As students’ testing environments may change throughout the school year, we realize that knowing where students tested may impact your interpretation of the data. During this past fall, we encouraged administrators to enter IP addresses so they could capture where students tested. Administrators can still enter their IP addresses to see whether tests taken between September 1 and December 4, 2020, were administered remotely or in-person.
However, starting December 4, 2020, students will indicate where they are testing by simply answering one question—Are you inside your school? Adding this question before a student starts an assessment makes it much easier to capture this important information.
On the Renaissance Home Page, students choose the Star Assessments icon for the test they will be taking.
The first item asks the student if they are taking the test in school. Once they enter their response, the student will proceed to the actual Star computer-adaptive assessment.
Educators can then view where students tested on the Star Screening Report, Star Test Record Report, and the Star Summary Report by simply choosing “show testing location.”
This information will give educators additional insight to help answer questions like:
- How does test location impact student performance?
- Are the results aligning with what I expected?
- What changes, if any, do I need to make to my remote testing plan/procedure?
And coming January 2021, student test location will be included on the Historical Extract—giving district and school-level administrators the data they need to answer these same questions and help identify trends in student performance and growth.
Also, at the end of December, the test location option will be available for teachers using Star CBM. Prior to administering Star CBM to their students, teachers will be prompted to choose if the student is taking the test in person or remotely. As with Star computer-adaptive assessments, teachers get the information they need to track student performance and inform instructional decisions.
Renaissance is committed to providing support to educators as we all continue to adjust to this unpredictable school year. To assist with remote administration of Star Assessments, we created guides for administrators, teachers, and families to help you make informed decisions and define your assessment plans and procedures if remote administration is necessary.