205 – Using Homeroom for Progress Monitoring
What is Progress Monitoring?
Progress monitoring is a scientifically based practice used to assess students’ academic performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. They should not be confused with district-wide curriculum-based assessments (benchmarks). Progress monitoring assessments are quick inquiries to find out if students' are making progress towards mastery of a targeted skill in reading, writing, or math.
They should be scheduled over the course of the year and be age and skill-level appropriate. They should follow rules on how the data points are collected and evaluated. The type of assessments used should be simple, time-efficient, and have a particular objective.
When progress monitoring is used correctly, some benefits include:
· Accelerated learning (students will receive directed instruction based on informed instructional decisions)
· Documentation of student progress for evaluations and accountability
· Better communication with parents and co-workers about students' progress
To learn more, access this review by Hanover Research regarding progress monitoring and resource providers. (Link resource: http://www.hanoverresearch.com/media/Review-of-K-12-Literacy-and-Math-Progress-Monitoring-Tools.pdf)
How to Create an Assessment Set
You may be able to use one of the default Assessment Sets by subject, but to create an assessment set unique to the needs of your classroom:
1. Go to the Assessments widget and select your student group.
2. Now select the My Assessment Sets button and then Edit.
3. Click + New Set. In the New Set Name field enter a unique name to describe the set.
4. Select Save & Edit.
5. On the right, under Add Assessments to this Set, search for relevant assessments by label name. Every assessment in Homeroom is listed here, so be specific in your search, for example, "SBA Claim 8."
6. Once found, click the symbol on the right to add the assessment to your set.
7. When you have selected all the assessments you want to include, click Back to Sets, then close the pop up window (select the x in the upper left corner).
Planning Your Assessment Structure (list your answers)
· What is the scope of your assessment? Usually it will be Class or School. Consider sharing with your grade level.
· Does your district have a standard naming convention? Consider the number of times you will administer the assessment and how you want to identify the results.
· Will this assessment be used within a certain window? Will it be used next year?
· What should the results be? Is this a numeric or letter scored test? Is it simply a Pass or Fail (Met/Not Met)? Consider aligning the performance levels with a district-wide benchmark.
· If it is a scored assessment:
o What is the minimum and maximum score? Is there a threshold for meeting a standard?
o Does the assessment have performance levels?
· If so, what is the minimum and maximum score for each level?
· Will this assessment have strands?
o For example, if you are administering a math assessment tied to specific standards, each standard could be a Met/Not Met strand.
Creating the Assessment Template
1. In the Assessments widget, click the Upload icon and choose Define/Edit Test.
2. In the Define New Assessment window, enter the Test Name and Label.
o The Test Name should be unique and specific. It is only seen when creating an Assessment Set.
o The Test Label should be a much shorter version of the Test Name. The Label is displayed in most places in Homeroom.
3. Enter the Minimum, Threshold (passing), and Maximum Scores for the test.
4. Select the Subject Area. If necessary a new subject area can be created for you.
5. Parent Assessment (optional) - if this assessment is a strand of another test, select the Parent (the Parent Assessment has to be created first).
6. Is Met/Not Met (optional) - use if the test has no score and is pass/fail only.
7. Family (optional) - used when filtering assessments. (If necessary a new family can be created.)
8. Scope - This determines the users allowed to access the template and upload scores.
o Class - the structure created is only available to the user who created it
o School - any user with permissions to the school and use and upload via the template
o District - the assessment is available for any user to upload scores
o Anyone with permissions to a student can see the scores, no matter the scope.
o Scopes listed are determined by the user’s role:
§ Teachers - can create a Class scoped assessments
§ Specialists and School Administrators - can create Class or School.
§ District Administrators - can create Class, School, or District.
9. Chronological Ordinal (optional) - use this number to sort assessments by grade and time of year.
10. Start Date and End Date (optional) - when chosen, users can upload scores to via this template only during the date range.
11. Performance Levels - If a structure is Met/Not Met no levels are required. If a structure has a score, at least ONE Performance Level is needed.
o Fill in the Performance Level Name, Min and Max Scores and select a Color for each level.
o If using more than one level, the maximum score (excluding the highest level) is a less than ( < ) value. The levels can include decimals to the hundredth place. Example:
§ High Risk 0 – 4 (includes scores 0 up to 3.9999)
§ Some Risk 4 – 7 (includes scores 4 up to 6.9999)
§ Low Risk 7 – 10 (includes scores 7 up to 10)
o Click +Add Level to add additional levels
12. When your template is complete, click Save Test (you can Edit the template at any time).
13. The Generate Template For Upload pop-up box will appear. You can Cancel or download the score template by student group in order to upload scores. To load scores later, follow the Downloading the Assessment Template on page 5.
Managing Assessment Structures
Cloning
If you administer assessments more than once per year, you can save time with cloning.
1. Return to the Upload tool in the Assessments widget toolbar and select Define/Edit Test.
2. Select the Clone Existing Test button and choose the assessment you want to copy from. (Only assessments created by the user can be cloned.)
3. The Assessment Test Name and Label are blank because they must be unique, but all the other options are the same.
4. Be sure to update your chronological ordinal number to match your any new timeframes.
5. Click Save Test.
Editing
Only the user who created the structure can edit it.
1. Return to the Upload tool in the Assessments widget toolbar and select Define/Edit Test.
2. Select the Edit Existing Test button and choose the assessment from the list.
3. The input fields are populated with the existing structure. Edit as necessary.
4. Click Save Test.
Deleting
Use if an assessment was created in error or simply needs to be removed. Only the user who created the structure can delete it.
1. Return to the Upload tool in the Assessments widget toolbar and select Define/Edit Test.
2. Select the Edit Existing Test button and choose the assessment from the list.
3. Click Delete.
4. A prompt will appear asking, “Are you sure?" Click Yes.
5. THERE IS NO UNDO. Deleting the structure will also remove ALL the student scores related to the Assessment. (If you need to keep the scores or keep the structure but remove the scores, contact your local data administrator, your SDS customer support representative or send an email to .)
Loading Student Assessment Results
What you need:
· A computer with the ability to edit and save a spreadsheet
· Student results (scores) for the Assessment
Download the Assessment Template
1. Click the Upload icon located in the Assessments widget toolbar and select Upload Scores.
2. On the left side of the pop-up box make your selections as indicated below.
a. Assessment Test - select the assessment(s) for which you want to load scores. It will include any structures you created AND any structures other users created that have a scope of School or District.
b. Student Group - select a pre-defined class of students or any group you created.
(Note: the selection windows will stay open so you can select multiple tests or groups.)
3. Click the Download Template button.
4. A spreadsheet template is downloaded to your computer with a default name.
a. Depending on your browser or operating system, you may be prompted to save or open the file. The location where the file is downloaded will also vary.
b. The template contains student names, student IDs, the name of the assessment(s), and a column(s) for the students' scores. Critical fields are locked and cannot be edited to help prevents errors during upload.
Enter and Upload Student Scores
1. With the spreadsheet template open, in the column with the test name as the header, enter the students’ scores.
· Be sure you are on the correct student record. The students are listed alphabetically by last name, then first name.
· The file has been configured so that out of range or invalid scores cannot be entered.
· As you enter scores the cells will change color to match the performance levels.
2. After all scores are entered, SAVE the file. (You may also choose Save As to give the file a more descriptive name or save it in a new location.)
3. Go back to the Homeroom and the Assessments widget. Your pop-up box may still be open.
4. Click the Upload Scores button.
5. Click Choose file and browse for the file on your computer. Click Open.
· If you want to have blank cells on the template delete existing student scores check the ‘Blanks Delete Scores’ box.
6. Click Upload.
7. You will receive a confirmation email. It will list any errors. It also has an option to delete scores if needed.
Accessing Help
If you have any issues, or simply need a refresher on how to create and load user-defined assessments, visit our Help Center.
1. From within Homeroom, select the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the window and then select Search our Knowledge Base.
2. When the search box opens, type in "User defined assessments" to access articles and videos.
3. You can access the Help Center directly by typing support.schooldata.net into any browser.
4. You may also contact your customer support representative or email us at .
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Summer Summit 2016