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TAMPA READS

 

FCAT Test Strategies
and Understanding the Voucher Program

by Richard Pressinger (M.Ed.)
tampareads.com

The following web site offers information which can
greatly improve a school's FCAT Test scores.
Before explaining the strategies,
it is important to understand -

How the Voucher Program works:

Schools are "graded" once a year by the
Florida Department of Education
on students' performance in several areas of academic achievement. 
These areas include -

Reading Skills (grade 4) - FCAT
Writing Skills (grade 4) - Florida Writes
Math Skills (grade 5)

Who Passes? - Who Fails?

The Dept. of Education has set up minimum test score "passing" percentages which must be met in order to constitute satisfactory achievement for Florida Elementary Schools.

For example, for a school to receive a grade of "C" from the state -
all three criteria must be met below. 

60% of the 4th Grade must score a "3.0" on the Writing Test
(on a scale of 0.0 to 5.0).

60% of the school's 4th Grade must "pass" the FCAT Reading Test -
(passing is designated as getting enough problems correct that the child scores what is called "Level 2")

60% of the 5th Grade must "pass" the math test
(passing is also designated as reaching a "Level 2")

Schools are given a "B" which have 50% of their students reach what is called "Level 3" for their Reading and Math scores.  Level 3 simply means that the students answered more questions correctly than Level 2 students.

Schools are given an "A" which meet the above criteria and also have demonstrated improvement from the previous year and have excellent attendance.

For a school to receive a grade of "D," it needs to only meet one of the three "cut-off" percentages above, so, it can fail the other two.   If a school fails to meet all three of the above "passing" percentages for writing - reading and math, then it receives a grade of "F."

However, the school doesn't have to worry just yet, as they can fail one time without being put on the chopping block.  However, the Dept. of Education is forgiving only once.  If the school fails again any time during the next 4 year period it is labeled a "failing school." When this happens, the parents have the option of removing the child from that school and receiving a tuition voucher of several thousand dollars to pay for private education elsewhere.

Raise your FCAT "Passing Percentage"

If you are a Florida school that is now listed as a "failing school" or if you are worried about scoring low on the next FCAT  -  the following information outlines several test study strategies which can greatly increase the number of students at your school passing the FCAT.

This is not a way to cheat the system, but is simply a technique that will greatly increase the efficiency of your "resources," and thereby give your school a greater number of students achieving a "passing score."

UNDERSTANDING HOW SCHOOLS ARE GRADED
The way schools are "graded" on the Reading FCAT is much different than how they are graded for tests like the SAT - CTBS - or other national tests.

There are no percentile scores or averaging of students' scores in the Reading FCAT.  Your school is judged simply on whether 60% of your students reach the minimum raw score designated as "passing."

In other words, it's simply a "yes" or "no" question.

Did 60% of your 4th grade students
reach the minimum "passing score" on the FCAT?

The minimum passing score is actually called "Level 2." 

When students take the 4th grade FCAT they receive a score of either - Level 1 - Level 2 - Level 3 - Level 4, depending on the number of problems answered correctly and the difficulty level of the problems.

According to officials in Brevard County's testing division, the following shows the FCAT Level scores and the typical reading level of students who make that score.

Level 1 FCAT Score - Reading at middle 2nd grade and lower. 
Level 2 FCAT Score - Reading at high 2nd grade to middle 3rd.
Level 3 FCAT Score - Reading at high 3rd to 4th grade level.
Level 4 FCAT Score - Reading 5th grade level.

Getting back to how schools "pass" or "fail" -
If your school answers "yes" to the above 60% "passing" question and also had 60% of the 4th grade students pass the Florida Writes and 60% pass the 5th grade Math Test, then it will receive a grade of  "C" or higher.

- If your school answers "yes" to the above 60% question, but did not meet the passing percentages for the Florida Writes and the 5th Grade Math test, then it will receive a grade of "D."

If your school answers "no" to this question and also didn't meet the passing percentages for the Florida Writes and 5th Grade Math Test, then it will receive a grade of "F" from the Florida Dept. of Education.

Making Sense of the Numbers

Take for example an average size elementary school with 100 students in 4th grade.  This number is also easy to work with since each student equals 1 percentage point.  If 55 students reach the minimum passing score on the FCAT, then the school would have scored 55% for the number passing the test (whoops - five short - remember we needed 60% for a "passing" mark - so we're on our way to a "D" or "F").

Think about this, what it boils down to is simply that five students were the reason why the school did not reach the minimum 60% passing mark for the FCAT Reading.   If those five students could have been identified and supplied additional tutoring necessary to pass the FCAT, then the school would have received 60%, rather than 55% for its total FCAT passing score.  

FCAT Reading Vocabulary Assistance

We are working feverishly here at TampaReads to provide materials which will help raise your school's FCAT scores (which will be administered starting February 15th.)  The most important tool we have for you currently is the reading vocabulary needed to pass the test.  This is a special vocabulary list of the 2,720 "Most Common Words" used in 4th Grade reading texts and standardized tests.   It is divided into 272 different levels of 10 words per level.   The most frequently used words have been placed at the beginning of the list and then progresses to the vocabulary used less frequently toward the end.  This gives you the most efficient sequence for studying the words, since we first want to master the vocabulary that has the greatest likelihood of appearing on the test.

For the 1996-97 school year, while working as a Reading Resource teacher at our elementary school in Tampa, Florida, I was given the job of providing daily reading assistance to one of our four 4th grade classes.  I tested the majority of students, one-on-one, using our "Priority Vocabulary List."  I was surprised to find that the majority of students knew less than half of the words.  This was shocking and clearly demonstrates why we are having such a problem with test scores.  It is not that the students don't have the knowledge to answer the question, but rather, they are unable to read and comprehend the questions because of a poor reading vocabulary.  We need to get the cart before the horse.

The Main Strategy for Improving FCAT Scores
Identify "Borderline" Passing Students

The most effective way to raise your school's FCAT scores requires your school to identify those students who are functioning just below the "passing" cut-off.

From what we've been told by officials involved in test assessment, the students who do not pass the FCAT are the ones who score a Level-1 on the test.   Since we know the upper end of Level 1 students are generally reading around middle second grade level, this helps us identify the students who are on the borderline of passing the FCAT.

These are the students who need the least amount of help to reach the "passing cut-off", and therefore, are the ones who are more likely to raise your school's overall FCAT scores if given extra help.  If your school can move 10 children into the Level 2 "passing zone" (of which the actual test score is 275-298), then your school's percentile score will improve 10 percentage points - (based on 100 students in 4th grade).

If you reach the point that there are only 2 months left until the test date, it is highly unlikely that 4th grade students who are reading at beginning 2nd grade level will be able to progress enough in 2 months to pass the FCAT.  Therefore, because of the critical nature of this test, at this point in time, we need to concentrate our efforts on students functioning from middle 2nd to early 3rd.   These are the students who have a chance of passing the FCAT and improving the school's overall percentage score.

Organize 4th Grade Teachers

In order to improve a school's overall FCAT score, we need to first know which students are on the borderline of passing the FCAT.  This requires the procedure outlined below:

1.

 Hold a meeting with all 4th Grade teachers:
Each teacher must bring their attendance sheet listing all the students in their class and to plan on a meeting lasting about 45 minutes.
2. Place students into General Reading Levels:
With all the 4th grade teachers sitting together at a table, pass out copies of the reading level grouping paper we've made which can be accessed here.  Please print out a copy of this paper since it is the back-bone of this strategy and can be referred to in the paragraphs below (I'll wait....).

Complete the top half of the paper first, which simply asks each teacher to place their students into one of the four reading groups

"On or Above Grade Level" (reading at or above grade level)
"Below Grade Level 1" (up to one year below grade level) - "Below Grade Level 2" (reading 1-2 years below grade level)
"Below Grade Level 3" (reading 3 or more years below GL) 

This is a general way of first organizing the students which makes it easier to complete the next step of fine tuning the rankings.
3. Place students into rankings
Now, referring to the general groupings the teacher just created, use the next table on the bottom half of the paper to rank students according to their ability within their respective group.  For example, the 1st student under the heading of "On or Above Grade Level" should be the best reader in that entire group of students.   The student you place next to #1 at the top of the "Below Grade Level 1" Group, would be the student (in the teacher's opinion), who is the best reader from that group of students.  The student placed next to #2 would be the second best reader in that group of students.
4. Determine "Total Students" and "70%"
a)  Using the lists each teacher just developed, count the total number of 4th grade students and have someone who is your "math whiz" write it down on a separate sheet of paper.

b)  Multiply that number by .70 so we can get a number for 70% of the total.   Remember, we need to have 60% of the students pass the FCAT, so by working with our top 70%, it will leave us a little overlap in case some students are absent, tired, on strike, etc.

c)  Put this number aside, we'll use it soon.
5. Organize students according to reading ability
You now have students organized according to reading ability only on a class by class basis, however, we need to do this on a grade-wide basis to pin-point our students.  First, appoint an "Official Name Writer Person" to write down the names of students as the teachers call them out.   Next, have each teacher call out the names of any students rated as "On or Above Grade Level".  If this totals 70% of your school's population you've got it made and can start celebrating a record  FCAT year.  If you're like most schools, however, you're lucky if you have 20%. 

Next, let's write down all the students who teachers wrote down as "Below Grade Level 1."   As the "Official Name Writer Person" writes these down, make sure teachers agree that all these students are better readers than the students in the "Below Grade Level 2" group. 

IMPORTANT: Try as best you can to write down students according to their reading ability (in descending order) since there can be a wide range in reading ability even when considered - "Below Grade Level 1". 

Identifying the Most Important Students
Now, let's move on to the "Below Grade Level 2" group and put them into proper order. These are the students we should pay close attention to since the students at the middle and lower end of this group are close - but often just not quite high enough to pass the FCAT.  This is where we need to have teachers sitting next to each other - looking at each others papers (no its not cheating) - debating - arguing - comparing notes - scores - reading levels - oral reading skills - etc. This must be done so we can get as accurate a rating as possible for each student so our "Official Name Writer Person" can write down the students' names in the proper descending reading ability order. 

After completing the "Below Grade Level 2" group - move on to the "Below Grade Level 3l" group and start debating all over again about the reading order for these students.

6. Pinpoint the top 70% readers
In front of you now should be a list of all the 4th grade students at your school, sequenced in perfect order from the highest readers on down to the lowest.  Since we want to concentrate our energies on the students most likely to pass the FCAT, our next step is to identify the top 70% readers from this list.   Remember the math you did before to get the number for 70% of your 4th grade?   Get your "Official Name Writer Person" to start from the top and count down to that 70% number on the list.  Upon reaching that number, cross off (lightly) all students below that point.  Somewhere in this group of remaining students are the ones who will enable your school to reach its 60% FCAT passing grade.   We'll call this list of remaining students our - 70% LIST
 
7. Target the students for extra help
Our next step is to identify which students to pick to provide extra reading support - (i.e. tutoring - after school help - etc).

First, working from the top of the list down, cross off all students (lightly) who were rated " On or Above Grade Level."  These students will certainly pass the FCAT so we'll leave them alone and let them make our school look good. 

What about the "Below Grade Level 1" students?  If the teachers were truly accurate with their decisions regarding these students, even though they are below grade level, they will most likely pass the FCAT (although assessing the students in the bottom half of this group would be a good idea).  Cross off their names from the list (also very lightly).  That leaves students in the "Below Grade Level 2" and "Below Grade Level 3." 

Students in the "Below Grade Level 3" group are reading at middle 1st grade and lower and so, unfortunately, are too far behind at this point in time to be able to improve enough to pass the FCAT.  However, the students in the "Below Grade Level 2" group are the ones who often "just miss" passing the FCAT.  These are the students who, with just a minimal amount of help, can be nudged into the "passing zone" and improve your school's overall FCAT score.  These will be the students you'll want to concentrate your additional tutoring resources.  These are the handful of students who offer the best hope of raising your school's FCAT scores.  For simplicity and future reference, let's call these students our FCAT All Stars.
 
8. FCAT VOCABULARY
To provide you with assistance for working with these students, we have created our FCAT reading vocabulary (explained above) which contains the 2,720 words which are common words used in the FCAT.  We estimate that 96-98% of the words used in the FCAT are on this list. These are words which have been researched and found to be common in 4th grade reading texts and standardized tests.  To put it succinctly - these are the words critical for achieving maximum comprehension of  test questions and test answers.  These are the words that our FCAT All Stars must practice before taking the test.  If they can master 90% of even the first 1500 words (Levels 1-150) they should at least score high enough to pass the test.
9. Time to go to work
There are two excellent ways to identify problem vocabulary for the student and improve mastery of these words.  You can use the regular FCAT test vocabulary printed out for one-on-one testing or use the Wall Version of the FCAT test vocabulary. 

FCAT READING WALL

The Wall Version includes the same words as in the printed version, but words are printed in larger size so they can be posted onto a wall (such as in the gym or hallway).  For whatever reason, when the words are posted like this it develops tremendous motivation in the students to master one level - move onto the next - master another level - move onto the next - etc.  We also suggest putting a chart at the top of each level to keep track of the students "timed scores" and progress (A student must be able to say any "column level" in 12-14 seconds or less to be able to advance to the next level).   Use a stopwatch to record the students timed scores (they absolutely love this!!).   The Wall Version of the words will be available soon.

Regular Printed Version

Another way to pull up our "FCAT All Stars" is to simply sit down one-on-one with each student and ask them begin reading the words on the FCAT Test Vocabulary. Click this link and either print out copies from our website (272 levels - 3 levels per page = 90 pages however) or test the student directly from the vocabulary on the website.

After having rounded up all living bodies around your school and recruiting them into your FCAT tutoring program, have them sit next to the computer (or printed list) with one of the "FCAT All Stars" and begin testing the student on the words and mark every word said incorrectly.   If testing from the computer - the person must write the word down on a piece of paper along with the Level from where it was listed.
9. Time to put the student to work
After identifying about 50 or so words the student does not know, you can stop and write these words down on a 4x6 card and tape it onto the student's desk.  The student's assignment is to put these words into a sentence.  The teacher (or assistant) should often quiz the student on these words until they are mastered, at which point the process should be repeated of testing the student to identify more difficult words.  The parents should also be contacted and given copies of the words to help get them memorized.  Parents are our best resources when we give them specific things to work on with their child.
10. The Bottom Line
Our FCAT vocabulary list can also be used as a "Grade Level" reading assessment tool since words are organized according to "Frequency of Use." Our testing and experience has shown that:

Levels 1-33 correspond to Grade 1 vocabulary
Levels 34-100 correspond to Grade 2 vocabulary
Levels 101-200 correspond to Grade 3 vocabulary
Levels 201-272 correspond to Grade 4 vocabulary

Therefore, Level 75 would equal about middle 2nd grade level and Level 150 would equal about middle 3rd grade level.   Because of what we now know about FCAT test results and student performance, we can say with some accuracy that students need to master up through Level 100 at a bare minimum.  However, after seeing the test questions (while proctoring an FCAT test myself), my estimation would be that students should have at least up to Level 130 mastered in order to have a good chance of passing the test. Hopefully, we can get them beyond that.  To see the FCAT study vocabulary - click here.