Lee County Public Schools use the reading assessment known as STAR Reading to measure students success in reading skills. STAR offers valid and reliable data within minutes of a student taking this online assessment. Students are given this assessment four times throughout the year. Many teachers use this diagnostic tool as a benchmark for their student's individualized instruction to accelerate their reading skills. 

 

In mid-January 2016, my mentor teacher and I administered this online assessment to our 18 students. Most of the students are on IEP plans had had accommodates, so administrating the test took a few days. Once all students have completed the assessment, the second grade team meets to review results and assign students to groups based on their percent ranking. Over the next quarter, students attend a small group with peers who ranked similar in the STAR testing. The teacher in the group arranges small group instruction that aims to build on the students weaker areas. 

 

After meeting as a grade team, my mentor and myself also reviewed the data and determined a strategy of our own that focused on the needs of our students alone. We were able to establish a plan that focuses on reading skills that could use the most attention and grouped our class according to their greatest need of improvement. Student are given weekly checkpoints that assist in monitoring student’s development in areas where students are assessed. We monitored these checkpoints to ensure that students were ready for the third quarter STAR assessment. Our careful review and thorough planning paid off, as the majority of the students showed improvement in their assessments on the STAR and within their checkpoints.