Monitoring Student Growth

The Kadoka Area School District utilizes a variety of tools to help teachers, students, and parents become more aware of academic progress in reading and math throughout their learning during the school year.  Although teachers have a variety of assessment strategies they are constantly using in the classroom like observational data, rubrics, and/or daily assignments and quizzes, the district uses specific universal testing tools to assist in monitoring student progress and guiding instruction for classes, groups of students and individuals. MAPs and STAR-360 are administered three times per year.  These testing times are referred to as BENCHMARK periods.

At the elementary Jr. K-5th grade level (including K-8 grade students in outlying schools) the district uses an assessment called MAPS (Measures of Academic Progress).  See Introduction to MAPs video and NWEA MAPs Family Letter  (See below.)

At the middle school and high school levels, the district uses an assessment called STAR-360. See Parents' Guide to STAR-360 assessments.

In the spring of the year, Kadoka Area is required by the South Dakota Department of Education to administer the South Dakota  Assessment to 3rd-grade through 8th-grade students and juniors in high school.  The predictability of success on this test is closely aligned to success on the MAPs and STAR-360 assessments.  This data is reviewed at the end of the year with staff and interested stakeholders at a Title One Data Update.  Recommendations are made( based on this data) by participants as to what changes could be made within each class, school, and district to better support students, parents, staff, and administration. See South Dakota Assessment.