The Intersection Webinar Recap: Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium

Our thanks to Chris Barron, Senior Director of Communications and Media Relations at the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium and Abby Javurek, Chair of the Smarter Balanced Executive Committee and Director of Accountability Systems at the South Dakota Department of Education for presenting on this week’s The Intersection: A Biweekly Education Policy Conversation. Chris and Abby joined us to share their analysis of the 2017 Smarter Balanced assessment results.

Key Takeaways:

• Alignment with NAEP | Like the recently released 2017 NAEP results, student scores on the  Smarter Balanced assessment were mostly flat from the previous test administration.
• A System of Assessment | Smarter Balanced offers members a full system of assessment including summative assessments for accountability, interim assessments for progress monitoring, and a digital library of classroom resources. In the past twelve months, the use of their interim assessments has expanded across states and school districts.
• An Emphasis on Accessibility | Smarter Balanced has been a leader in developing assessment materials that meet the unique needs of students with disabilities. As states begin to use Smarter Balanced for college course placement and admission, students with disabilities will be able to utilize testing accommodations as they transition into postsecondary education. 

For more on our conversation with Chris and Abby, you can watch our full webinar below!

We hope you’ll join us for our next webinar on Wednesday, April 25, at 1pm (EST). We look forward to talking with Melissa McGrath from the Council for Chief State School Officers who will discuss their new States Leading campaign.

Stay tuned and follow us via Twitter with #HIWebinar for details on how to register.

See you at the Intersection,
The Hunt Team