How to be an “A” school:
UPDATE for Fall 2023
by Jan Barrick, Alpha Plus CEO
81% of students in Grades 3-8 completed baseline summative by Oct. 11 with an average score of 42%
More than 14,400 students from 148 schools in 100 districts statewide took Alpha Plus reading and math summative (A1) assessments by mid-October. The average score was 42%, or more than double Alpha Plus Facilitators' goal for this assessment aligned to the Oklahoma Academic Standards (OAS).
The “proficient” performance-level cut point on most state tests is about a 67-70% score when the Oklahoma School Testing Program’s (OSTP) Scale Scores are converted to a 100% scale. [See OPI Conversion PDF under Resources > Other.] A 42% score on an Alpha Plus summative is estimated to correlate to an OSTP Scale Score of 269 (varies by grade/subject).
As such, students who took Alpha Plus A1 are performing about as expected this fall, and only 28 percentage points away from the spring summative (A2) goal of 70% average score. The high baseline shows the capacity built in veteran Alpha Plus Partner Schools to use the power of vertical alignment in the OAS.
Learn more about alignment in Alpha Plus Online under Classroom > Resources > “PD” and “Other” tabs. NEW “Remediation & Extension” FACT SHEET: How to use formative data to decide whether to reteach, remediate or extend with links to engagement and intervention activities.
Welcome to the fall UPDATE of our monthly newsletters available in Alpha Plus Online!
On or about October 17 is the 24th instructional day since the 100 Days to Mastery started September 6. This week is also the approximate end of the first term or nine weeks for most schools. Students should have learned about one-third of the OAS expected for each grade/subject in Grades 3-8, and about one-fourth of the OAS for Kindergarten through second grade; in these early grades at least 125 days of instruction are needed.
After Halloween, there are fewer than 70 instructional days left until Spring Break at most schools.
Maintaining a steady instructional pace in the fall increases the likelihood of covering all state- required subject matter by spring, allowing time to complete intervention activities by April. In addition, remediation must be ongoing throughout the year.
While the summative B or midyear assessment window (Gr. 3-8) is open from the middle of November to the middle of January, Alpha Plus Facilitators recommend students take B before school lets out for Winter Break. This allows time to evaluate the data and adjust pacing before starting the spring semester.
We appreciate how difficult it is to protect each day from disruption, but it makes a difference!
In the image below, you can see the difference OAS alignment made for schools on our 2022 Honor Roll of Alpha Plus Partner Schools with an A or B grade on the Oklahoma School Report Cards last year and their 2019 grade for comparison:
2022 ALPHA PLUS HONOR ROLL
These schools used the Alpha Plus Model of School Improvement in 2021-22 and received an A or B on the Oklahoma School Report Cards for 2022. Congratulations to the students, educators, administrators, and board members of these Alpha Plus Partner Schools!
In the October newsletter under Classroom > Resources in Alpha Plus Online:
- How to plan for midyear summative (B) benchmark
- Teach test-taking strategies and take a grade on procedures students use to analyze answer choices at midyear
- Make reteach or remediate decision on each objective based on formative quiz data
COMING SOON: Midyear IT survey about our platform. We also welcome your feedback any time via support ticket or email to
Let us know how we can help more! – CEO Jan Barrick and the Alpha Plus Team
Copyright © 2023 Alpha Plus Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
ALPHA PLUS EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS
3315 N.W. 63rd St., Oklahoma City, OK 73116
Call (405) 842-8408 or email
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