Leadership Matters April 2015

Koch: Despite some issues, first phase of PARCC testing goes well

classes without requiring remediation. Additionally, institutions can develop policies for math that allow a 3 on PARCC in combination with having passed a higher-level high school math class to qualify a student to enroll directly into credit-bearing math classes. ICCCP’s decision will help us provide a more efficient path for our graduates to begin college-level work. It will also save Illinois students and their families both time and money. According to the recent Complete College America report, at least 20 percent of all college students must take costly remedial courses when they get to college. That percentage jumps to roughly 50 percent when

Message from the State Superintendent of Education

The Performance-Based Assessment testing window for the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is coming to an end for most schools this month, and I am extremely pleased with how the first administration has gone thus far. We have experienced no major technical difficulties with its administration.

looking at those enrolled in Illinois two-year community colleges after students did everything required to graduate from high school. We were also pleasantly surprised with the number of districts utilizing online assessments. As more students take

As of late March, 5.8 million exams have been completed nationwide, with more than 1.1 million of those here in Illinois. We have

encountered some issues along the way -- which we anticipated -- but they have been relatively minor and have been resolved. This is a testament to your leadership and preparation in the weeks leading up to testing. I know the move to a completely new assessment system hasn’t been easy and there have been questions and some trepidation. Thank you for working with your staff, students and parents to provide information, report any problems, and ensure a smooth a transition. Your efforts certainly made a difference. I am also pleased to report a significant first step toward the use of the PARCC assessment as a college placement exam. The Illinois Council of Community College Presidents (ICCCP) recently approved a policy to accept a performance level of 4 or 5 in math or English language arts on the PARCC exam to place students directly into credit-bearing

assessments online, costs are significantly reduced. Based on the latest figures available, we estimate that approximately 70 percent of assessments have been taken online during this administration of PARCC assessments. In a few weeks, we will begin the second part the PARCC summative assessment, the End-of-Year exam. As a reminder, the Performance-Based and End-of-Year scores are combined to arrive at a single summative score for each student. Please let us know if any issues arise or provide any other feedback you feel may be helpful as we wrap up this inaugural year of PARCC testing.

Thanks for your cooperation,

Chris

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