Assessment News

Update to information on the PaCT tool

2013-05-18T20:33:38+00:00

Information on the PaCT tool has been updated in the frequently asked questions section.

A diagram illustrates the answer to the question: how will the PaCT tool work?

e-asTTle writing - updated documents

2013-05-06T02:46:18+00:00

Documents have been updated to take into account the changes made to the e-asTTle writing tool on April 30.

An updated conversion table from rubric scores to scale scores is available here.

Find a cut score table for the new e-asTTle writing scores on the new e-asTTle Help website .

e-asTTle upgrade - important news

2013-05-03T06:24:40+00:00

An upgrade to e-asTTle was carried out on 30 April 2013. This included changes to e-asTTle writing and to the functionality of the tool.

Changes have been made to the e-asTTle writing tool to ensure that each student performance level within e-asTTle writing aligns as accurately as possible with curriculum levels. FAQ about the changes to e-asTTle writing can be found on the e-asTTle TKI site . You can also find more information about the changes on the e-asTTle Help site .

Changes to the functionality of the tool are as follows:

The Tabular Report by Group will now show writing levels below 2B with 1B,1P,1A. You must select All students to generate this report.
The ILP has reverted to a one page document, in response to teacher requests. A new report called the ‘Individual Question Analysis’ will now be available which gives an analysis of all items in the test by curriculum strand and objective, and shows which questions students got right and wrong, by Strengths, Achieved, To Be Achieved and Gaps.
The Help button has been moved to the bottom of the left hand navigation panel. Selecting the Help button will take you to a new Help site which will support the functional and pedagogical use of e-asTTle.
The size of the photo in ‘The Market’ prompt has been increased.
Writing Print Options has been re-ordered so that when you select the ‘ALL’ print option, the Structure and Language Notes and the task-specific exemplars appear after the task, and before the glossary and rubrics. This will help teachers to print out only those documents specific to the test.

Assessment Online on Facebook and Twitter

2013-04-29T03:29:02+00:00

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e-asTTle outage for upgrade on 30th April

2013-04-20T23:21:53+00:00

e-asTTle will be unavailable from 10.00am -2.00pm on Tuesday 30^th April. We are installing a new version of e-asTTle, which includes changes requested by teachers. The changes include:

The Tabular Report by Group will now show writing levels below 2B with 1B,1P,1A.
The ILP has reverted to a one page document, in response to teacher requests. A new report called the ‘Individual Question Analysis’ will now be available which gives an analysis of all items in the test by curriculum strand and objective, and shows which questions students got right and wrong, by Strengths, Achieved, To Be Achieved and Gaps.
The Help button has been moved to the bottom of the left hand navigation panel. Selecting the Help button will take you to a new Help site which will support the functional and pedagogical use of e-asTTle.
The size of the photo in ‘The Market’ prompt has been increased.
Writing Print Options has been re-ordered so that when you select the ‘ALL’ print option, the Structure and Language Notes and the task-specific exemplars appear after the task, and before the glossary and rubrics. This will help teachers to print out only those documents specific to the test.

Please pass on this information to all staff who use e-asTTle.

We apologise in advance for any inconvenience the outage may cause. Contact the MoE Contact Centre if you have any queries.

For more information about e-asTTle:

Online: http://e-asttle.tki.org.nz

Phone: MoE Contact Centre on 0800 225 542 (option 2)

Email: MOE.ContactCentre@minedu.govt.nz

PaCT - Progress and Consistency Tool FAQ

2013-04-07T23:03:11+00:00

In response to sector feedback, we have compiled a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) regarding the Progress and Consistency Tool . We will continue to add to these as further questions arise.

e-asTTle training and support funded by MoE

2013-03-30T21:35:01+00:00

The Ministry of Education is offering initial e-asTTle training seminars and support throughout New Zealand at no cost to participants. This professional learning opportunity, managed and facilitated by Evaluation Associates, is in the form of regional seminars and some in-school support for those schools already using e-asTTle.

Regional seminars 2013 e-asTTle for Teaching & Learning

Ministry-funded e-asTTle seminars are available at no cost to schools across many Ministry regions in terms 1 and 2, 2013. The seminars will support new or current users to develop a sound knowledge of how best to use this assessment tool in reading, writing and mathematics.

To ensure this support is available for as many schools as possible, registrations are limited to two participants per school.

Registration for seminars is available now. Places are limited so please register early. View available registrations on the Evaluation Associates website .

In-school support

Individual support for those schools already using e-asTTle is also available. It is flexible to needs, and may include phone or Skype conversations, e-mail or in-school support. Please email e-asttle@evaluate.co.nz with a request for assistance.

Further information is available on the Evaluation Associates website .

New Teaching as Inquiry section on Assessment Online

2012-11-07T02:19:00+00:00

Check out the new Teaching as Inquiry section on Assessment Online.

In this section, teachers and leaders can find resources to help them with the inquiry process in their schools.

The section includes:

a case study from St Patrick's College, Silverstream , with videos and documents showing how the college has established a structure of professional learning groups (PLGs) within the college, using the Teaching as Inquiry model
practical tools for teachers
useful readings and links
links to some other examples of school practice

New Reporting to Parents examples and templates

2012-11-06T20:47:50+00:00

Three new report examples and templates have been added to the Reporting to Parents, Families, and Whānau section of Assessment Online.

The three example reports clearly describe progress and achievement in relation to the National Standards. They were developed using criteria from the National Standards School Sample: Monitoring and Evaluation Project. A description of why each report meets the project’s criteria is included with each example report.

Templates are available for each of the reports, for schools to use or adapt. An addition to the Templates section is a self-review checklist to help you evaluate your school’s National Standards reports. It is based on criteria from the National Standards School Sample: Monitoring and Evaluation Project.

Update on the Progress and Consistency Tool

2012-10-24T04:41:00+00:00

An update on the progress and consistency tool (PaCT) is now available on Assessment Online. The tool is being developed to support teachers’ professional judgments in relation to the National Standards and to improve the measurement of learner progress over time.

The update includes information on consultation with the education sector, and time frames for implementation.

Schools interested in being involved in any of the trialling or testing of PaCT, please contact your regional Senior Advisor.

The PaCT page on Assessment Online will be used to provide further updates and keep you informed of progress regarding PaCT’s development.