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Educational Tests & Measurements

Use this guide to identify and locate educational tests and measurements.

Mason Owned Tests

The Mason Libraries own a very limited number of test instruments.  They include the following.  The tests are located in Fenwick Library on permanent reserve. The tests may be checked out for two hours for use in the Gateway Library. They are described below.

  1. WIDA (also called ACCESS for ELLs and W-APT) - Funded by a grant, WIDA developed the 2004 WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards, which served as the basis for the ACCESS for ELLs test of English Language Proficiency.
  2. Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA) - developed in 1986 and revised in 2000 and in 2003.  It is traditionally administered on an annual or semi-annual basis. The test measures nine categories of reading behavior and six types of errors

Wida

The WIDA (World-class Instructional Design and Assessment) was originally created by Wisconsin, Delaware, and Arkansas as part of an EAG grant (Enhanced Assessment Grant) in 2002.  The WIDA is actually three different tests:

  1. WIDA Model
  2. Access for ELLs
  3. W-APT

The Mason's Libraries have the WIDA Model.  It is kept on permanent reserve for use in the Fenwick Library at the information desk.

Similarities Across WIDA Assessments (This table describes how the tests are the same and differences).

Assessment Domains All four: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing
Standards Addressed All five: Social and Instructional, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies
Format of Kindergarten Test Individually administered and adaptive
Format of Speaking Test Individually administered and adaptive
Format of Listening and Reading Test Multiple choice
Format of Writing Test Constructed response
Item and Task Organization Grouped according to theme
Test Results Yield proficiency level scores of 1-6 on the WIDA scale (except for Kindergarten W-APT which results in scores of low, mid, high, or exceptional proficiency)

Differences among WIDA MODEL, ACCESS for ELLs, and W-APT

  ACCESS for ELLs W-APT WIDA MODEL
Purpose Annual assessment used to meet accountability requirements of No Child Left Behind for U.S. Consortium members (not available outside the U.S.) Identification of ELLs and program placement; typically administered only to new students - Placement and/or interim assessment of ELP progress
- May be used as annual assessment of ELP progress outside of U.S.
Administration Time Approximately 2.5 hours (up to 45 minutes for Kindergarten) Up to 1 hour (depending on proficiency level of student) Approximately 1.5 hours (up to 45 minutes for Kindergarten)
Proficiency level (PL) coverage

Kindergarten: adaptive form measuring levels 1 through 5+

Grade 1-12: Three tiers, each covering 3 levels

Single form measuring English language proficiency levels 1 through 5+

Kindergarten: adaptive form measuring levels 1 through 5+

Grades 1-12: Listening and Reading tests are divided into Low, Mid, and High. Test administrator determines placement based on student performance in prior sections.

Level of Security Secure, administered during annual test window for state Stored on-site under lock and key; may be administered at any time Stored on-site under lock and key; may be administered at any time
Administration procedures Kindergarten and Speaking Individually administered
Listening, Reading, Writing group-administered by tier within grade-level cluster
All individually administered Kindergarten, Grades 1-2, Speaking, and Listening individually administered
Grades 3-12 allow small group administration (up to 5 students) within grade-level cluster for Reading and Writing
Scoring Speaking scored by administrator
Listening and Reading machine-scored; Writing scored by trained rater at MetriTech, Inc.
All domains scored by administrator on provided scoring sheets All domains scored by administrator on provided scoring sheets
Reporting Reports from MetriTech, Inc Locally determined & managed Locally determined & managed
 
Speaking Three parts, 13 tasks total = up to 15 minutes Two parts, 8 tasks total = up to 10 minutes Two parts, 8 tasks total = up to 10 minutes
Listening 25 minutes up to 20 minutes up to 20 minutes
Reading 35 minutes up to 30 minutes up to 25 minutes
Writing 60 minutes 15 minutes up to 30 minutes