iReady scores vs Grades in ES? -Confused

[Anonymous]

We have a 5th grader and her iReady scores have always been on the low end in reading and math. But her grades are always 3's and 4's. I didn't worry about her low iReady scores until our most recent, standard fall time parent-teacher conference. The teacher seemed very concerned that her iReady scores were low, but she seems to be doing just fine in class.

This has been the case for 3rd and 4th grade. Just wondering if iReady scores are important at all? Or if they receive 4s in class, is the teacher's grade a better indicator or is the iReader a better indicator of success or problems?

Thanks,
-Confused in South Alexandria (FCPS ES)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a 5th grader and her iReady scores have always been on the low end in reading and math. But her grades are always 3's and 4's. I didn't worry about her low iReady scores until our most recent, standard fall time parent-teacher conference. The teacher seemed very concerned that her iReady scores were low, but she seems to be doing just fine in class.

This has been the case for 3rd and 4th grade. Just wondering if iReady scores are important at all? Or if they receive 4s in class, is the teacher's grade a better indicator or is the iReader a better indicator of success or problems?

Thanks,
-Confused in South Alexandria (FCPS ES)

So many students just clicked through iready without putting any effort in, it’s hard to take the scores seriously.

[Anonymous]

Iready is fraught with problems. They use the same reading passages and kids get bored and just click through. The teachers don’t really use it. It’s a big waste of money and time.

[Anonymous]

Don’t worry about it. Most kids click through iReady anyway and many teachers know not to place a lot of emphasis on the scores that are just a snapshot in time. If your kid is doing well otherwise, I would not give it another thought.

[Anonymous]

Except iready is now being used for Level IV acceptance

[Anonymous]

It’s the most important assessment for elementary kids now.

[Anonymous]

The Virginia Literacy Act mans that they and you need to be concerned. Have they done additional screening? Was she low in decoding or in comprehension?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a 5th grader and her iReady scores have always been on the low end in reading and math. But her grades are always 3's and 4's. I didn't worry about her low iReady scores until our most recent, standard fall time parent-teacher conference. The teacher seemed very concerned that her iReady scores were low, but she seems to be doing just fine in class.

This has been the case for 3rd and 4th grade. Just wondering if iReady scores are important at all? Or if they receive 4s in class, is the teacher's grade a better indicator or is the iReader a better indicator of success or problems?

Thanks,
-Confused in South Alexandria (FCPS ES)

If her scores had always been high and then she had one bum test, I wouldn't be worried. But it sounds like she's always been on the lower end which means she's barely at grade level. Ideally, you'd want your kid getting 3s and 4s and having middle to higher level iReady scores. Might be worth looking at doing some home supplementation to make sure she's getting the material.

[Anonymous]

With rampant grade inflation I would be more inclined to trust a test than grades.

Given that she's in 5th, how were her SOLs? If both 3rd and 4th grade SOLs in math and reading were passes but iReady is low, I would be less concerned. If they were borderline I'd be more likely to trust iReady. And on top of that there are VGAs too, right? How are those?

[Anonymous]

I thought I read that FCPS was no longer using the VGA, they have become optional.

The iReadys are tricky to understand. DS was always in the 95th to 99th percentile in math. His reading was fine until 4th grade when he dropped from the 95th percentile to the 70th percentile and we received a message that he was below grade level on phonetic awareness or something along those lines. The Teachers said not to worry about it. The next reading one was the same percentile but he was below in a different category and fine in phonetics. It seemed like every reading one his weakness area shifted. I have no clue what to make of it.

He had a solid 4 in all of his classes, with the occasional 3 in LA because his handwriting is dreadful. He reads at home and is above grade level overall. He is in MS now and has an A in all of his classes, including his LIV English class. This makes me think he is able to read, comprehend, and write on or above grade level. Of course, the iReady from this year is not available yet so I cannot see that score.

The reading iReady doesn’t change from year to year, it is the same passages. I have no clue if the scores are all over the place because kids don’t care and try and answer off of past years questions or if they really point to there being an issue. Essentially, I don’t trust the reading iready. It sounds like it is a crap design that doesn’t provide much real diagnostic help unless a kid is grade levels behind. Reports are not provide that help parents understand if there is an issue or not. It very much feels like a total waste of time and money.

[Anonymous]

It’s a total waste. Suppose your kid was reading at a 6th grade level in 3rd grade. They will read the same questions and answer the same ‘what is the main idea’ questions for the Fall, Winter, and Spring iReady for the next several years. It’s a crap test and the kids all know it and make fun of it.

[Anonymous]

This is the OP, thanks you for everyone for sharing your opinions and experiences with this.

My DD is very inattentive (something we're working on), so I can see her skipping sections in order to get to recess faster...especially if these are the same passages and questions from the previous ready tests.

I'll put more stock in her report card vs iReady scores.

[Anonymous]

The iready scores are one measurement to show if your child is meeting benchmark or grade level standards. There are other benchmarks or tests. What are the results of those? Ask for a conference. Ask for percentiles and if student is at or below benchmark. Ask if they qualify for interventions. The report cards are a joke. Teachers give 3-4 even if student not passing benchmarks, which makes no sense.