible for recognizing characteristics of
various types of poetry.
• Questions related to poetry may be multiple choice questions
(stand-alone and/or passage-related) and open-ended
response questions.
ACTIVITY
Create your own questions
Multiple choice- figurative language, mood, theme, etc.
Open-ended response- Persuasive techniques, figurative language,
mood, compare/contrast, cause/effect, explain, evaluate, point of
view, etc.
True or False
I can increase rigor in my
classroom by reading longer
stories/passages from the
textbook, giving more
assignments, and giving more
homework.
FALSE
If you continue to do what
you have always done, you
will continue to get the SAME
results!
What do high performing
schools have in common?
• Teachers regularly observe other teachers.
• Teachers have time to plan and collaborate.
• New teachers receive generous support.
• Teachers take on other leadership roles at
the school.(Haycock 2007)
Teacher
Parents
Student
Administrator
Administrator’s Role
• Emphasize to teachers that you know they can
succeed.
• Expect teachers to keep knowledge fresh.
• Guide (learning) communities toward selfgovernance.
• Make data accessible.
• Teach discussion and decision-making skills.
• Show teachers the research.
• Take time to build trust.
(Hord 2009)
Provide supports that foster a datadriven culture within the school.
• Provide time for collaboration among departments,
grade levels, and data team members.
• Provide targeted professional development.
Support
• Test prep activities
• Benchmark or Interim
Assessments
• Use of assessment data to
guide instruction
• Increased instructional time
in math and
reading(Response to
Instruction-RtI)
• Strategic assignment of
teachers
• Instructional pacing
• Tutoring outside of school
• Alignment of curriculum
with standards
• Writing across the
curriculum
• Individualized study guides
• Personal graduation plans
• Summer school
(Center on Education Policy
2007)
Ongoing Cycle
Plan
Assess
Implement
What does this process look like?
• Review available data.
• Analyze various teaching strategies.
• Create multiple lessons for a concept.
• Review implementing “genius”
creations.
Available Data
State Assessment Results
• All state test results
are available before
school starts.
• The more familiar you
are with group/student
reports, the easier
they are to use.
• Remember, data
should drive
instruction.
Available Data
• Classroom
Assessments
• Interim
Assessments
• Conferences
Diagnosis
• Put all of what you’ve gathered into perspective.
• The purpose of your diagnosis is to know where
your students are in order to decide where they
need to go.
• Share your diagnosis with the student.
• Realize that whatever your diagnosis, you have only
nine months to work with the student.
• Be objective not subjective.
Teach students to examine their
own data and set learning goals.
Get organized
 Create organizational tools that chart progress on standards and
objectives (AL COS), reading/writing assignments, grades, and
etc.
 Share these organizational tools with your students on day 1, and
allow them to develop their own goals.
 Explain your expectations.
 Make these organizational tools a part of your grading system.
Prepare to Plan
• Before anything else, preparation is the key to
success.
-Alexander Graham Bell
• There are no secrets to success. It is the result of
preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.
-Colin Powell
You must do the foot work!
• Make sure that you have a manipulative
copy of your Alabama Course(s)of
Study on your desktop.
• Create multiple copies of your grade
level section of the Alabama Course(s)
of Study.
• Create in-depth lesson plans that
include notes, activities, and handouts
associated with the lesson. At the end
of this process you are able to see if
you have multiple activities/handouts to
address all learning styles.
Walk it out!!!
•
Go to ALEX-Alabama Learning Exchange
(http://alex.state.al.us/index.php) for sample
lesson plans, web links, distance learning, and
professional learning.
•
Once you have completed your in-depth lesson
plan, highlight the standards/objectives that
mirror what you plan to teach and attach the
highlighted copy to the lesson plan.
•
Using your manipulative copy of the Alabama
Course(s) of Study, copy and paste applicable
standards/objectives on a created document to
attach to the lesson plan.
3 Requirements for Every
Course
• Making Dramatic Presentations
• Writing(essays- upper grades, discussion
questions-lower grades)
• Developing vocabulary and critical thinking
skills
Making Dramatic Presentations
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Students must participate in a
dramatic presentation each
grading period.
A dramatic presentation may
be done individually, in pairs, or
as a group.
Students should be given credit
for planned, as well as,
impromptu presentations.
Create your grading criteria
prior to all presentations.
Provide students with grading
criteria.
Expose students to multiple
presentation strategies.
Lead by example.
Writing Essays/ Answering Discussion
Questions
• Make writing the cornerstone of your
classroom.
• Live it, breathe it, and expect it!
• Require writing weekly.
• Read what students write.
• Students buy-in with immediate feedback and
discussion.
Increase Literacy
• Provide explicit vocabulary instruction.
• Provide direct and explicit comprehension strategy
instruction.
• Provide opportunities for extended discussion of
text meaning and interpretation.
• Increase student motivation and engagement in
literacy learning.
• Make available intensive and individualized
interventions for struggling readers that can be
provided by trained specialist. (Kamil 2008)
Develop Vocabulary and Critical
Thinking Skills
• Every lesson should
work to improve
students’ vocabulary
and critical thinking
skills.
• Connect the two skills,
if possible.
• Use context clues.
Develop Vocabulary and Critical
Thinking Skills
• Reflect on multiple meanings.
• Require/provide a dictionary and thesaurus for
each student.
• Prepare good questions/activities ahead of
time.
• Be quick on your feet and engage students as
much as possible.
More Ideas
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Projects
Lecture
Quizzes (oral, listening, and bag)
Recitations
Guest Speakers
Movie Reviews
Debates
Build a Bridge
• Often it is not the
“what,” but “how”
information is
delivered that
strikes the interest
of students.
Plan, Plan, Plan!
A Teacher…
• The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher
explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The
great teacher inspires.
-William Arthur Ward
References
•
Center on Education Policy. (2007). State High School Exams: Working to raise the test scores.
Washington, D.C..:Author.
•
Edmonds, J., Lewis, K., and McColskey, W. (2006) Defining Rigor: What rigor Means at Different Levels of
the Educational System.
•
Hamilton, L., Halverson, R. Jackson, S., Mandinach, E., Supovitz, J., & Wayman, J. (2009). Using
student achievement data to support instructional decision making (NCEE 2009-4067).
Washington, DC: National Center for Educational Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute
of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved
fromhttp://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications/practiceguides/.
•
Haycock, K. (2007) Raising Achievement and Closing Gaps. Education Trust
•
Hord, D. (2009). The Principal’s Role in Supporting Learning Communities. Educational Leader ship,
66(5), 22-23. Retrieved October 28, 2009,from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/feb09/.
Contact
If there are any questions, contact Kanetra Germany,
Assessment and Accountability, State Department of
Education, (334) 242-8038.