Ames Students Take New Tests This Week

By Kathy Hanson

 Ames students in grades three through eight during the week of Feb. 6 will be taking the Iowa Assessment—an updated, revamped and renamed version of the test previously known as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. 

The test has been aligned to the new state expectations from the Iowa Common Core and field-tested with students.

New features of the Iowa Assessment include colorful illustrations and more emphasis on application of knowledge through reading comprehension and interpretation of graphs, charts and illustrations. 
 
Assessment Coordinator Marcia DeZonia said all students will take sub-tests for vocabulary, reading comprehension, math and science. Grades four and eight will take the test’s full battery, which also includes spelling, written expression, capitalization, punctuation and social studies. Each sub-test is between 15 and 35 minutes in length, she said, and the students will only spend a portion of each day taking the test.

DeZonia said it’s important for students to be in attendance every day during the testing period.
“We encourage parents to support their students in giving their best effort on the tests,” she said. “If you have further questions about the Iowa Assessment, your school’s principal is a good source of information.”

Although the Iowa Department of Education is still in the process of developing details of reporting requirements, DeZonia said parents and students can expect to learn their scores in a way similar to the ITBS reports.
 
“The District will be providing additional information to parents when the test results are returned to clarify how to understand the new state performance categories,” she said.