Measures of Growth

• Kindergarten students participate in the Georgia Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (GKIDS.) GKIDS provides ongoing diagnostic information about kindergarten students’ developing skills in English Language Arts, math, science, social studies, personal/social development, and approaches to learning. Kindergarten students with significant cognitive disabilities take the Georgia Alternative Assessment (GAA) in lieu of GKIDS.
• Students in grades 3, 4 and 5 will participate in the Georgia Milestones Assessment System; a comprehensive summative assessment program designed to measure how well students have learned the knowledge and skills outlined in the state-adopted content standards in language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. Third and fifth grade students with significant cognitive disabilities will take the Georgia Alternative Assessment (GAA) in lieu of GKIDS and the Milestones. Fourth grade students are not required to take Georgia Milestones or GAA.
• All students participate in interim testing three times per year via the Measures of Academic Process (MAP) testing series.
• Students who are referred for gifted eligibility will take the Cogat and ITBS assessments to determine possible qualification.
• In general, teachers will develop their own formative and summative assessments to drive instruction and determine mastery of the standards. Specifically, pre-tests and post-tests will be used to determine mastery of standards at the beginning and end of each unit. Further, portfolios, journals, interest inventories, probing questions, writing samples, and cumulative projects may also assess the level of mastery for all standards.
• Students in grades 1 to 5 will participate in the Japanese Proficiency Test in accordance to ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) speaking and listening guidelines every other year.

Last, the testing coordinator will train school personnel on procedural usage and the benefits of the Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS). SLDS is used to compare ICAGeorgia performance to the state’s performance on each subject-area assessment. In addition, SLDS is used to analyze assessment data by subgroups such as gender, race, SWD, ELL, etc. Conversely, we use SLDS to identify students who did not perform successfully on the state assessment so an immediate referral to the Response to Intervention (RTI) can occur and the achievement gap in the identified area(s) can be addressed. ICAGeorgia administrators and teachers will collaborate regularly to analyze test results, interpret patterns in the data, and develop action plans to address areas where students need better understanding, skills, or retention of material.