Test Results By Grade Levels
Descriptions of Tests Used
iLEAP
2008-2009 iLEAP Norm-Referenced Test
2008-2009 iLEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 3)
2008-2009 iLEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 5)
2008-2009 iLEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 6)
2008-2009 iLEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 7)
2008-2009 iLEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 9)
LEAP
2008-2009 LEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 4)
2008-2009 LEAP Criterion-Referenced Test (Grade 8)
GEE
Standardized Testing
Standardized testing in the St. Tammany Parish Public School System is linked to the Louisiana Accountability Program. In 2005-2006, the accountability program was modified to comply with federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements. The requirement to test every student using a criterion-referenced test, beginning with the third grade, is one factor that has prompted a major change in the state testing program.
This test is different from one administered in prior years in that the new test is specially designed to target Louisiana Grade Level Expectations (GLE's). Consequently, comparisons to prior years are not valid.
The three major standardized tests now used in the State accountability program include the Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP), administered in grades 4 and 8; the Graduate Exit Exam (GEE), administered in grades 10 and 11; and the integrated Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (iLEAP), administered in grades 3, 5, 6, 7, and 9. All these tests are built on the Louisiana GLE's, with the exception of a portion of the iLEAP test, the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, which is norm-referenced.
Teachers use the results from these tests, along with evaluation of the daily classroom performance of students, to help assess needs and improve learning. A description of each test and a summary of the 2008-2009 results follow.
Integrated Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (iLEAP)
The iLEAP tests were constructed using test items from two sources: items from The Iowa Tests, representing the norm-referenced part of the assessment, and criterion- referenced items specifically developed to measure certain content standards and grade-level expectations (GLE's).
The criterion-referenced items are reported in five student achievement levels designated by the State of Louisiana, those being as follows: Advanced, Mastery, Basic, Approaching Basic and Unsatisfactory. Each achievement level shows the percentage of students scoring at that level for each school. The iLEAP tests measure English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies performance of third, fifth, sixth, and seventh grade students. Ninth grade students test only in the area of English/ language arts and mathematics.
The norm-referenced section of the tests allows a comparison of selected scores with the scores of a large national sampling group, or national norm. The iLEAP replaces the current norm-referenced tests (NRT's) with a Survey battery (short form) of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) in English/language arts and mathematics for grades 3, 5, 6, and 7. At grade 9, the NRT component of iLEAP includes the Core battery of the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED), which includes English/language arts and mathematics, with the exception of math computation. The St. Tammany Parish Public School System averaged scores above the national norm group at every grade level and in all subjects tested.
The NRT component of iLEAP is reported in percentiles. A percentile shows the relative standing of an individual, class, system, or state compared to a larger norm group. These scores show how well a student performed compared to students from across the United States. For example, a student scoring at the 67th percentile scored equal to or better than 67 percent of the national norm group. A percentile of 50 represents the average score of students participating in the national norm group.
Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP)
and
Graduate Exit Exam (GEE)
The Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP) and the Graduate Exit Exam (GEE) are criterion-referenced tests (CRT's) used to assess student performance on subject matter that follows State-developed academic content standards. The performance of St. Tammany Parish Public School System students on LEAP and GEE is high.
LEAP and GEE scores are reported in five student achievement levels designated by the State of Louisiana, those being as follows: Advanced, Mastery, Basic, Approaching Basic and Unsatisfactory. Each achievement level shows the percentage of students scoring at that level for each school.
The LEAP test measures the English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies performance of fourth and eighth grade students. LEAP test results are used as a principal criterion for determining student promotion to the next grade level.
Tenth graders are required to take the English/language arts and the mathematics sections of the GEE. Eleventh grade students must take the science and social studies components of the GEE.
In order to receive a regular high school diploma, students must pass the English/language arts, mathematics, and either science or social studies sections of the GEE and must earn a required number of Carnegie units. Students who do not pass required GEE components are offered remediation and multiple opportunities to retake necessary portions of the test.
For further information, contact:
St. Tammany Parish Public School System Public Information/Communications
P. O. Box 940; Covington, Louisiana 70434-0940
Phone (985) 892-2276 or (985) 646-4900
Visit our Web site at www.stpsb.org.
