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04/20/23

Online Assessment UpdateRegion 8 – Technology Council Meeting

January 27, 2012

Brief History of Online Testing in NC

• Spring 2005 – Online Test of Computer Skills

• Spring 2007– End-of-Course Online Tests

Algebra I, Algebra II, Biology, Civics, English I, Geometry, US History

• 2007-08 – End-of-Course Online Tests

Physical Science

Physics: No Paper-and-Pencil Version

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Timeline for Transitioning to Online Assessments

• 2011-12 (NCTest version 2.5)Online field testsParticipation in more than one EOC online tests

• 2012-13Operational administrationsParticipation in all available online tests

• 2014-15Operational Assessments from SMARTER Balanced (3-8 Math and ELA and one High School Assessment in ELA and Math (w/ Performance Tasks in 9 &10)

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/acre/assessment/nextgenassessments.pdf 04/20/23 • page 3

Why is NC Transitioning to Online Assessments?

• Computer-Adaptive Testing

• Performance tasks delivered online

• Interim assessments and formative practices delivered online (IIS)

• Professional development delivered online

• 2014-15 - SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) www.k12.wa.us/smarter

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SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC)

Moving to Next Generation Online Assessments • 9/29/11 • page 5

Purpose•To develop a comprehensive and innovative assessment system for grades 3-8 and high school in English language arts and mathematics aligned to the Common Core State Standards, so that... •...students leave high school prepared for postsecondary success in college or a career through increased student learning and improved teaching

SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC)

Moving to Next Generation Online Assessments • 9/29/11 • page 6

• More rigorous tests measuring student progress toward “college and career readiness”

• Have common, comparable scores across member states, and across consortia

• Provide achievement and growth information to help make better educational decisions and professional development opportunities

• Assess all students, except those with “significant cognitive disabilities” (separate consortium for this assessment work)

• Administer online, with timely results• Use multiple measures

Source: Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 68 / Friday, April 9, 2010 pp. 18171-85

Benefits of New Online Assessments

• Universal Design

Designed for increased accessibilityOne-item per test pageLarge fontForeground/Background color schemeVirtual highlighter, calculator

•Computer Reads Test Aloud—Student Controlled Accommodation

(Note: Headphones are required unless one-on-one.)

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Benefits (continued)

• Developed as Online Assessments

• Student Engagement

• Technology-Enhanced/Interactive Items

• Flexible Scheduling/Staffing

• Storage Space

• Test Security

• Reporting

• Environmentally Friendly

• Cost-Effective

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NCTest Version 2.5 Technical Requirements (effective Fall 2011)

https://center.ncsu.edu/nc/mod/page/view.php?id=9271• Suggested browsers include:

IE 7, 8 on Windows XP & VistaIE 7, 8, & 9 on Windows 7IE 6 is NOT supportedFirefox 3.6+Safari 5+Chrome 10+

• Adobe Flash 10+

• Screen minimum resolution – 1024 x 768 (lower resolutions work, but require more scrolling)

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Technical Requirements (continued)

• 56 Kbps per student of clear bandwidth preferred

• Mobile and tablet devices are not certified for use at this time (September 12, 2011).

• 1024 x 768 Screen resolution for best performance. Lower vertical resolutions for netbook devices is possible, but will increase the amount of scrolling required to fully view items.

• The following operating systems are supported: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10.4 or greater. 

Note: We are working on adding full support for iPads. Currently the video tutorials and calculator are Flash-based and need to be replaced. Other features such as drag and drop (used to order items when creating assessments), strike-out and highlight will also need to be redesigned to work on iPads.

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Strongly Recommend the Online Assessment Tutorial

• Tutorial is not a test• It is available to the public• Complete before test day• Use computers students will use on test day• Familiarize students and test administrators• Determine the font size and/or color scheme• Minimal test of configurations if completed

simultaneouslyhttps://center.ncsu.edu/nctestv3/NCTestSim.html

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Resources

• Best Practices Guidehttp://www.ncpublicschools.org/acre/assessment/guide/

• Comparability Studyhttp://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/acre/assessment/onlinecompstudy.pdf

• Test Specificationshttp://www.ncpublicschools.org/acre/assessment/online/

• NCTest Informationhttps://center.ncsu.edu/nc/course/view.php?id=361

04/20/23 • page 12

Questions?

Kayla SilerPolicy and Planning Analyst

kayla.siler@dpi.nc.gov

Websites for more information:

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/acre/assessment/online/

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/testing/

http://www.k12.wa.us/smarter

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