Michigan Educational Assessment System (MEAP, MI-Access, ELPA)

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Michigan Educational Assessment System (MEAP,
MI-Access, ELPA)

• English Language Arts

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ELA Test Development

• Items written by Michigan teachers
• Items (and selections) reviewed by
• Teachers from across state during field
  reviews
• Bias Review Committee
• Content Review Committee
• Items field tested during operational testing
  window
• Items reviewed by Committees after data from
  field testing received
• Tests are built by contractor and MDE staff from
  items that have survived this extensive review
  process

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Reading Grades 3-8

• Paired Reading Selections
• Text 1 (8 multiple-choice items)
• Text 2 (8 multiple-choice items)
• Cross-text (6 multiple-choice items)
• Field testing (1 short-answer constructed
  response item for
• each selection for use on operational test in
  2009)

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Reading Grades 3-8

• Independent Reading Selection
• Text 3 (8 multiple-choice items)
• Total 30 points
• Selections include both narrative and expository
  text

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Reading Domains Assessed

• Word Study
• Narrative Text
• Informational Text
• Comprehension

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Writing Grades 3-8

• Writing from Knowledge and Experience
• 6-point holistic rubric
• Students choose genre, format of response
• Two pages maximum
• No resources
• Scored as first draft, not polished response

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Writing Grades 3-8

• Student Writing Samples
• Peer response to one Student Writing Sample (4
  point rubric)
• 13 multiple-choice revising and editing items
  from two separate Student Writing Samples
• Half page maximum

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Writing Grades 3-8

• No resources
• Scored as first draft, not polished response
• Need to increase number of multiple-choice items
  for Student Writing Samples in order to obtain
  more stable scores.
• Total 23 points

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Writing Domains Assessed

• Genre
• Process
• Style
• Grammar and Usage
• Spelling

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Field Testing

• Necessary to field test future
• items during operational test in
• order to build future tests.
• MEAP releases 50 of items online
• Important that data collected from field
• tests be valid.

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ELA Assessment Schedule

• Session 1 Thursday, October 16
• Session 2 Tuesday, October 21
• Session 1, Makeup Wednesday, October 22
• Session 2, Makeup Monday, October 27
• Makeup as needed Wednesday, October 29 30
• Approximately 120-140 minutes each day a.m. and
  p.m.

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Michigans Alternate Assessments

• Based on alternate achievement standards.
• Michigans Grade Level Content Expectations and
  Benchmarks have been extended to reflect the
  appropriate depth, breadth, and complexity for
  students with the most significant cognitive
  disabilities
• Extended Grade Level Content Expectations (ELGCE)
  and Extended Benchmarks (EB)

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MI-Access Assessments

• Functional Independence (FI)
• Have or function as if they have mild cognitive
  impairment
• Supported Independence (SI)
• Have or function as if they have moderate
  cognitive impairment
• Participation (P)
• Have or function as if they have severe cognitive
  impairment

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Functional Independence

• Word Recognition
• Students answer multiple-choice items that
  measure their ability to access or recognize
  highly familiar and frequently encountered words
  in print.

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Functional Independence

• Text Comprehension
• Students access three types of passages
  narrative, informational, and functional.
  Students answer multiple choice items that
  measure their comprehension skills.

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Functional Independence

• Expressing Ideas
• Students respond to a prompt by writing, drawing,
  dictating, or using a combination of the three
  response modes. Responses are scored according to
  a 4-point holistic rubric.

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Participation and Supported Independence (P/SI)

• Designed to measure a students knowledge of
  English language arts in meaningful contexts
  while acknowledging that student may require some
  level of assistance to do so.

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P/SI

• MI-Access P/SI ELA assessments cover much of the
  same content as FI, but content is reduced in
  depth, breadth and complexity.
• Example Instead of assessing a students ability
  to decode print, these assessments measure a
  students ability to access information.

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P/SI

• Universal design
• Developed in such a way that the need for
  accommodations is significantly reduced, if not
  eliminated, by removing barriers to accessing the
  assessment to demonstrate what students know
  related to ELA.

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P/SI Item Format

• Selected Response Items
• Answer choices are presented in the form of
  graphics on 8-1/2 x 11 picture cards that
  students must view and respond to in order to
  answer the question. The pictures cards must be
  presented twice, and the student must correctly
  respond twice for each item.

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Sample Artwork
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P/SI Item Format

• Activity Items
• Designed to reflect classroom activities with
  which students should be familiar
• Provide a performance context in which specific
  ELA EGLCEs can be assessed

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(No Transcript)
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P/SI ELA Components

• Word Study
• Students are asked to complete assessment items
  that measure their ability to access or recognize
  highly familiar and frequently encountered words
  in print, a picture, or actual object
  representing the printed words.

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P/SI ELA Components

• Comprehension
• Students are asked to complete assessment items
  that allow them to access and comprehend various
  forms of information that are based on the three
  adult life contexts.

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P/SI ELA Components

• Expressing Ideas
• Students are asked to complete assessment items
  that provide opportunities to express their ideas
  by writing, drawing, dictating, gestures, or
  using a combination of response modes.

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Scoring P/SI Assessments

• Two people observe and score the items Primary
  Assessment Administrator, and Shadow Assessment
  Administrator
• Record score point or condition code for each
  selected-response or activity item observed
• Transferred to students answer document. Final
  score is the PAA and SAA scores added together.
• Supported Independence 2-point rubric
• Participation 3-point rubric

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Released Items

• Released item booklets are available online.
• There is a booklet for each population and at
  each level
• FI Grades 3,4,5,6,7,8, and 11
• P/SI Grades 3-5, 6-8, 11

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MI-Access Assessment Schedule

• Grades 3-8
• October 13 November 21
• Grade 11
• February 16 March 31

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ELPA Reading and Writing

• Items and passages written by Michigan teachers
• Items and passages reviewed by
• Bias/Sensitivity Review Committee
• Content Review Committee
• Items and passages field tested during
  operational testing window
• Items and passages reviewed by committees after
  data from field testing received
• Test forms are built by contractor with MDE staff
  oversight from items and passages that have
  survived this extensive review process

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ELPA Reading Passages

• ELPA Passage Specifications
• Written jointly by OEAA and contractor
• Guides writers for length, linguistic and
  cognitive complexity, readability, topic
  appropriateness
• Used by contractor during training
• Aligned to BICS and CALP expectations of ability
• BICS Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills
• CALP Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency

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ELPA Reading and Writing Items

• ELPA Item Specifications
• Written jointly by OEAA and contractor
• Guides writers for item type, length, linguistic
  and cognitive complexity, response expectations,
  graphics, and phrasing of directions
• Used by contractor during item writing training
• Requires writers to align items to ELP standards

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Types of ELPA Reading Passages

• Narrative/Literary
• Can feature characters, setting, sequence of
  events
• Typically written with dialogue
• Models types of comprehensible input available to
  English Language Learners (ELLs) during general
  instruction
• Should allow for lexical (vocabulary), semantic
  (idioms), comprehensive (main idea) and pragmatic
  (inferential) questions

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Types of ELPA Reading Passages

• Informational/Content-Area Related
• Models types of comprehensible input available to
  ELLs during content-area instruction
• Based on math, science, or social studies
• Should suppress requirement for prior knowledge
  in content area can explain or introduce concept
  during passage
• Should allow for lexical (vocabulary),
  comprehensive, and pragmatic (inferential)
  questions

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ELPA Reading Passages

• Both types featured in all Assessment Levels
• Cognitive demand geared to age level
• Individual multiple-choice items written to every
  passage
• Individual passage themes or topics are not
  connected to each other
• Passages sequenced along length and complexity

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ELPA Writing Items

• Multiple-choice section (Writing Conventions)
  precedes constructed-response section (Writing)
• These two sections can be administered as
  separate sessions to reduce testing fatigue
• Writing Conventions items based on W.1 and W.2
• W.1 Use conventions and formats of written
  English
• W.2 Use grammatical conventions of English

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ELPA Writing Items

• Writing constructed-response items based on W.3,
  W.4, W.6, and W.8
• W.3 Write using appropriate vocabulary choice and
  variation
• W.4 Construct sentences and develop paragraphs to
  organize writing supporting a central idea
• W.6 Use various types of writing for specific
  purposes
• W.8 Use tone and voice to engage specific
  audiences

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ELPA Writing Items
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Scoring ELPA Writing Items

• Rubrics for ELPA Writing responses developed
  jointly by OEAA and contractor
• Michigan educators serve on Rangefinding
  committees
• Provide definitions for exemplar student
  responses at different rubric score points
• Provide model responses for training of
  contractors scoring staff
• Helps ensure inter-rater reliability
• Helps ensure appropriate expectations

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ELPA Assessment Schedule

• 2009 ELPA Testing Window
• Monday, March 16, 2009
• to
• Friday, April 24, 2009

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Tips for Improvement

• Teach your curriculum year-round!
• Know the GLCEs
• Use the rubrics and checklists with students on
  a
• regular basis
• Use the Released Items from the website,
  
• especially the scoring guides, for
  professional staff
• development and instruction with students
• (www.michigan.gov/meap)
• Remind students to answer specific questions in
  constructed
• response (no evidence that question was read
  0)
• Dont drill and kill just before the test!

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Contact Information

• Wendy Gould
• English Language Arts Assessment Consultant,
  MDE/MEAP
• gouldw_at_michigan.gov
• Linda Howley
• Interim Assessment Consultant for Students with
  Disabilities
• howleyl_at_michigan.gov
• Phil Chase
• ELPA Consultant
• chasep2_at_michigan.gov

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For more information

• MEAP www.michigan.gov/meap
• 877-560-8378
• MI-Access www.michigan.gov
• mi-access_at_questarai.com
• 888-382-4246
• ELPA www.michigan.gov/elpa
• 877-560-8378