by Annie Hamilton

On March 24 Flaherty Primary School hosted an event for students and parents. Th e event was geared at letting parents have dinner and learn about the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test. The event was titled “MAPs and more”.

MAP is the standardized test that Meade County uses for students. Unlike the tests that parents took in our youth, MAP is done on a computer and is a true test of measuring a child’s ability. The test creates a personalized assessment experience by adapting to each student’s learning level. This means that the test should challenge students taking the test.

As the student answers question correctly, the test becomes harder. Unlike the old standardized test that had the same set of questions for every student, MAP adjust to each student individually, that way it can truly judge each student and show a correct assessment of their learning level. Also unlike the old standardized tests, the computerized test allows teachers to have the assessment data within 24 hours.

All of the information about the MAP test was given to parents while they enjoyed a quiet lesson about the testing with teaches in the Flaherty Primary cafeteria. Their children were busy with a lesson of their own in the gym. The kids listened quietly as teacher, Loretta Bednar, read a book called, “When I grow up I want to be...”

The excited children learned about being a chef, an astronaut and several other occupations and what their jobs entailed. After reading the book the children went to craft stations set up in the gym. Their project was to figure out what they wanted to be when they grew up. They had to choose between the jobs that they had heard about in the book, or something else that they found interesting.

Then after they chose a potential future career, they wrote a small play about the career.

Then the students made puppets out of paper and popsicle sticks. At the other end of the gym there were little stages set up where the students could put on a play about what they wanted to be when they grew up, with the script they wrote and the puppet they created.

It was a fun night for the students and an informative night for parents. Students took the time to look to the future and possibly choose a career that will defi ne them as adults and parents took the time to learn about assessments that could help them choose those future goals.

If you would like to learn more about MAP testing you can fi nd it online at www.nwea.org/assessments/map/.