Te Kete Ipurangi Navigation:

Te Kete Ipurangi
Communities
Schools

Te Kete Ipurangi user options:


You are here:

Assessment Details

NumPA (Numeracy Project Assessment) – Diagnostic Interview
Assessment Area Mathematics-Numeracy
Year level 0-10
NZ origin? Yes
Standardised? No , although national performance data is available.
Administration to individual or group? Individual
What does it assess? It is used to assess number knowledge and operational strategy in number.
Purpose The main purpose of the interview is to familiarise teachers with the Number Framework by working through the interview with a number of students. If the Number Framework is new to teachers it is recommended that they carry out approximately 6 interviews with students. It is not viable as a diagnostic tool for classroom teachers to use with their whole class on a regular basis.
Validity Items are tested for validity.
Reliability There is evidence of test/retest reliability, although this is dependent on teachers making the correct analysis.
What measures does it give? Stages for number knowledge and operational strategies
How long does it take to administer? Can be time consuming to administer, particularly with students working at the upper stages of the Number Framework.
How much training is needed? Some training and practice in test administration and analysis
Scoring and data analysis Individual record sheets provide a comprehensive record of development in both knowledge and strategy.
Does it provide 'what next' strategies? Yes , there are activities suggested for each stage in the Numeracy Development Projects books, available from the NZ Maths website.
Is it available in te reo Maori? Yes
Cost? No cost. Project materials can be accessed on the NZ Maths website.
Author, date of publication and publisher Materials for the Numeracy Project written and published through the Ministry of Education from 2002.
Availability

Available from NZ Maths.

Further Information

The Diagnostic Interview has three forms:

  • Form A: used with students in the early stages of number learning
  • Form B: used with students at strategy stages 4 and 5, Advanced Counting and Early Additive
  • Form C: used with students at strategy stages 6 to 8, Advanced Additive to Advanced Proportional.

The Strategy Window is a series of questions that increase in difficulty and are used to determine which form of the assessment to use with each student.

The assessment materials required for the Diagnostic Interview are:

  • interview script, outlines questions to use with students, and detailed instructions on the administration in the interview
  • materials for students, counters, numeral cards, and copies of questions, individual Assessment Sheet, used to record student responses and assessment results.

NumPA is an integral part of the Numeracy Project. Through their professional development teachers learn to use the assessment as part of their regular classroom teaching. For schools on the numeracy project, the NumPA results are entered on a national website database and record students' progress. Schools can access the national data to establish targets for planning and reporting purposes. Teachers group students according to ability and use activities that will support students in both strategy and knowledge development.