Curriculum & Assessment

Curriculum & Assessment

A Parent’s Guide to MAP

Measures of Academic Progress

WHAT IS MAP?

Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) is a computerized adaptive assessment aligned to the Alberta curriculum that is used to provide Maplewood teachers and parents with information needed to improve teaching and learning. Scores help teachers make student focused, data driven decisions.

Students in grades 1 to 9 are tested twice each year in math, reading and language usage. The tests are conducted in October and May. The school uses the data from MAP to develop targeted instructional strategies and to plan school development.

MAP:

· Is not an accountability test and does not affect a student’s grades.

· Generates test questions based on student response to previous question

· Reports results in RIT scores

· Gives immediate results

· Is aligned to world standards

· Measures growth over time

· Provides information used to target individual instruction

Student MAP Scores

Test results are analyzed twice each year – October and May.Student Map testing results are reported in RIT (short for Rasch Unit) scores. An RIT score is an estimation of a student’s instructional level and also can measure student progress or growth.

Understanding RIT Scores

The charts below show median RIT scores for grades 1-9 students tested throughout the world. You can use these charts to help determine if your child is performing below, at or above grade level compared to students worldwide. They indicate an appropriate instructional level.

It is important to understand that MAP testing is one test at a specific time. It does not measure intelligence or a student’s capacity for learning. When making important decisions about students, staff will consider the MAP results along with other data such as classroom performance, other test scores and input from parents and teachers.

World Standards link

Is my child at grade level in reading?
Is my child at grade level in reading?
October MAP Reading Score									May MAP Reading Score
		Above Grade Level	At Grade Level	Below Grade Level	1 Grade Below	2 Grades Below			Above Grade Level	At Grade Level	Below Grade Level	1 Grade Below	2 Grades Below
Grade	1	> 160	160	147-159	< 147		Grade	1	> 173	173	156-172	< 155
	2	> 179	179	161-178	147-160	< 147		2	> 190	190	174-189	156-173	< 155
	3	> 192	192	180-191	161-179	< 161		3	> 200	200	191-199	174-190	< 173
	4	> 201	201	193-200	180-192	< 180		4	> 207	207	201-206	191-200	< 190
	5	> 208	208	202-207	193-201	< 193		5	> 212	212	208-211	201-207	< 200
	6	> 213	213	209-212	202-208	< 202		6	> 216	216	213-215	208-212	< 207
	7	> 217	217	214-216	209-213	< 209		7	> 219	219	217-218	213-216	< 212
	8	> 220	220	218-219	214-217	< 214		8	> 223	223	220-222	217-219	< 216
	9	> 222	222	221	218-220	< 218		9	> 224	224		220-223	< 219

Is my child at grade level in mathematics?
Is my child at grade level in mathematics?
October MAP Mathematics Score									May MAP Mathematics Score
		Above Grade Level	At Grade Level	Below Grade Level	1 Grade Below	2 Grades Below			Above Grade Level	At Grade Level	Below Grade Level	1 Grade Below	2 Grades Below
Grade	1	> 164	164	149-163	< 149		Grade	1	> 178	178	159-177	< 159
	2	> 179	179	165-178	149-164	< 149		2	> 191	191	178-190	159-177	< 159
	3	> 192	192	180-191	165-179	< 165		3	> 203	203	191-202	179-191	< 179
	4	> 203	203	193-202	180-192	< 180		4	> 211	211	203-210	192-203	< 192
	5	> 212	212	203-211	193-202	< 193		5	> 220	220	211-219	204-211	< 204
	6	> 219	219	213-218	203-211	< 203		6	> 225	225	220-224	212-219	< 212
	7	> 225	225	219-224	213-218	< 213		7	> 230	230	225-229	221-224	< 221
	8	> 230	230	225-229	219-224	< 219		8	> 234	234	230-233	227-229	< 226
	9	> 233	233	230-232	225-229	< 225		9	> 236	236	235	231-234	< 231

Growth Expectations

You may have a chart in your home on which you mark your child’s height. This is a growth chart that shows how much they have grown over a period of time. MAP tests do the same sort of thing, except they measure your student’s growth in mathematics, reading and language usage. The RIT scale is an equal interval scale like centimetres on a metre stick. It can be used to measure your child’s growth from year to year. This type of score increases the value of the tests as a tool to improve learning because it enables us to pinpoint where students are growing as expected and where they may need support. Growth is far more important than the actual RIT score. However, it is important to realize that academic growth is not always continuous and linear. Just as children grow physically in spurts, they grow in spurts academically. Younger children tend to grow faster and sometimes growth is suspended. Unlike physical growth academic growth never stops but may sometimes reverse for a short period. The following chart shows the average growth among students tested worldwide.

Growth Guideline Charts
The chart below shows the the average grade level scores for 1st-9th grade students who tested in October and May. This shows the yearly growth that is typical for each grade level. When you review your child's scores you can check to see if his/her growth is *above, at or below* average compared to other students in the same grade.





GRADE		Reading		Year's Growth	GRADE		Mathematics		Year's Growth
		Oct.	May	Year's Growth			Oct.	May	Year's Growth
	1	160	173	13		1	164	178	14
	2	179	190	11		2	179	191	12
	3	192	200	8		3	192	203	11
	4	201	207	6		4	203	211	8
	5	208	212	4		5	212	220	8
	6	213	216	3		6	219	225	6
	7	217	219	2		7	225	230	5
	8	220	223	3		8	230	234	4
	9	222	224	2		9	233	236	3