WEST MILFORD — Students attending West Milford Township Public Schools will take part in a pilot testing program for the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) this spring. The PARCC Assessment will formally take the place of the current state-mandated assessment program - New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJASK) in 2014-15, and will also be administered to ninth, 10th, 11th and eventually 12th grade students as well in the future, according to Superintendent of Schools James McLaughlin.
“Like many districts across the state, West Milford has been chosen to participate in a field test of the PARCC assessments in the spring of 2014," according to the district's Web site. "These field assessments will allow the district to measure our preparedness for the PARCC assessments full implementation in the coming academic year.”
But this year, some students in West Milford will be taking both state assessments. McLaughlin said the PARCC pilot testing will take place after the scheduled NJASK testing.
“While all of our eight schools will be participating in the computer based pilot, there are variations as to which grade levels are being tested, the content being assessed and when they are being administered," the district said in a release. "Please check your individual school information to determine if your child will be included in the pilot. In all cases, students will not be taking the pilot at the same time or immediately before state testing, thus there will be no impact on their performance on the HSPA and NJASK assessments.”
McLaughlin said he clarified with the Department of Education that the PARCC pilot testing results will not count toward student or teacher assessments this year, and that the district will not even receive results of the pilot for data use.
“What we will be gaining is the experience of administering a totally computer-based test and having a bit of a trial run with how well our technology works and how our students do in taking a test of that nature," said McLaughlin.
According to the PARCC Web site, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers is a consortium of states working together to develop a common set of kindergarten through grade 12 assessments in English and math anchored in what it takes to be ready for college and careers. These new K-12 assessments will build a pathway to college and career readiness by the end of high school, mark students’ progress toward this goal from third grade up, and provide teachers with timely information to inform instruction and provide student support.
The schedules for PARCC testing, including the grade-levels of students from each school who will be taking the test, are listed on the district and individual school Web sites.