West takes on the Iowa Assessments
Iowa Assessment testing is from 8:10 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. in students’ advisory classroom.
April 3, 2018
On Mar. 4, the Davenport School District will conduct the Iowa Assessments to gather information on student and school academic progress.Testing is from from 8:10 a.m. until 12:40 p.m. Lunch will be offered after the test, but it is not mandatory to stay. Buses will run at 2:05 p.m.
Seniors do not have to take part in the assessments.
Junior Haley Jones will be taking the Iowa Assessments for the last time. She has taken them every year since third grade.
“I will usually eat breakfast to prepare for the test and try to get a good sleep. I like that I don’t have to study for the test,” Jones said.
Last year West tried conducting the test over the span of two days in hopes of increasing scores. Head counselor Erin Soedt reported that there was very little difference in improvement between spreading the test out, versus having it completed in one day.
“I like having the test in one day much more because then we can get it all over with in one day and get out early,” Jones said.
Soedt believes that West’s goals are to get out of the needs category and and move into the proficient category with regards to test results.
“I think they [teachers] try to incorporate things into the classrooms that help prepare students for the material, not necessarily specific material for the test, but just things that prepare students for testing,” Soedt said.
West is in the ‘needs improvement’ area along with 13 percent of the state, according to the Iowa Department of Education. When it comes to ‘college and career readiness,’ West is at a 22.2 percent and the state average is at 47 percent.
The Iowa Assessments are taken to show where schools are proficiency-wise in relation to other districts. Soedt states that the tests help to highlight how effective the teaching and learning is.
“If we don’t assess our students’ achievement at any point, how do we know how we are doing compared to other schools in our district or other districts in our state. It is a way to monitor our progress and our effectiveness as a school,” Soedt said.
