TMS, HSCHS complete WY-TOPP tests

Students at Thermopolis Middle School and Hot Springs County High School spent last week taking the latest Wyoming State Assessment tests, WY-TOPP, which replaced PAWS testing this year.

Taken completely online, students had to complete all of the sections electronically, while PAWS had been strictly paper and pencil the last few years.

Every student from fifth to 10th grade had to test in reading and math, while science was added for eighth graders and 10th graders.

For the first time in many years, fifth, seventh and ninth grades had a writing component as well. PAWS had phased out the writing test on the high school level, but WY-TOPP added it back in this year.

High school and middle school principal Breez Daniels said overall, the testing sessions went smoothly.

WY-TOPP had modular and interim assessments throughout the school year which allowed teachers and students to familiarize themselves with how everything was going to go, so there were no surprises in how to take the tests or their format.

Some of the testing sessions were rather long, some taking up to three hours to complete, such as math and reading.

Daniels said next year they may pause the test to give students a break in the middle, but this year everything was new and they had no idea how long things were going to take.

“The state had advertised the time needed as approximately 90-120 minutes,” Daniels said, “but we found that our students wanted to give a solid effort and were willing to take their time to answer the questions.”

Being online, some of the assessment items were more interactive, with diagrams, allowing students to write their own short responses and drag and drop items, not just multiple choice as PAWS has been.

On the high school level, Daniels said many of the students felt this test was harder than the Aspire test, a ninth and 10th grade version of the ACT.

Unfortunately, now the teachers have to wait until mid-summer to find out what student scores were.

The Wyoming Department of Education scores all the tests and then sets a ‘cut score’ on a bell curve. This means that all students across the state will determine the high and low end of the scoring scale and not all students are going to be considered proficient.

The school will be using the scores to help monitor the curriculum and the rigor of its own classroom assessments. WY-TOPP won’t be as useful for monitoring individual progess of individual students this year because it is new, but will be helpful again in the coming years.

Daniels said they still use Measurement of Academic Process, or MAP testing as the nationally normed assessment tool for tracking individual student growth.

“We feel this assessment is more individualized for students and gives teachers critical feedback on the skills and concepts the students learn during the school year,” she said. “MAP allows students to set individual growth goals and track their own progress over the course of the school year.”

Of course, ACT will remain the focus at the high school.

Ninth and 10th graders will continue to take Aspire each year as a practice test for the ACT which they will take their junior year. The ACT determines their Hathaway scholarship eligibility and is used by many colleges for entrance.

“The best part about the testing sessions is seeing the pride our students take in their work and their willingness to give a best effort,” Daniels said. “We are very proud of our students and their academic work ethic.”