> NWEA MAP Growth Testing
NWEA MAP Growth Testing

In second through eighth grade, students at Immaculate Heart of Mary take the MAP® Growth™ (Measure of Academic Progress®) test in the fall and the spring of each year. This assessment, created by the Northwest Evaluation Association™ (NWEA™), helps us to measure our students’ growth and learning needs and to formulate our instruction.

Test Information

The tests, which our students take in mathematics, reading, language usage, and science, are personalized to each student’s academic performance. Our students take the test in the computer lab, and as they progress, the test automatically adjusts the rigor of the questions based on their individual progress. As a result, no two tests are the same, and the results become a precise indicator of each student’s proficiency.

What are the benefits of MAP® Growth™ testing?

  • Detailed student achievement information is available for teachers and parents within 24-36 hours of testing.
  • Individualized plans with target growth areas are identified for every student.
  • Reports for student, school, diocesan and “Norm Group” are available.
  • mSTEP comparison scores can be generated.
  • “RIT to Reading Range Report” is provided for each student with links to reading resources.

How does IHM use the MAP® Growth™ test?

Our MAP® test results are a great indicator of how our students perform individually and how our school performs as a whole. We can identify individual students that need specific interventions and students who would benefit from enrichment. As a school, our data indicate that in nearly every content area Immaculate Heart of Mary students:

  • Are ready to learn at or above grade level
  • Are performing above the national norm
  • Are performing above the norm for the Dioceses of Grand Rapids.

How do you interpret the results?

After every MAP® interim assessment, each student receives a score that helps illuminate what he or she knows, is ready to learn, and is projected to achieve. And thanks to something no other interim assessment offers—a mature, reliable, and stable scale—you can trust that the scores you see are both accurate and fair. Our scale, the RIT (Rasch Unit) scale, is a stable equal-interval vertical scale.

 

MAP Assessments: Our scales and norms. NWEA, 2014.

Helpful Links

For additional information, visit the NWEA website.