In an earlier post, we shared some insights into how teachers can use MAP® Growth™ assessment data to work with students. Students can leverage growth data to improve their learning and motivation. It can help them creative a positive growth mindset, set learning goals, and help them look ahead. Teachers and principals can also leverage growth data. Here’s how…

Putting growth data to work for teachers

Insights from growth data can help teachers develop roadmaps for student success while creating class-wide goals.

1. See where students are in their learning. Assessments like the MAP Suite measure where all students are in their learning and what they are ready to learn next. This can help teachers see how they are meeting student needs, something difficult to do with proficiency tests alone.
2. Gain insights into strength and opportunity areas across the entire class. Teachers can see which subject areas need additional instruction, which helps them manage their classroom time better. They can set collective growth goals based on test insights and learning needs, which can help them provide positive feedback to keep students motivated.
3. It can help inform instruction. Armed with a clear view of where students are in their learning, teachers can determine what skills, competencies, and instructional areas they are ready to learn next. One feature of MAP Growth–the learning continuum–also helps teachers see what students are ready to learn based on their individual performance, allowing them to differentiate instruction and support personalized learning paths.

Putting growth data to work for principals

For principals, growth data provides them with the insights they need to monitor growth trends over time, which can be useful when planning curriculum and school improvement needs. Essentially it helps answer these three questions that all principals ask over time:

1. Are we on track? Are students ready to tackle grade-level course work or handle the year-end summative testing requirements of their state or district.
2. What is working (and what is not)? School-wide reporting provides groupings that deliver the data necessary to determine what goal areas or grades are seeing strong growth and how it can be replicated; what grade, subjects, or focus areas are lagging and what students are struggling year after year; and where teachers and staff need more support.
3. How does our school compare? The School Growth Summary allows principals to see aggregate, school-wide growth compared to typical growth at schools across the country. They can then go deeper with the Similar Schools report, which allows them to compare data against schools with similar demographics and other conditions.

Accurate, reliable assessments can help bring visibility to growth at the student, classroom, and school level. For more details on how to best leverage growth data for students, teachers, and administrators, download our eBook – Ready, Set, Growth!