Assessments

 New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP)
The NECAP is a comprehensive standardized assessment given to students in grades 3-5 and is designed to measure each student's progress in meeting New Hampshire’s Grade Level Expectations, or GLEs.  The GLEs define the knowledge and skills a student should have mastered by the end of each school year.  The grade 3 test, for example, will measure what a student should know and be able to do after completing second grade.  The reading test includes short and long reading passages with related multiple choice and constructed response questions.  The mathematics test includes multiple choice, short answer, and constructed response questions.  The writing test includes multiple choice and constructed response questions, and a single extended writing prompt.  A constructed response question requires students to show their work and/or explain their reasoning.  The NECAP is given in the fall and test results are available in February.  The NECAP results are available to parents and educators to determine how well our school is helping students meet standards and grade level expectations.  Each year the state of NH determines whether our school is making adequate yearly progress (AYP) in the areas of reading and mathematics. 

For access to the School District Profile Web site go to http://www.ed.state.nh.us.  Click on the School District Profile logo located at the very bottom of the home page.  From the home page, select “a testing year”, Kensington and Kensington Elementary School from the drop-down menu.  Then select “View reports” and then from that page, select the folder tab for the NECAP reports.

Gates-Macginnite Test of Reading (Gates)
The Gates is a group administered survey test that asesses student achievement in reading.  The Gates is adminstered in the spring to students in grade one and two.

School-wide Assessment
Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA2)
The Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA2) helps educators identify each student’s reading ability and level, document progress, and tailor teaching to drive effective reading instruction. Use the tools in DRA2 to assess accuracy, fluency, and comprehension. This quick and accurate assessment will:

• Build students’ reading skills and confidence by identifying their independent reading levels and helping teachers match students with appropriate text.
• Deliver immediate analysis and instructional suggestions to group student appropriately and better address their needs.
• Target critical points of intervention and compare student progress against benchmark expectations with easy-to-use data analysis.
• Disaggregate DRA2 data in order to meet accountability requirements of NCLB.

Teachers administer the DRA2 in the fall and again in the spring to determine student progress over the course of the year.  

Informal Classroom Assessment
Reading running records
Writing prompts
End of unit tests
Projects
Conferencing
Student observation
Curriculum area rubrics
Student portfolios


Link to SAU16 Assessment information