Student Assessment
Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)
The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is scheduled to begin its assessments in the 2014-15 school year.
The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is making available a new planning tool and guidance for schools and districts that will help them get ready for new, 21st century assessments in the 2014-2015 school year. These tools are located under the PARCC Resources tab below.
The PARCC assessments will include a rich set of performance-based tasks that address a long standing concern among educators about large scale, pencil and paper assessments – they have been unable to capture some of the most important skills that we strive to develop in students. The PARCC assessments are being carefully crafted to accomplish this important goal. They will enable teachers, schools, students and their parents to gain important insights into how well critical knowledge, skills and abilities essential for young people to thrive in college and careers are being mastered in ways that only computer-based assessments can.
Because of PARCC’s ability to better measure student performance through technology enhanced test items, they will look very different to students. The tasks on the assessments will resemble the classroom work they do during the school year and less like a conventional fill-in-the-bubble or short-answer test.
Computer delivery of PARCC will allow the test items to both measure those skills needed for life beyond high school and be interactive and engaging.
Preparing for this type of assessment, one that is computer-based and aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), necessitates changes in how schools prepare. The PARCC Assessment Administration Capacity Planning Tool provides schools and districts with a calculator that supports local technology budgeting and decision-making in preparation for computer-based administration of the tests in the 2014-2015 school year. This is a tool that administrators and school leaders have requested from the consortium to help them plan for a successful test administration in two years.
Guidance is also available for schools and districts with more information about the design of the PARCC assessments in English language arts/literacy and mathematics, as well as the number of testing sessions and the approximate time it will take students to complete the assessments.
Unlike current state assessments, the PARCC assessments will provide information on the full range of knowledge and skills needed to be career and college ready or on track toward that goal. And, they will measure the skills and knowledge of students working significantly beyond or behind their grade level. These improvements from current tests will help teachers guide instruction and give more information to students and their parents.
For more information, visit the PARCC homepage.
- Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) Overview and Update Webinar: March 14, 2013
- Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) Overview and Update Webinar: February 13, 2013
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PARCC Assessment Administration Planning Tools (March 2013)
- PARCC Calculator Policy
(7/12) - PARCC High School Assessment Reference Sheet (11/12)
- PARCC Model Content Framework Documents
- PARCC Common Core Page
Questions about PARCC should be directed to:
Dan Long at ilparcc@gmail.com
