Can students who perform at the top range of the Advanced level (270-280) show growth?
Yes. One of the Department’s criteria for selecting a model was that it had to measure growth even at the top (and bottom) of the MCAS performance scale. This way, all students would have the opportunity to exhibit growth. The model accounts for this by measuring each child’s growth relative to his or her academic peers. Let’s suppose Jane Adams scored 280 on the grade 4 and 5 math tests. Students who scored similarly to this would comprise her comparison group-she would be compared only to other students who had performed similarly on those tests. Then, in grade 6, Jane again scores 280. She would probably have a very high student growth percentile in mathematics, as most of the students in her comparison group would likely score less than 280. In fact, most students who score 280 on one test will score less than 280 on the next year’s test. Only about 5% of students repeat a 280 score from one year to the next, so Jane would likely be in the 95th percentile for growth.
