Testing Calendar & Organizational Management

1. T-SNAP T-SNAP Testing Calendar & Organizational Management What you really need to know…

2. Session Presenter Shannon H. Kuhrt District Testing Coordinator Channelview ISD TSNAP Member

3. Session Overview • The flow of testing activities • Practical tips on how to manage scheduling/calendars

4. DTC

5. DTC

6. The OFFICIAL State Testing Calendar

7. Overview of the Official State Testing Calendar (2011) • Key resource for the entire calendar year • Imbedded information that is not apparent to non-testing staff • COMMUNICATE SCHEDULES TIP: E-mail or send calendars to Maintenance, Custodians, Food Service, Transportation, UIL Heads

8. Important Reminders • Official ESC Training is still REQUIRED BEFORE you can manage October testing! (This training doesn’t count for that. Contact your ESC today.) • Superintendent’s Oath and DTC Oath are due AFTER October EXIT Retest (place oaths in preaddressed envelope provided, stamp, and mail). • To the extent possible, consider existing local district and campus calendars when scheduling training.

9. “Calendar year” formatting (January to December, not a school year)

10. What is an ‘EVENT’? Each column is a complete set of activities for each test administration.

11. Calendar of Events – 2011 Testing

12. Read Across Rows

13. Calendar Layout • The state testing calendar of events can be divided into three sets of activities. • Pre-Assessment Events (PRIOR-to-testing activities) • Assessment Events (testing dates) • Post-Assessment Events (AFTER-testing activities)

14. Pre-assessment activities THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM?!?!

15. Focus NOW on the upcoming Exit Level Retest to end the 2011 Calendar. Pre-Assessment Activities Many important EVENTS take place long before the actual testing dates!!

16. October Pre-Assessment Activities

17. Tips of the Trade:PRE-TESTING Activities • Get ‘the word’ out to ALL significant groups EARLY in the school year. • Determine if you have any out of district testers. (students at JJAEP, special education off site facility, etc.) • Gain support of Special Education Director and Bilingual/ESL Director. • Recommend ARD/LPAC/504 test changes to be complete 2 weeks prior to first day of testing. • If part of your role, prepare templates for reporting before testing occurs. TIP: Always “DATE” your communications with an ‘AS OF’ date.

18. Calendar of Events – 2011 Testing TEST ADMINISTRATIONS THE “STORM” Some days have up to 4 different tests (LAT/TAKS/TAKS-A/TAKS-M) occurring simultaneously! In 2012 it will be STAAR!

19. October 2011 October 2011 Test Administration

20. Tips of the Trade:DURING Testing Activities • Provide office staff with your daily calendar of campus visits/check-in/ monitoring, etc. • Schedule ‘flex time’ within the testing days for emergencies. • Schedule ‘reporting time’ if a testing irregularity occurs. TIP: Avoid scheduling meetings at any time immediately before, during, or after testing!

21. Post-Assessment Activities AFTER THE BIG EVENT IS ALL OVER???

22. Note different shipping dates for ‘scorable’ vs. ‘non-scorable’ Post-Assessment Activities TEA does not allow us to copy the essays/ short answer responses for Oct. 2011 TAKS Retest! Parent & Board report dates

23. Tips of the Trade:POST Testing Activities • Schedule check-in times - provide snacks & a Coke! =) • Schedule additional staff to assist with check-in process. • Cushion check-in times to allow for resolution of problems. TIP: Have a trained back-up in the event of emergencies.

24. http://www.texasassessment.com 2011 Testing Calendar Link

25. STAAR L Texas Assessment Program TAKS Reading/ELA Social Studies TAKS-M STAAR ALT Math STAAR M LAT TAKS-Acc Science STAAR EOC STAAR TELPAS Writing

26. State Testing Calendar Fall Spring

27. To Do List (ASAP): • Get Designated by Your District “Ask Ted” Administrator as the District Testing Coordinator • Pearson User ID & Password for the new Texas Assessment Management System • Join TEA Student Assessment Listserv: http://miller.tea.state.tx.us/list/ • Bookmark these websites: www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment http://www.texasassessment.com • Locate, read, and internalize the 2011 District and Campus Coordinator Manual (DCCM).

28. October Exit Level Retest • 8/8 – 8/26: Select Precode Option (Go to the PearsonAccess website and find information under the Test Setup tab.) http://www.texasassessment.com • 8/8 – 9/16: Register Out-of-School Examinees Online (Go to PearsonAccess website & find information under the Test Management tab or in old location on main Pearson site.) • 8/17 – 10/11: Check “Participating” option for each subject your district plans to offer online or during night testing. (found under the Test Setup tab under Enter Administration Details) • 8/17 – 10/25: Order Optional Reports [online only] (found under the Test Setup tab under Enter Administration Details) • 9/12: Review Advance Letter / Materials List (online only)

29. October Exit Level Retest • 9/6: Receive precode file layouts. • 9/6 – 9/16: Submit precode file if district supplied option selected. (Preparing the precode file may require coordination with your PEIMS/Technology Dept.) • By 9/23, and before you handle any secure testing materials, you must attend your district coordinator training session at your regional ESC. • 9/26 – 9/30: Receive combined shipment of materials. Look for Box #1, which will be the white box. Useful planning tools and checklists may also be found in the Test Security Supplement, which can be found at the Student Assessment Division website: www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment

30. October Exit Level Retest • 10/11: Deadline to order additional materials (Orders must be submitted online. Refer to the User’s Guide for the Texas Assessment Management System found on the resource tab of the Pearson website.) • By 10/11: Receive and distribute precoded test materials and OOS/OOD materials. (OOS – out of school, OOD – out of district) TIP: Establish a system to account for all materials and for check-in and check-out of all testing materials. Require a signature for all transactions.

31. October Exit Level Retest • By 10/11: Conduct campus coordinator training sessions. (Use the activities specified in the Campus Coordinator Responsibilities section of the DCCM, starting on p. 90, to plan your training. Also include Test Security and Confidentiality Requirements found on p. 11-21 in DCCM. Use DCCM Supplement for Oct. TAKS when available.) • By 10/17: Test administrators must be trained by this date. • 10/18 – 10/21: TAKS Testing (Ensure proper testing procedures by monitoring testing, and be available to answer questions and resolve problems. See p. 64-71 in the DCCM.) Reminder: 5 year Seating Charts & Document Retention Requirements (see Test Security Supplement)

32. October Exit Level Retest • 10/24: Campus Coordinators Return Scorable Materials to District Coordinator • 10/25: Ship all scorable materials. (Verify counts on the Answer Document Packing List before shipping and don’t forget to include the ADPL on top. Make a copy.) • 10/26: Campus Coordinators Return All Nonscorable Materials to District Coordinator • 11/1: Ship all nonscorable materials. • See Directions for District Coordinators, Campus Coordinators, and Test Administrators supplement for further information related to October 2011 TAKS. Reminder: You must contact the shipping carrier 2 days prior to the pickup date.

33. October Exit Level Retest • 11/11: Districts Receive Preliminary Rosters Online on TAMS • 12/2: Districts receive Standard and Optional Reports (addressed to the superintendent) and notify students and parents by 12/30. (Distribute to appropriate campus and district personnel. Prepare needed reports.) • 11/30 – 12/16: Districts submit student ID record changes on “Old” School House Site • https://secure.ncsschoolhouse.com/schoolhouse/Login

34. October Exit Level Retest • 1/3: Districts receive corrected Confidential Student Reports (CSRs) and data files online only (Distribute to campuses.) • By 1/27: Districts report results to local board of trustees. (Prepare needed reports.)

35. Other Fall Testing Activities • Aug - Dec: Determine LEP students (English language learners) and teachers of LEP students in preparation for TELPAS. • Complete participation counts for STAAR grades 3-9 and TAKS grades 10 & 11 on the “Test Setup” tab in TAMS. • Aug - Oct: STAAR-Alt • Determine STAAR-ALT students, grade level, and test administrator in preparation for online registration. • Coordinate with Special Education Director/Coordinator about who is responsible for STAAR-ALT test administrator training and STAAR-ALT test security training.

36. Other Fall Testing Activities • Verify that 9th grade STAAR-M new course codes are place for students taking STAAR-M • Verify that 9th, 10th, & 11th grade STAAR-ALT new course codes in place for students taking • STAAR-ALT • Continuously Check the TEA Student Assessment website for updated training information regarding STAAR, STAAR-M, and STAAR-ALT.

37. T-SNAP T-SNAP Testing Calendar & Organizational Management Shannon H. Kuhrt shannon.kuhrt@channelview.isd.esc4.net Office: 281-860-3790