ROANOKE – The further expansion of computer-adaptive testing programs is leading to shorter Standard of Learning (SOL) tests for nearly 300,000 reading and math students in elementary and middle school this spring. It's all part of an effort by the Virginia Department of Education to address concerns with the length of SOL tests.
The computer adaptive programs give every student their own personalized test. Based on how they answer each question, the next question will be easier or more difficult as the system determines just how well the students know the material.
One of the biggest changes is the length of the tests. The third-grade math test has dropped from 50 to 32 questions. For third-grade reading students, that SOL test has gone from 47 to 33 questions.
"For students who do struggle on SOL tests, particularly on the reading, the shorter tests will allow the students to not get as tired at the end of the test," says Ben Williams, the director of testing and remediation for Roanoke County Schools. "Now, that reading stamina doesn't come into play like it would on the larger test. For us, we think it's a more reliable test because of that."
Math tests for students in third to eighth grade have been updated to the adaptive testing system, as well as reading tests for third to fifth-grade students. Williams says the test scores are about the same, or even a little better than before, proving that the shorter tests are just as valid at gauging what the students have learned.
Another change allows students to use more devices to take the tests, including iPads and Chromebooks.
The Henry County School system is one of the first in Southwest Virginia to put those devices to the test. A pilot program kicked off this spring for fifth-grade students at Rich Acres Elementary School. They took their Virginia Studies SOL on the iPads.
Lisa Millner, the director of accountability and assessment for Henry County, says there was some training involved on how to use the testing program on the iPads, but it's the same training that students who were using the traditional computer testing received as well.
Millner says many of the students use iPads in class or at home almost every day, so this is a way to let them take the test on a device they're comfortable with.
"The students said they didn't have to hear the clicking of the mice. They could hold the iPad in their hands and zoom in and out, they just pinch the screen and zoom in and out," she says. "That was better for them as well as just being able to have more workspace. So that was a positive."
While the official testing results have not come back, Millner says early indications show positive results for students who used the iPads to take their tests.
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