• District/State-Level Assessments

    As a public school in ASD and in the State of Alaska, Polaris is required to administer all district and state-level assessments to students are certain grade levels. These assessments are outlined below:

     

    Elementary

    Alaska Developmental Profile (K)

    An Alaska Developmental Profile (ADP) must be completed through the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) for all Kindergarten students in the state of Alaska.

    The purpose of the Alaska Developmental Profile (ADP) is to identify, record and summarize the skills and behaviors students demonstrate at the beginning of their kindergarten year.  This information is based on teacher observations. Student skills and behaviors are defined by goals and indicators in the following five domains from Alaska’s Early Learning Guidelines: Physical Well-Being, Health, and Motor Development; Social and Emotional Development; Approaches to Learning; Cognition and General Knowledge; and Communication, Language, and Literacy.

    mClass (K-5)

    mClass is the universal Early Literacy Screener selected by the AK Department of Education and Early Development and used by the Anchorage School District to help with the early identification of students with reading deficits. Students in grades K-5 will take the mClass screener three times each year: fall, winter, and spring.

    MAP Growth- Reading and Mathematics (3-5)

    MAP Growth is a computer-adaptive test. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. This type of assessment challenges top performers without overwhelming students whose skills are below grade level.

    MAP Growth uses a RIT scale to accurately measure what students know, regardless of their grade level. It also measures growth over time, allowing you to track your child’s progress throughout the school year and across multiple years. 

    AK Star- Reading and Mathematics (3-5) & Science (5)

    The Alaska System of Academic Readiness (AK STAR) is designed to streamline the testing experience for grades 3–9 in the areas of English language arts (ELA) and mathematics. This balanced approach connects fall and winter MAP Growth interim assessments and the Alaska spring summative assessment to provide a comprehensive assessment system that improves efficiency and cohesion and drives student outcomes by prioritizing teaching and learning. A robust and customized approach to professional learning accompanies the new assessment system, expanding Alaska educators’ assessment literacy and knowledge of strategies for data-informed decision-making and formative instructional practices.

    Polaris-Specific Assessment Measures- Elementary

    Used in conjunction with the district/state-level assessments outlined above, Polaris uses additional assessment measures to more clearly identify student needs and, therefore, better adjust instruction to meet their individual needs. These additional assessments are determined by grade-level teams, as appropriate. The exception to this is the utilization of AimsWeb (mComp) across our 1-5 program, which is a foundational math assessment used to quickly identify the basic computation skills each student knows so we can help fill necessary gaps in understanding and skill quickly and in a timely manner.

     

    Secondary

    MAP Growth- Reading and Mathematics (6-9)

    MAP Growth is a computer-adaptive test. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. This type of assessment challenges top performers without overwhelming students whose skills are below grade level.

    MAP Growth uses a RIT scale to accurately measure what students know, regardless of their grade level. It also measures growth over time, allowing you to track your child’s progress throughout the school year and across multiple years. 

    AK Star- Reading and Mathematics (6-9) & Science (8 & 10)

    The Alaska System of Academic Readiness (AK STAR) is designed to streamline the testing experience for grades 3–9 in the areas of English language arts (ELA) and mathematics. This balanced approach connects fall and winter MAP Growth interim assessments and the Alaska spring summative assessment to provide a comprehensive assessment system that improves efficiency and cohesion and drives student outcomes by prioritizing teaching and learning. A robust and customized approach to professional learning accompanies the new assessment system, expanding Alaska educators’ assessment literacy and knowledge of strategies for data-informed decision-making and formative instructional practices.

    Polaris-Specific Assessment Measures- Secondary

    Used in conjunction with the district/state-level assessments outlined above, Polaris uses additional assessment measures to more clearly identify student needs and, therefore, better adjust instruction to meet their individual needs. These additional assessments are determined by course instructors and could include pre- post- unit assessments, essays, projects, etc.