6/12/2017 – Illuminate Assessments

DeKalb County School District Tentative Budget for 2017-2018 (FY2018)
 6/12/2017 – Work/Business
eboard link icon Agenda Item – Illuminate Education – Learning Assessment Platform
Supporting Documents
.pdf link icon  Executive summary – Illuminate Education
.pdf link icon  Financial Comparison
.pdf link icon  Statesboro Bulloch Case Study
.pdf link icon  Visual Aids – Illuminate Education
Presentation

Summary
In order to effectively measure student learning and instructional quality with the implementation of DeKalb’s newly adopted curriculum, and to measure the District’s academic return on investment for its new curriculum management system, it is proposed that the Board of Education permit the purchase of the learning assessment platform from Illuminate Education.
The Illuminate Education Assessment Platform is designed to determine a student’s instructional level; evaluate instructional quality; and measure academic growth throughout the school year, and from your year-to-year in all core and non-core content areas. This assessment tool would complement the existing norm-referenced universal screener used in DeKalb County, Measures of Academic Progress (MAP). This assessment platform significantly reduces the number of norm-referenced and criterion-referenced assessments offered in a single school year. This assessment platform also provides the opportunity for the District to assess both the quality and efficacy of the newly adopted curriculum, providing immediate feedback on both student learning and instructional quality.
This assessment platform allows schools to effectively analyze student learning data early in the school year and provide ample time and opportunities for academic improvement and remediation as well as enhancing the District’s school improvement efforts.
Details
This proposed budget item is requesting funds not to exceed $675,000.00 to cover the costs associated with the District’s purchase of the Illuminate Education Assessment Platform and professional learning services.
The formative, common, and benchmark assessments offered through DeKalb’s new curriculum help determine a student’s instructional level and measures academic growth throughout the school year, and from year-to-year in the areas in all core and non-core content areas. These assessments are unique in that they are offered online and provide ample opportunities for the District and schools to quickly and easily analyze student learning data immediately, providing for ample time to make instructional and organizational improvements that help students master deficit skill sets. In addition, students would have the opportunity to learn the information presented on the assessment in the classroom, because these assessments are aligned with the Georgia Standards of Excellence. This assessment platform will also be merged with DeKalb’s Learning Management System, VERGE, creating a one-stop-shop for students and teachers to access both curriculum and assessment.