Testing in Ohio: An Overview
Ohio Performance Index
The Performance Index provides an overall indication of how well students perform on the Ohio Achievement Tests in grades 3 through 8 and the Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) in grade 10. The tests have five performance levels - limited, basic, proficient, accelerated and advanced. The Performance Index score is calculated by multiplying the percentage of students at each performance level by weights ranging from 0 for untested to 1.2 for advanced students. The totals are then summed to obtain the school or district's Performance Index score. Performance Index scores range from 0 to 120, with 100 being the goal.
Why does the Performance Index matter?
The Performance Index is one of the measures used to determine Ohio Report Card designations for schools and districts. Report Card designations range from Excellent to Academic Emergency. A Performance Index score below 70 may place a school at the level of Academic Emergency, which in turn might suggest that the overall student population of the school is not meeting the state's expectations.
What if my child attends a school with a low Performance Index?
If your child attends a school with a low Performance Index, ask what steps the school is taking to raise achievement levels for all students, and what you can do to help. Because these schools are likely to face consequences under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, your child may be eligible to receive federal and/or state money for tutoring or to transfer to another school.
Ohio Value-Added Measure
In 2008-2009, Ohio released Value-Added Ratings for reading and math in grades 4 though 8. The Value-Added Measure shows how much growth students made on the Ohio Achievement Test (OAT) since the last school year.
How is the Value-Added Measure calculated?
Ohio expects student test scores to show an average year's worth of growth compared to test scores from the previous year. To calculate the Value-Added Measure, each student's scores in reading and math are compared to his or her scores from the previous year. The results for all students are then averaged together. Schools that meet the state's growth expectation receive a checkmark and the rating "Met Expected Growth." Schools whose growth is greater than the state's expectation receive a plus sign and the rating "Above Expected Growth." Schools that did not achieve as much growth as the state expected receive a minus sign and the rating "Below Expected Growth."
The ratings for each grade and subject are then combined to create an Overall Rating for the school. The ratings for each grade and subject and the Overall Rating are displayed on GreatSchools profiles.
How is the Value-Added Measure different from test scores?
Test scores reflect student performance at one specific point in time. Test scores alone can not show if students are improving over time. The Value-Added Measure follows each student from one year to the next to show if scores are improving or declining. The Value-Added Measure can highlight when students who are not yet proficient on the state tests are nonetheless making great strides from one year to the next. It can also show when the scores of higher-performing students are declining, even if those scores have not yet dipped below the proficient level.
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