Map test window

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The testing office has a new supervisor this year and we haven't received the official testing calendar which we normally get in mid-August. A draft was briefly shared and said fall MAP and DIBELS would open the first week of school through October 10th. I'm coordinating my school's testing under that draft guidance.

Who is the supervisor? I don’t think anyone is listed online.

Donna Blaney retired and it's a former principal but can't remember her name for the life of me. Donna used to send us weekly emails with updates and we've received nothing this year. It's bizarre.

I think Donna is on special assignment in OCIP.

[Anonymous]

Just got notice that my 4th grader is taking Map M and R Sept 11th and 12th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just got notice that my 4th grader is taking Map M and R Sept 11th and 12th.

My 4th grader did theirs this week already-all finished yesterday!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just got notice that my 4th grader is taking Map M and R Sept 11th and 12th.

Good that they told you! My kid's teacher did not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just got notice that my 4th grader is taking Map M and R Sept 11th and 12th.

Good that they told you! My kid's teacher did not.

My kid's teacher had the MAP-M on the schedule for Tuesday. Was surprised when the kid came home Wednesday and said MAP-R had happened too.

[Anonymous]

We opted out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We opted out.

How bizarre. Don't you want to see how your kid performs? Do you just keep them at home hanging out while the other kids are testing?

[Anonymous]

My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

Someone posted that their kid had MAP testing the first week of school. Mine had testing Tuesday/Wednesday this week.

I mean, the point is to get a baseline of the kid’s performance, so it makes sense. I just wish the teacher would have communicated it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

Whatever do you think there is to review? It’s not a standardized test, it’s adaptive to see where kids are at. The sooner the better so teachers can plan around kids current skills, not old/missing information.

[Anonymous]

My 5th grader had MAP-R and MAP-M yesterday and today.

[Anonymous]

My 6th grader had MAP M Tuesday and Wednesday. Their pre algebra teacher mentioned at BTSN that the class moves fast with no time to review anything. They want to make sure kids can handle the class and will base their decision on MAP-M scores so it made sense the 6th graders took it this week. She did mention that some kids will be moved down to AMP 6+ and parents will be hearing from her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

Whatever do you think there is to review? It’s not a standardized test, it’s adaptive to see where kids are at. The sooner the better so teachers can plan around kids current skills, not old/missing information.

That's what NWEA designed MAP to do, so you're right on that front (though it is standardized, just adaptive, too).

But MCPS also uses it not as designed, but for GT identification and magnet eligibility/selection, where best practice for such would use it as an ancillary support in a heuristic manner, subsidiary in importance to a more ability-related measure.

So the importance for MCPS students not only is the more targeted teaching it may offer, but their access to enrichment. Students deserve to be able to put their best foot forward, and that requires notice to ensure a good night's sleep, understanding of the access import (for those MAP test periods utilized) to encourage attention, etc. On top of that, schools electing to administer MAP later in the window ensure an amount of review/learning in class that students at schools testing earlier in the window don't get.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

The review could have happened at home at any point this summer. Math (and reading, for that matter) is a lifestyle!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids have MAP testing this week. There has barely been any time to review with only a week back at school. Why is it happening so early?

Whatever do you think there is to review? It’s not a standardized test, it’s adaptive to see where kids are at. The sooner the better so teachers can plan around kids current skills, not old/missing information.

That's what NWEA designed MAP to do, so you're right on that front (though it is standardized, just adaptive, too).

But MCPS also uses it not as designed, but for GT identification and magnet eligibility/selection, where best practice for such would use it as an ancillary support in a heuristic manner, subsidiary in importance to a more ability-related measure.

So the importance for MCPS students not only is the more targeted teaching it may offer, but their access to enrichment. Students deserve to be able to put their best foot forward, and that requires notice to ensure a good night's sleep, understanding of the access import (for those MAP test periods utilized) to encourage attention, etc. On top of that, schools electing to administer MAP later in the window ensure an amount of review/learning in class that students at schools testing earlier in the window don't get.

That's because MCPS is incorrect in focusing so heavily on using MAP for G&T identification and magnet eligibility, particularly since they give kids COGAT testing (which is a test for G&T) and do absolutely nothing with that data. MAP is not age normed, the way COGAT is, giving red-shirted kids an advantage, as well as those who take the test later in the school year. MAP is a test of exposure that can be easily gamed by prepping.

I would assume that most teachers prefer to do testing as soon as possible after school begins so that there's a big jump post summer slide when it comes time to do winter testing and also so they have accurate information on student performance against standards.

That's not aligned with the PP above's goal of having more time for their kid to score higher for magnet selection etc. but that's because MCPS isn't using MAP for its intended purpose.