On August 11, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education publicly released the state results of the Missouri Assessment Program and End-of-Course exams for 2015. Each spring, DESE requires public schools and public charter schools to administer the exams.
Students in grades 3-8 take MAP tests in English language arts and math. Students in grades 5 and 8 are also tested in science. High school students take EOC exams in English II, Algebra I, Biology and Government. Both the MAP and EOC are standards-based. The tests are designed to measure specific skills for each grade. There are four levels of achievement – Below Basic, Basic, Proficient and Advanced.
The 2015 exams were the first time students were tested with new standards in English language arts and math. The new standards “raised the expectations for learning in Missouri,” said DESE.
Another first is that students took the MAP test online. The tests were administered on computers instead of the traditional pencil and paper. EOCs have been taken on a computer since 2010.
The percentages of Missouri students in all tested grades scoring proficient or advanced are:
|
English language arts |
59.7% |
|
Math |
45.2% |
|
Science |
56.7% |
|
Social Studies |
63.4% |
DESE reported that 2015 student results were higher in nearly every category than results from field tests administered in 2014. The new standards in English language arts and math set a starting point, or baseline, for student performance. That means that the 2015 tests cannot be compared to MAP data from years past because the tests are based on different standards.
DESE will release MAP and EOC scores for public school districts and public charter schools on August 17. In October, Annual Performance Results will be finalized for public schools.
The annual assessments are one of several measures used to gauge the college and career readiness of students in Missouri, as well as to determine the state’s progress toward its goals of the Top 10 by 20 Initiative. It is an effort to rank Missouri among the top 10 states in education by 2020.
For more on the 2015 MAP results, read the release from DESE.