Assessments play an important role in preparing students for the future. Beginning in April, students in grades 3-8 throughout Utah will take the new RISE standards assessment test. RISE, which replaces SAGE, will offer a baseline for student learning, while ensuring that student growth and proficiency reflect what a student knows and can do.
Students in grades 9 and 10 will participate in the Utah Aspire Plus, a high school assessment that provide a predictive score for their college readiness assessment (ACT).
Andrew Frink, technology and assessment director for the district, encourages students and parents to seriously consider participating in the tests. “Our opt-out rates have typically been too high to feel confident about the data we have received at a school-wide level,” Frink said. “The state has contracted these two assessments for 10 years and that will give us stability as we move forward.”
The tests provide students with feedback on how they are doing, and it allows teachers to see if their instruction matches the state standards, Frink said. “Additionally, it provides us with a good look at how we are doing as a system.”
About RISE (Readiness, Improvement, Success, Empowerment)
Students in grades 3-8 will take RISE assessments in ELA and Math (grades 3-8), Science (grades 4-8), and Writing (grades 5 and 8). The assessment is a multistage computer adaptive criterion referenced assessment system.
Benefits of RISE:
– A new interface that allows full navigation – backward, forward, review and revise.
– New and enhanced reports (for students, teachers and administration).
– Writing portion of the tests will now only be for grades 5 and 8.
– Test questions are aligned to Utah core standards, utilizing questions developed over the past five years by Utah teachers.
– Provides teachers tools to inform their instruction and increase student achievement.
– Helps answer two questions: “how good is the school?” and “is the school improving?”
Learn more about RISE here.
About Utah Aspire Plus
Frink said the Aspire Plus test ties to the ACT which is “great practice for our high school students. We have a very high rate of students taking the ACT and this test in 9th and 10th grade will prepare them for the ACT.”
Utah Aspire Plus, which will be given toward the end of the school year, is a custom assessment that aligns to Utah Core Standards. Students will be tested in English, Reading, Math, and Science.
Learn more about Utah Aspire Plus here.