Studies show that many students do not perform well in the state Summative assessments at the end of the school year in spite of knowing the concepts well. The reason for this is today’s state assessment requires that the students are well versed in use of computers to answer the different tech enhanced question types in addition to understanding the concepts.
The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) is one of the two state consortiums responsible for developing assessments aligned to the rigorous Common Core State Standards.
Thousands of educators, along with test developers, have worked together to create the new computer based English Language Arts and Math Assessments.
SBAC’s first round of testing occurred during the 2014 – 2015 school year. The tests are conducted online. The students will face a variety of new technology-enhanced questions as a part of the computer based tests. There are 14 different types of question types that the students encounter in SBAC
Practice of the questions related to the various CCSS standards in addition to the practice of answering different question types would be the right mix for success on the SBAC.
The SBAC assessment includes the item types such as
Multiple choice, single correct response
These are questions in which 4 answer choices will be provided for each question out of which one choice will be correct. The student needs to select the correct answer choice.
Multiple choice, multiple correct responses
These are questions in which 4 answer choices will be provided for each question out of which more than one choice will be correct. The student needs to select all the correct answer choices.
Matching Tables
This is a matching question in which the each line item in a row needs to be matched with the correct answer in different columns
Drag and Drop
The question will be followed by different choices. The correct answer choice should be selected, dragged and dropped into the answer box provided.
Hot text
These are questions in which 4 answer choices will be provided for each question out of which one choice will be correct. The student needs to highlight the correct answer by clicking on it.
Table Fill in
Students need to understand the logic and fill in the blanks in a given table.
Graphing
This could involve plotting the coordinates or an interactive bar chart
Equation/numeric
The students are expected to give one word answers in a numeric response while an equation drop down would involve building an equation
Two-part multiple-choice, with evidence responses
This is a multiple choice question with 2 parts in which Part B involves identifying the reason or evidence for the answer of Part A
Short answer
This is a short essay type answer
Extended constructed response
This is an essay type answer.
You can get more practice of these questions in the assessments that mirror the latest blueprints on the Lumos Learning web site.
To experience the program and to sign up, click here
For more information and FAQ related to SBAC, click here
