Did you try the PARCC yourself, OP, last year, when schools offered sample questions to parents?
It's horribly user-UNfriendly, which makes it difficult for children if they have learning disabilities.
My son with LDs consistently scores in the 99th percentile on his MAPs, because they're un-timed and in a format he feels comfortable with. On the PARCC, he's just in the average zone, which makes for a significant contrast.

I would rely more on your child's MAP scores. If those are below average, then yes, take action. Hire an advocate, and request IEP meetings until you've got the services and accommodations you want.
Or, consider moving into a different school district if you hear that children with SN are better cared for there. That's what we did - bought a tiny ramshackle house in an expensive school district that had a good reputation with special needs.

The school shouldn't be relying on PARCC to get information about your child PP. What other testing is done at his school? MAP scores? If he has an IEP, he should have testing repeated every 3 yrs.

Anonymous wrote:I would only care if my child wasn't doing well in school. But you would know that without the PARCC scores. PARCC is a huge waste of time, money and energy.

OP here.

DC definitely tried on the PARCC, so that's not the issue.

I'm grateful for the PARCC and other tests like it (MSA and MAPs). My child has a learning disability. Since forever, the school has been telling me DC is fine. But, private, expensive testing showed that DC was actually far below grade level in the areas of his learning disability. This doesn't show up in grades because teacher grading is not very objective and because grades are padded with many things (homework, classwork, group work) that pad DC's grade enough to bring it up.

I have been saying for years that DCs skills in this area are below grade level. DC got an IEP but virtually no specialized instruction has been provided.

The fact that DC did not meet grade level expectations on the PARCC is completely consistent with what I see as DC's skills. If it weren't for a test like PARCC, the school would just keep passing DC up and saying DC is fine and putting off any troubles to lack of motivation. So, despite PARCC's flaws, I'm so very glad schools are obligated to do this kind of testing.

I would only care if my child wasn't doing well in school. But you would know that without the PARCC scores. PARCC is a huge waste of time, money and energy.

Take the sample test for the grade and see what you think would have been difficult for your DC, I think you'd find it enlightening. Force yourself to actually answer the questions. It's a slog.

Does it matter? I guess if the score was far below I would be worried but if your child is otherwise doing well in school, I wouldn't worry. Articles on the PARCC test itself, question the test design and who they are hiring as graders, so I don't think the scores mean much.

Can you find out how your kid did the test? Did they try their absolute best or did they rush through it without a care?

Does your child have a learning disability/other issue? Was this their first standardized test?

Those are the factors I would look at before getting too concerned. But a talk with the teacher wouldn't be a bad idea.

What would you do if your kid scored on the PARCC in one of the three categories that means they did not meet grade level expectations (i.e. does not meet, partially meets or approaches)? Would you feel more or less worried about it if your kid was a normally good student or if they had some kind of learning disability or other issue?

Has anyone out there requested further data on the PARCC? The score reports seem largely useless to understanding what skills exactly are missing.

Can any teachers out there explain if MCPS teachers get more data on the PARCC performance of students than is given to parents? Is there any breakdown of scores to skills available? Any diagnostic keys to instruction?