APS Upper Elementary Math

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The MI benchmark is a minimum level of proficiency. For example the 4th grade benchmark is 534 and we regularly had many students a good 100+ points or more over that at the end of the year. It’s a basement, not a ceiling.

How does MI work? Is it benchmarked for each grade or is it one test where you just score higher as you learn more? The reason I ask if that MI scores can sometimes be lower in the fall than in the spring. Is that because of summer slump within the same continuous test or is it because students are being evaluated on the next grade's content?

It's a continuous scale. A student who meets the minimum score in the range by the end of the year is 'on grade level.'

The proficiency ranges for each grade are:
K = 9-117Q
Grade 1 = 117-232Q
Grade 2 = 271-382Q
Grade 3 = 381-545Q
Grade 4 = 534-629Q
Grade 5 = 645-771Q
Grade 6 = 785-890Q
Grade 7 = 881-970Q
Grade 8 = 1001-1089Q
Grade 9 = 1133-1214Q

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The MI benchmark is a minimum level of proficiency. For example the 4th grade benchmark is 534 and we regularly had many students a good 100+ points or more over that at the end of the year. It’s a basement, not a ceiling.

100 points over 534 at the end of the year isn't that odd since the proficiency range goes up to 629. That's just barely over the expected range for that grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 3rd, but he finished 2nd grade Dreambox by the end of K. The math specialist moved him to the “3rd-5th grade” version of Dreambox the summer before 2nd with mixed results.

He liked being able to do interesting things, but he was getting zero instruction, context, or support on the new concepts. Some things he figured out brute force or trial and error - some things he just got frustrated and gave up until we saw he was struggling and helped out.

This year they don’t bring iPads home and he’s doing something new called Reflex Math - but without the iPad at home we don’t know how he’s doin or where he is struggling with basic concepts.

I am not interested in accelerating him multiple grades ahead as much as I am interested in making sure he has a rock solid foundation going into Jr high and Hs math.

Spending more time with apps is not the answer APS. Why can that math specialist have weekly meetups with advanced kids to teach new concepts?

+100. The math coaches are under utilized. This would be worthwhile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The MI benchmark is a minimum level of proficiency. For example the 4th grade benchmark is 534 and we regularly had many students a good 100+ points or more over that at the end of the year. It’s a basement, not a ceiling.

How does MI work? Is it benchmarked for each grade or is it one test where you just score higher as you learn more? The reason I ask if that MI scores can sometimes be lower in the fall than in the spring. Is that because of summer slump within the same continuous test or is it because students are being evaluated on the next grade's content?

It's a continuous scale. A student who meets the minimum score in the range by the end of the year is 'on grade level.'

The proficiency ranges for each grade are:
K = 9-117Q
Grade 1 = 117-232Q
Grade 2 = 271-382Q
Grade 3 = 381-545Q
Grade 4 = 534-629Q
Grade 5 = 645-771Q
Grade 6 = 785-890Q
Grade 7 = 881-970Q
Grade 8 = 1001-1089Q
Grade 9 = 1133-1214Q

Very helpful, thank you. So just to make sure I understand. As an example, if a student's beginning of the year 4th grade score is lower than the end of year 3rd grade score, that's likely due to summer slump since they would be marching through the same (similar) questions from the spring, it's just that they maxed out sooner when they returned in the fall? Is it common for kids to have a lower score when they return in the fall than when they left in the preceding spring?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The MI benchmark is a minimum level of proficiency. For example the 4th grade benchmark is 534 and we regularly had many students a good 100+ points or more over that at the end of the year. It’s a basement, not a ceiling.

How does MI work? Is it benchmarked for each grade or is it one test where you just score higher as you learn more? The reason I ask if that MI scores can sometimes be lower in the fall than in the spring. Is that because of summer slump within the same continuous test or is it because students are being evaluated on the next grade's content?

It's a continuous scale. A student who meets the minimum score in the range by the end of the year is 'on grade level.'

The proficiency ranges for each grade are:
K = 9-117Q
Grade 1 = 117-232Q
Grade 2 = 271-382Q
Grade 3 = 381-545Q
Grade 4 = 534-629Q
Grade 5 = 645-771Q
Grade 6 = 785-890Q
Grade 7 = 881-970Q
Grade 8 = 1001-1089Q
Grade 9 = 1133-1214Q

Very helpful, thank you. So just to make sure I understand. As an example, if a student's beginning of the year 4th grade score is lower than the end of year 3rd grade score, that's likely due to summer slump since they would be marching through the same (similar) questions from the spring, it's just that they maxed out sooner when they returned in the fall? Is it common for kids to have a lower score when they return in the fall than when they left in the preceding spring?

Either summer slump or just fluctuations in testing. Sometimes kids have bad days.

My understanding is that the test is adaptive so it starts roughly on grade level and gets harder if you get questions right and easier if you get questions wrong. You can test up to a high school level even as a kindergartener--it doesn't max out like an SOL.

I don't know what is normal for fall vs spring score. My student went up by about 100 points this fall from her test last spring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just received our 4th grader's math inventory score and he's testing more than a grade ahead. Does anyone have suggestions for how your APS elementary school keeps more advanced students challenged, engaged and ready for more advanced classes in middle school? We obviously don't have AAP, but doing the same work as the whole class is less than satisfying.

I’m actually just curious how you got this info, as my APS 4th grader has yet to bring home any results. My child is about a year ahead and bored to tears. The school is not supplementing and we are begging for more appropriate work. It is frustrating.

Anyway, how did you get this information? Parentvue has nothing. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just received our 4th grader's math inventory score and he's testing more than a grade ahead. Does anyone have suggestions for how your APS elementary school keeps more advanced students challenged, engaged and ready for more advanced classes in middle school? We obviously don't have AAP, but doing the same work as the whole class is less than satisfying.

I’m actually just curious how you got this info, as my APS 4th grader has yet to bring home any results. My child is about a year ahead and bored to tears. The school is not supplementing and we are begging for more appropriate work. It is frustrating.

Anyway, how did you get this information? Parentvue has nothing. Thanks!

We got it from the homeroom teacher. Everyone will get it soon during parent teacher conferences.

[Anonymous]

(I grew up in another country so please do not roast me if I sound stupid.) Fairfax, Alexandria City, MOCO have pullout gifted programs and they teach 4th and 5th grade math in 4th grade. They take 6th grade SOL in 5th grade and I think they usually take 2 high school math classes (Algebra 1 and Geometry). Can APS kids take Algebra 1 and Geometry classes in middle schools? If so, does that mean they receive 5th grade math instructions in 5th grade, skip 6th grade instruction, and receive 7th/8th combined math in in 6th grade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:(I grew up in another country so please do not roast me if I sound stupid.) Fairfax, Alexandria City, MOCO have pullout gifted programs and they teach 4th and 5th grade math in 4th grade. They take 6th grade SOL in 5th grade and I think they usually take 2 high school math classes (Algebra 1 and Geometry). Can APS kids take Algebra 1 and Geometry classes in middle schools? If so, does that mean they receive 5th grade math instructions in 5th grade, skip 6th grade instruction, and receive 7th/8th combined math in in 6th grade?

My child is currently in 6th grade in APS taking pre-algebra. He had the standard APS math offering for 5th grade and took the 5th grade math SOL.

Based on SOL score, math inventory score and (maybe?) teacher recommendation, for this year (it has been different in past years) there was a choice of Math 6 or Pre-Algebra. Pre-algebra is a combo of Math 6-7-8 and then Algebra 1 is taken in 7th and Geometry is taken in 8th grade along with their corresponding SOLs.

[Anonymous]

PP explained it correctly. It is frustrating that Arlington waits so long to start tracking math and then has to jam three years of math into one year. But it is what it is

My kids were soooo much happier once they started prealgebra.