What does my child’s test score mean?
The new state test is called Arizona's Academic Standards Assessment or AASA. The assessment measures how well your child is performing in English language arts (reading and writing) and math. AASA scores are just one of several measures, including report card grades, classroom performance, and feedback from teachers, that can be used to measure your child’s academic progress.
How will my child’s score be used?
Scores will be used to better tailor instruction to individual student needs and give us a tool to see how students and schools across the state are doing.
What types of questions are on the test?
AASA includes a number of different types of questions that include traditional multiple choice and multiple select questions, as well as interactive questions that require students to drag and drop their answers into a box, create equations, in-line choice, hot text, fill in the answer etc. Students in 3rd grade will have an additional component to their ELA assessment called the Oral Reading Fluency test in which the students will read 3 passages into a microphone. To learn more about the question types contained on the AASA assessments, go to https://www.azed.gov/assessment/aasa and click on "AASA Item Specifications."
What if my child did well on his or her report card, but not as well on this test?
Report card grades include multiple sources of information and multiple means of assessment, all of which are important in determining a child’s academic achievement. While the AASA assessment is an important measure of your child's learning, his/her course assessments provide additional measurements of learning and these measurement results are reflected on your child's report card. To further explore your child’s academic achievement, talk with his or her teachers.
How can I use these test results to help my child improve?
You can use the test results to guide a discussion with your child’s teachers about additional supports or challenges that may be needed in class, as well as ways to support your child at home. Your child’s performance is broken down into categories in each subject. Therefore, you can use also this information to locate activities online that were designed specifically for each category at every grade level.
How is the AASA graded?
All of the test items are reviewed and approved by Arizona educators. That review includes confirming the answer key for items and any scoring rubrics. Items that require hand scoring are scored by trained scorers using the appropriate scoring rubric.
When are the test results being released?
According to the Arizona Department of Education, AASA scores will be sent to districts in mid-June. Schools will send family score reports home early in the Fall semester.
How will I receive my child’s score report?
Districts will receive copies of each student’s family score report by mid-October. Schools and districts will be responsible for distributing the score reports to each student’s family. Schools can decide to send them home in backpacks, schedule parent meetings or mail them home.
What is Move on When Reading (MOWR)?
- “Move On When Reading” is a state law that requires a student not be promoted from third grade to fourth grade if the student is reading at a much lower level than is expected of a third grader. A student’s reading level is determined using the “Reading for Information” and “Reading for Literature” scoring categories of this AASA English language arts assessment. You can find more details about your child’s performance on these two areas on the back of the family score report.
- If your child did not meet the requirement on last year’s test, there are a variety of services that may be available to provide the necessary support to help your child catch up. Schools and districts will notify parents at the earliest indication that a student is not reading at grade level, so if your child’s score report shows that they did not pass the Move on When Reading requirement, you most likely will have already received a letter or other form of communication from the school. If you are worried about your child’s reading ability, you should speak directly with his or her teacher to learn more.
- It’s important to note that some students are exempt from the law, including certain English Language Learners, students with individual education plans, students in the process of a special education evaluation, or students diagnosed with a significant reading impairment, including dyslexia.
