State Assessments
-
All Vermont students are required to participate in state assessments. Below you will find some general information, with links to explore further if you would like to do so.
State Math and English/Language Arts Assessment: All Vermont students in grades 3-8 and 9, including publicly funded students attending private independent schools and programs, should participate in the Smarter Balanced Assessment unless a student qualifies for alternate assessment or has an authorized exemption for medical reasons. SBAC is a computer-adaptive assessment measuring each student’s performance against the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics and English/Language Arts. Schools administer SBAC between March 13 and June 1. Individual results will be sent home with the welcome back to school packet in August.
State Science Assessment: All Vermont students in grades 5, 8 and 11, including publicly funded students attending private independent schools and programs, will participate in the Vermont Science Assessment (VTSA) unless a student qualifies for alternate assessment or has an authorized exemption for medical reasons. Like SBAC, the science assessment is a computer-adaptive assessment measuring each student’s performance against the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Spring 2021 VTSA results will be sent home with the welcome back to school packet in August. If you are inderested in learning more about the Science assessment, you can visit this page on the Agency of Education's website.
State Fitness Assessment: The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states to develop a State Accountability Plan that employs a variety of school quality indicators. Vermont’s ESSA State Plan includes Physical Education as one of four academic content areas to be assessed. Additionally, in the Education Quality Standards, Vermont has articulated a commitment to education and evaluation that supports the whole child, knowing that healthier students perform better in every other aspect of school. The VTPEA suite includes FitnessGram and the Alt-VTPEA assessments; the Brockport Physical Fitness Test and the Individual Fitness Assessment (IFA). The VTPEA will be used to collect data for all publicly funded Vermont students in grades 4, 7, and 9. The results will support state and local educators in promoting healthy, active student lifestyles. The Physical Education assessment was not given in 2020-2-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
-
How can I learn more?
For more information about these assessments and the standards they are designed to measure, visit the following sites:
- http://www.corestandards.org
- http://www.smarterbalanced.org
- http://education.vermont.gov/student-learning/content-areas/science
- https://www.nextgenscience.org
- https://www.shapeamerica.org/standards/pe
- http://education.vermont.gov/student-learning/content-areas/physical-education
-
What does this mean for my child?
Please visit your school's website to learn more about what assessment your student will take and when your student will be assessed. If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this assessment please feel free to contact your child’s teacher or principal.
-
Contact
Jackie Ramsay-Tolman, Director of Learning and Instructual Impact
802 857 2019 or jtolman@ewsd.org
