STAR Testing is completed 4 times a year to assist in monitoring student progress and to determine a child's academic growth from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.
HOW DO I LOOK AT THE RESULTS?
(posted in the math section as well)
STAR TESTS
Star test results will be in your child's data folder for your review. How do I look at the results? The most important things I look for: Remember this test reflects concepts they should learn in third grade and is FSA equivalent; which means if they took the FSA on the day of the test, it shows what their score could be on the FSA. (1=failure, 2=below grade average, 3=on grade level, 4=above grade level, 5=advanced)
1. What color did they perform in? My goal is to eventually have everyone in the advanced (dark green) section. If you notice your child in the green or dark green sections, that means they are performing at a third grade level and are learning third grade material. If they are in blue, yellow or red; it means they may need to be retaught some concepts learned in second grade or retaught some third grade skills. This will be managed through small group instruction in the classroom.
2.PR: this is percentile rank and it means, of all the third grade students who took the STAR test, their score is a percent of all those students. This is similar to the percentile quotes you were given when you went to the doctor with your child and they said "They are in the 90ith percentile in growth". That meant they were 90% taller than other children their age. The STAR test results are similar-if your child's % for example is 78%-this means they scored better than 78% of the other students who took the third grade STAR test at that time.
3. SS-(scaled score)- This is a score given to the students as they answer questions on the test. If a child answers a question and gets the answer correct, it will kick them to a higher level question. It will continue to do this until they get an answer wrong. If they answer incorrectly, the test adjusts the questions down a level. The combination of those scaled questions and their scores are the scaled score results.
3. The time it takes the students to complete the test (upper right hand corner of report). This test should take between 25 and 35 minutes. There is a direct correlation between time and results. Usually the faster they complete the test the lower the results.
** as a general rule I do not look so much at grade equivalency because I don't think it is a true reflection on their level of performance. If the grade equivalency is higher than a fourth grade, it means they are able to answer some higher level questions which will be challenged in our normal classroom curriculum. It doesn't necessarily mean they should be given fifth grade or higher math material.
Hope this helps and if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.