I-Ready was designed to help identify learning gaps and provide academic support, yet many students at HPHS question its accuracy and whether the assessments genuinely help them learn.
Officially launched in 2011, i-Ready has designed an assessment that is meant to record how well or inadequately a student does in math and English language arts. The diagnostic test primarily consists of multiple-choice questions, questions involving reading passages, and a brief brain break. The overall scores for i-Ready range from 100-800, but it has different meanings based on each grade. The scores a student receives determine what categories they will be placed in such as below, on, or above grade level. This also meant to figure out what kinds of lessons a student receives since the purpose of these lessons is to help fill in learning gaps.
At HPHS, students who do well are often praised for their results, while students who receive lower scores may not receive the same recognition or explanation about how the school plans to support them. After the i-Ready scores have been reviewed, students receive a brief shoutout during our House of Reps. Zoom meetings. Despite this, here at HPHS I believe that there’s better alternatives to replace i-Ready.
“Maybe our teachers could give us our own kind of test once a semester or every grading period, make it based on the things we’ve learned in class, and send it to the principal or district to review,” says Kaylee Ayala, a junior at HPHS.
“We should stick to the old school testing, the SBA and keep that. I don’t think we need that many tests since the i-Ready isn’t something that colleges pay attention to and if we focus on the SBA and SAT, I feel like it’ll be enough already to help us advance.” says Guillermo Monay, a junior at HPHS.
The Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) is an assessment that juniors typically take. However, HPHS can also use the Interim Comprehensive Assessment (ICA) or the Interim Assessment Blocks (IAB) throughout the year, which can be administered to grades 9, 10, and 12. These assessments can be used to check a student’s progress to see if they meet ELA and Math standards as well, not what grade level they’re at.
In my experience, the ICA and IAB cause less stress. This is because they are commonly set to be at the end of the year, which encourages teachers to start a period of review during the class. Whether it is practicing problems or prompts, students have a better idea of what to expect on the day of rather than being surprised and having curveballs thrown at them.
Aside from that, the scoring systems for the ICA and IAB are different since they solely focus on learning targets and whether a student has met those targets. Realistically because of this, teachers can adapt their lesson plans to help their students fill those learning gaps.
In addition to the SBA, ICA and IAB, sophomores must also take the PSAT (Preliminary SAT), and juniors may take the SAT. The PSAT is simply a preparation test for the SAT to see where a student is and how to improve on certain targets through the skills insight feature. The difference is that the SAT can be used as a part of the college admissions process and for certain scholarship opportunities. Because the SAT can have a direct connection to college admissions and scholarships, some students may view preparing for it as more important than completing i-Ready.
Additionally, the accuracy of the i-Ready diagnostic scores has caused many of us to complain about how the scoring system works and has even led some students to no longer try their best on the assessment. As the test progresses, it is expected to correspond to the student’s possible score. Yet it still does not fully assess every learning target a student has practiced.
As the school worries more about the i-Ready scores, students worry less. It has even gotten to the point where HPHS has prioritized i-Ready testing over state testing. If a student misses school on the day there’s i-Ready testing, they are summoned to complete their test. Meanwhile, if a student misses the IAB or ICA, they are not summoned to complete it, which seems like something that does not add up because these tests are more beneficial than the i-ready test itself.
During the i-Ready sessions, many students complain about the score they get while others simply accept it, not caring about the outcome as the majority of the students know it won’t affect their grade. Students who excel both inside and outside the classroom question whether their scores accurately represent what they know.
“I don’t think it’s accurate because some years I have a better understanding in math and I do get a good score, but my scores have also gone down whenever I’m being told to answer questions that aren’t even in my learning range.” says Chelsea Penaloza, a junior at HPHS.
Chelsea’s experience raises a larger question. If a student’s score changes significantly based on questions they encounter during the assessment, does that score accurately reflect everything they have learned?
I myself have had a stressful experience with the i-Ready assessment as well. Since eighth grade, my scores have fluctuated between the below grade level and the meeting grade level. Seeing my results repeatedly change has made me question how accurately the assessment represents what I actually know. I have also received the same lessons multiple times and encountered questions that felt repetitive, which has made it harder for me to see how the assessment is helping me improve.
i-Ready may be designed to help students, but its scores do not always reflect what students know or how they learn. HPHS should listen to students’ concerns and consider other ways to measure academic progress, including classroom-based assessments and assessments that are directly connected to what students have been learning. No single test should determine how a student is viewed academically.
If i-Ready is meant to identify learning gaps, students should be able to see how the results help them improve, not simply receive a score and move on, especially considering that the i-Ready testing format is not working out as expected, making more students try less and less every time they take it.
By: Diana Morales, Assistant Opinions Editor