Barnstable Public Schools

1
Barnstable Public Schools

• Grant 170B 2005-2006
• Data Driven Decisions Making Data Meaningful for
  Improved Student Learning

2
MA DOE Technology Initiative3 years running

• 2004 100,000
• 2005 100,000
• 2006 50,000
• 2007 50,000 (????????)
• Ongoing 3 years Grants written to increase
  district wide student achievement in mathematics
  using technology
• Has broadened its scope to include ELA (and, next
  year, Science)

3
Hardware Training

• Grant funds have allowed computers to be
  purchased for all teachers at the elementary
  schools
• Increased use of technology
• Smart boards, projectors and applets
• Formative assessments
• Data driven decisions
• Everyone wants a smart board in their classroom!

4
Grant info 2006

• Provides for automation, administration, and data
  delivery of results of formative assessments
• Professional Development (focus on teachers and
  principals)
• Interpret assessment data and how that data can
  best be used in improving curriculum and
  instructional practices
• Use of grant purchased hardware
• Goal is to improve student outcomes

5
Most Importantly

• DATA WHERE IT MOST COUNTS
• Data in the hands of the teachers
• Where it makes the most impact
• The data is
• Fresh
• Quick turn-around
• Frequent
• Significant

6
Formative Assessments

• BCAS Assessment System
• Created by teachers, for teachers
• Scope and Pacing
• Quarterly Assessments
• Mathematics K-4, 7 8
• ELA, K-4 Reading Comprehension Fall 2006
• Administered to over 1600 students 4 times a year

7
Why formative assessments

• To familiarize students with MCAS testing
  language and formatting
• To provide teachers with a scope and pacing of
  instruction(9 elementary schools)
• To provide classroom teachers and schools with
  longitudinal data identifying specific learning
  standard strengths and weaknesses of students,
  individually, by class, building and the district
• To assist in identifying district-wide
  professional development needs
• To give teachers a technology component linked to
  the scope and pacing and MA Mathematics Learning
  Standards

8
The Players

• BCAS teams made up of teachers
• 9 elementary schools represented
• Director of Curriculum/Instruction
• Director of Research/Assessment/Evaluation
• Director of Educational Technology
• Educational Technology Department members (BCAS
  queens)

9
Technology piece of the pie

• Test bank of questions written in accordance to
  the scope and pacing aligned to state standards
• Student tests printed with bar code for scanning
  and upload into data warehouse called School
  Brains.
• Barnstable Applets (virtual online manipulatives)
• Teachers correct ONLY open response

10
Test questions

• As mentioned, home grown
• Teachers do what teachers do best, write
  questions for material taught
• NOT field-tested at present (too expensive)
• Over time, we will have statistical information
  of the validity and reliability of the test
  questions.

11
Virtual Online Manipulatives

• www.barnstable.k12.ma.us/BCAS
• Have at them!

12
School year 2005-2006

• Technology facilitator builds home-grown'
  questions for test bank from
• Questions developed by BCAS team
• Prints tests by classroom/teacher
• All teachers administer within 2 day window
• Tests are sent back to technology dept
• Scanned and uploaded turnaround less than 5 days

13
School year 2005-2006

• Director of Research, Assessment, and Evaluation
  and Director of Curriculum and Instruction
  provide professional development to all
  elementary teachers
• Tiered approach to data analysis
• Classroom and individual students
• Grade level (in individual school)
• Grade level across district
• Following students over time
• NOT used as a weapon, but as a tool

14
School year 2005-2006

• Allows sharing of best practices for improved
  instruction
• Identifies students who need remediation
• Each individual school is responsible for
  planning the type of remediation

15
Introducing School Brains

• Integrated Data Warehouse and Student Information
  Management System
• Web based
• Data warehouse
• MCAS, BCAS Math ELA
• Dibels, Stanford 10, and more
• Test Library
• Content Management
• Student Information Management
• Attendance, Discipline, Scheduling, Report Cards
• Transportation, SPED, SIF, SIMS, Health,
  Cafeteria
• Aptium LLC
• Rob Pemberton, CEO
• Located in Massachusetts

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Please enter!
17
Creating a Test in School Brains
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Sample test with standard answers
19
Building a test question
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Using the html editor
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Correct!
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A sample test
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Bar-coded scan-able bubble sheet
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Scanned tests spreadsheet
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Teacher/Student/Classroom data results
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Alignment to Standards
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Percent Correct, individual class compared to
district
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Question 14
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Wrong answer?
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Filters/ SIMS DATA

• Sims data is loaded into the system
• 3 times a year
• Teachers/Principals/Other administrators have the
  ability to focus on sub groups
• SIF compliant

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MCAS data/results
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MCAS district overview
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MCAS Grade 10, results by standard
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DIBELS results, grade 3, Oral Reading Fluency
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What the teachers say

• SchoolBrains Love it! Saves so much time and
  work. Love having access to the MCAS scores and
  Qs down to the end. Kids information.
• SchoolBrains I am very impressed with the
  program and expect to use it often. It will give
  direction to my teaching.
• Revisit wrong questions, re-teach. Compare
  results with school, grade, district,
  Professional Learning Community uses results to
  share ideas.
• It has helped me rethink the way I pose
  questions to the children. It has also helped me
  gear my pacing.
• Nice way to track childrens progress and areas
  of need.

36
Fall 2006

• Proactive data for teachers
• Longitudinal data available for each student,
  follows student record
• Each classroom teacher has access to their
  students results from prior school year
• Math K 4, 7/8
• Dibels, Stanford MCAS K 10
• Attendance and other relevant school data
• Last years class their MCAS results