A Quick Guide to the TCRWP Common Core Performance Assessments
The TCRWP was invited to design Performance assessments that are aligned with the Common Core State Standards. The assessments have undergone rigorous vetting, and are approved by the NYC Department of Education. The assessments are available on the TCRWP website or the NYC DOE website. Some of the assessments have all of the texts available online. A few necessitate ordering or downloading texts. The timeline for all of the assessments to be available on the TCRWP website is the end of October, 2011.
The TCRWP Common Core Performance Assessments combine reading research with writing. They are aligned with the Common Core standards in:
- reading informational texts (grades K-8)
- informational writing (grades K-2)
- argument writing (grades 3-8)
Accessing the Assessments
The assessments are most easily available on the TCRWP website, at:
The TCRWP website will also have the most current revisions, rubrics, and student work. You may also access the assessments on the NYC Department of Education Website, although we do not control the timing or clarity of that flow of information. Only the grades 2, 5, and 8 assessments are currently available through the DOE, and some texts for those assessments are not available through their website yet. The primary assessments include a couple of books that teachers either read to students or give students to read. Please see the document “Texts Required for the TCRWP Assessments” in the Performance Assessments tab of our website for specific information regarding purchasing these books.
Assessment Description
At each grade level, the assessment asks students to read and summarize a series of informational texts on a topic, and then use that information in a real-life task. For instance, fifth graders read about zoos and endangered animals, and then write a persuasive letter to the mayor arguing for or against zoos. The texts vary in level, with a digital or visual text, a below-grade-level text, and an at-grade-level text included. For each text, students are asked to write down a central idea and some supporting information. Then students are given the task of writing an information text (grades K-2), or an argument text (grades 3-8), incorporating textual information.
The assessments take from one to three periods of class time for the reading and the writing, depending on the grade level. For each grade level, rubrics are provided, as well as student samples.
The Units of Study Attached to the Performance Assessments
The performance assessments are accompanied by two units of study, which teachers may adapt and revise once they have assessed their students’ readiness and needs. The units of study are a comprehension unit in reading informational text, as well as an information (K-2) or research-based argument (3-8) writing unit.
Administering and ‘Scoring’ the Assessment
Teachers may decide when and how often they will give the periodic assessments. The TCRWP recommends giving the assessment before the unit of study, so that teachers may use their observations to inform their instruction. After the unit of study, teachers may re-administer the assessment as an on-demand task. Doing the assessment twice should give teachers and students clear indicators of growth and progress.
Teachers will have to decide when and how to administer the assessments. The TCRWP has made these available at the request of the community and the DOE. We are interested in the results, but it is not our place to legislate how often or when teachers choose to assess their students in this manner. If you are using these to comply with the citywide instructional expectations, their suggested timeline is that you give the assessment in “winter 2011” and use the data to plan for spring curriculum and instruction. See the DOE website for their exact expectations:
There are rubrics to accompany the reading and writing portions of the assessments. Teachers may choose, depending on their purpose, how closely to follow these rubrics and how many parts of the assessments they will score. Administering these assessments at least once in the fall semester of this year, looking carefully at the data from these assessments as grade teams, and adjusting subsequent reading and writing curriculum accordingly will meet the NYCDOE’s literacy performance assessment requirement.
What teachers need in order to give the assessments
- The assessment instructions
- The teacher prompts - this is what the teacher says
- The student tasks and student paper
- The print texts
- Access to the digital texts
- Rubrics
Grade / Topic / Tasks
Kindergarten / Plants / Research and write/draw about plants
First Grade / Big Cats / Research and write/draw an information text about Big Cats
Second Grade / Animal Families / Research and write an information book about Animal Families
Third Grade / Restaurant Reviews / Research information and menus about restaurants and write a persuasive review
Fourth Grade / School/home lunch / Research and write a persuasive article about lunch options
Fifth Grade / Zoos and Endangered Animals / Research and write an opinion piece about zoos and endangered animals
Sixth Grade / Pets in School / Research and write an argument essay/letter about pets in schools
Seventh Grade / Tap/Bottled Water / Research and write an essay arguing for or against tap versus bottled water
Eighth Grade / Competitive High School Sports / Research and write an argument speech/letter for or against competitive high school sports.