Beginning a Higher Trajectory: Grade 11 Study. State Teachers of the Year Compare Former and New State Assessments.

This study continues the work that National Network of State Teachers of the Year (NNSTOY) and its partners, Clowder Consulting and Education-Counsel, began with their "Right Trajectory" study (see ED581172), released in 2015, and continued in their "Still the Right Trajectory" study (see ED581173) released in early 2017. In addition to these studies examining the prior 5th grade state tests and the consortium assessments, this research includes analysis of the 11th grade Smarter Balanced assessment. Although the research is based on the same survey used for the 5th grade study, the design for the 11th grade research was fundamentally different because reviewers only examined the Smarter Balanced test, without using a prior test as a basis for comparison. Twelve expert teachers from Department of Defense, Idaho, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Utah and Washington participated in the panel, and each panelist evaluated either the reading/English language arts (ELA) or mathematics portion of the assessment. Despite the limitations imposed by the lack of context from prior tests, the impressions of outstanding educators about the strengths and areas for improvement of the 11th grade assessment provide an important contribution to the ongoing conversation about the value of standardized assessments. This analysis presents both positive and constructive feedback for consideration as test developers and states reflect and engage in continuous improvement.