YCSD District Assessments
Youngstown City School provides a variety of assessments throughout the year to scholars across the district. These assessment may be state required, others may be used to assist teachers in providing informed instruction to meet the needs of their learners. Below you will find information on assessments provided by our district.
There are several types of tests, including summative, interim, formative and diagnostic (such as readiness tests and screeners). Some tests, such as formative tests, are teaching tools, designed to help teachers see how well your child is learning as the lessons are being taught. Some tests are diagnostic, designed to see how much a student knows at the beginning of an instructional period. Summative tests are given at the end of an instructional period to measure whether your child has learned the information he or she was to have been taught.
For information on when these assessments will take place please see the district calendar page. The most up to date calendar is provided at the bottom of the page.
If you have any questions or concerns please contact your scholar's building principal or a member of the teaching and learning team.
Ohio State Assessments
State achievement tests tell us how well students are growing in the knowledge and skills outlined in Ohio's Learning Standards. These tests help guide and determine instruction so we can be sure that educators are preparing students for long-term success. Test results also allow you to know how well your local school is performing compared to others around the state.
Ultimately, state tests give schools and districts information that helps them improve how students are taught, coach teachers, and provides additional supports in their efforts to help students succeed. State assessments are given at specific grade levels and in specific content. Please see the district testing calendar for more information.
Family Score Reports Interpretive Guides are designed to help families understand the content of the score reports and what the results mean for their student. The English version of the interpretive guides are located on the test portal. Translated Family Interpretive Guides are located on the Department’s website.
Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA)
At the beginning of each school year, children in public and community school kindergarten programs are assessed using Ohio's Kindergarten Readiness Assessment. This assessment includes ways for teachers to measure a child’s readiness for engaging with instruction aligned to the kindergarten standards. The KRA-R is a tool that teachers use to get to each child. It is not designed to rank children by ability, nor is it a tool for identifying students with disabilities or gifted students.
This tool is designed to help teachers get to know their students in a way that does not interrupt learning. The tool requires the teacher to watch the student during the natural course of the school day’s activities so children are unaware of the assessment taking place.
The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment FAQs – For Families provides answers to the most frequently asked questions (FAQ) receive by the Ohio Department of Education regarding the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment.
OELPS/OELPA: English Language Screener and Asessment
English learners (Els) are a growing part of Ohio’s Pre-K-12 student population. Over the last ten years, Ohio’s population of EL students has doubled to approximately 60,000 students. Ohio must identify English learners and annually assess their English language proficiency.
Districts must assess all newly enrolled students for English language proficiency. The assessment process begins with the Language Usage Survey. The next step in the identification process is the Ohio English Language Proficiency Screener (OELPS). The OELPS is an online screener (paper/pencil version is available for accommodations only) aligned to the K-12 English Language Proficiency (ELP) Standards and is designed to identify Ohio students in grades K-12 who are English learners.
The Ohio English Language Proficiency Assessment (OELPA) is the state summative test given to all English learners annually. It is used to determine an English learner’s proficiency level at the end of each year and provides the evidence needed to meet the exit criteria of the English language program. The OELPA is aligned to the K-12 English Language Proficiency (ELP) Standards and is used to meet the federal requirement of an annual assessment of English proficiency measuring listening, reading and writing. Parents will receive a Family Report each year with their student’s OELPA scores.
NWEA
The NWEA is a universal benchmark assessment that is administered three times a year. It is given to all scholars in grades 2-11 in math, english language arts and in some grades science. MAP stands for Measures of Academic Progress. MAP is an online assessment that is aligned to the Common Core standards.
These computerized tests are adaptive and offered in Reading, Language Usage, Science, and Mathematics. When taking a MAP test, the difficulty of each question is based on how well a student answers all of the previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions become more difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions become easier. In an optimal test, a student answers approximately half the items correctly and half incorrectly. The final score is an estimate of the student’s achievement level.
Acadiance
Acadience is a Universal Screener that consists of several short tests given to children in order to screen and monitor their progress in learning necessary skills required to become successful readers.
All Acadience measures are timed, with most taking only one minute. The reason for the timing is to find out if a child is able to answer the questions or read the words correctly. Having these basic reading skills at the automatic level allows children to focus on understanding the meaning of what they are reading.
Students progress is measured through Acadience Progress monitoring is completed roughly every two weeks. The one minute progress monitoring assessment allows your child's teacher to see if your child is positively responding to the interventions they are receiving.
AP: Advanced Placement
AP testing also occurs in the spring time for any scholars who are enrolled in an AP course. An AP test is a college-level exam that measures a student's mastery of a specific AP course's content, with scores on a 1-5 scale. The AP test is a standardized, end-of-year exam administered by the College Board to assess mastery of the AP course material.
The AP test as a way for their child to potentially earn college credit, receive college-level placement, or demonstrate a strong commitment to challenging coursework in high school, which are all viewed favorably by colleges.
Please contact your high school counselor to learn more about AP offerings in your building.
SAT: Scholastic Assessment Test
Juniors will have the opportunity to take the SAT for free during the school day in the spring. The SAT is a college entrance exam. The score is only reported to colleges your scholar selects and is accepted at Universities acorss the United States. Each scholar who takes the assessment is eligible to recieve a voucher to retake the exam at an off site location for free. YSU is the closest testing site. The test is offered on Saturday mornings throughout the school year. A calendar can be found by visiting Collegeboard.org.
In addition to being a college entrance test scholars test scores can be used to earn a diploma seal or even an alternative to competency. These options assist in meeting the new graduation requirements. For more information on graduation please visit our webpage! Parents or guardians who wish to opt out of the SAT test must sign an opt our form. Please see your school counselor for a copy of the form.
SAT - Grades 11 What's on the SAT?
Should parents or guardians need more information regarding the district assessments or policies please contact the Teaching & Learning Department.