Colorado Student Assessment Program
Encyclopedia
For the school board in Nova Scotia, see Conseil Scolaire Acadien Provincial
The Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) is an assessment required by the No Child Left Behind Act
administered by the Unit of Student Assessment in the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The CSAP is designed to measure how well students are learning material from the Colorado Model Content Standards
, the established content standards that all Colorado
public school students should learn. The CSAP only tests for (mathematics
, reading and writing
, and science
) of the thirteen subject areas in the Colorado Model Content Standards.
all students are expected to take their grade level's version of the CSAP, testing for which typically occurs during the Spring semester from early February to late March. All grades are tested in Reading, Writing, and Math, and only 5th, 8th, and 10th graders are tested in Science. The 3rd and 4th Grade versions of the CSAP are also available in Spanish
to accommodate the high number of Spanish-speaking students in Colorado public schools who concurrently learn English
. In 11th Grade (Junior year of High School) students are required to take the COACT (a Colorado specific version of the ACT
) in place of the CSAP. The COACT is also administered by the Unit of Student Assessment.
Schools are rated by the averaged CSAP scores of their students. Low-scoring schools are eligible for School Improvement Plan assistance from the Colorado Department of Education. If a school receives an unsatisfactory rating (level 1) for two consecutive years it will be recommended it be turned into a charter school
-- unless it had an improvement of 0.5 of a point greater from the standard deviation over the immediately preceding year's overall standardized, weighted total score. Schools with three consecutive unsatisfactory ratings will be converted into charter schools. School districts with consistently low-scoring schools can lose their accreditation.
(CSAPA) instead of the CSAP.
All School Improvement Plans must address the requirements in the No Child Left Behind Act Section 1116(a)(3)(A). Schools needing additional funding can apply for a Federal Title I A School Improvement Grant
. The Colorado Department of Education provides a How-To document for this purpose on their website.
has several other Federal Programs that Colorado schools can petition for aid if they qualify. In addition to the Title I A grant these programs include: Title I C - Migrant Education, Title I D - help for Neglected and delinquent children, Title II B - math and science partnership grants, Title II D - grants for enchanging education through technology, Title III - Language instruction for Limited-English Students, Title IV - Safe and Drug Free Schools, Title V A - Innovative Programs, Title V B - Public Charter Schools, and Title VI B - Rural Education Initiative.
However, most Colorado LEAs (Local Educational Associations, e.g. Schools and School Districts) submit a Consolidated Federal Programs Application yearly which covers applications for Title I A, Title II A, Title II D, Title III, Title IV, Title V, and Title VI B programs.
Funds received from these programs are distributed through the CDE to LEAs, and the amounts awarded for each State and Federal grant are published on the CDE website.
. The Colorado Department of Education's plans to make Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) are published on their website. Results from the CSAP, CSAPA, and graduations rates are used to create AYP calculations for Colorado school districts. The Unit of Student Assessment also administers the National Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP) to Colorado public school students.
If a school is receiving a Title I grant and does not meet all the requirements of their AYP for two consecutive years in the same content area the school must create a School Improvement Plan. The school district is also required to provide transportation for students from the school not meeting their AYP to a higher performing school in the same district.
Conseil scolaire acadien provincial
The Conseil scolaire acadien provincial is the Francophone school board for Nova Scotia.It was created in 1996.-Région Nord-Est :*Centre scolaire Étoile de l'Acadie; Sydney*École acadienne de Pomquet; Pomquet*École Beau-Port; Arichat...
The Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) is an assessment required by the No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
administered by the Unit of Student Assessment in the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The CSAP is designed to measure how well students are learning material from the Colorado Model Content Standards
Colorado Model Content Standards
The Colorado Model Content Standards are a set of curriculum standards for teaching civics, dance, economics, foreign language, geography, history, mathematics, music, physical education, reading and writing, science, theatre, and visual arts....
, the established content standards that all Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
public school students should learn. The CSAP only tests for (mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, reading and writing
Writing
Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols . It is distinguished from illustration, such as cave drawing and painting, and non-symbolic preservation of language via non-textual media, such as magnetic tape audio.Writing most likely...
, and science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
) of the thirteen subject areas in the Colorado Model Content Standards.
Administration
Starting in 3rd Grade, and continuing until 10th Grade (Sophomore year of High School),all students are expected to take their grade level's version of the CSAP, testing for which typically occurs during the Spring semester from early February to late March. All grades are tested in Reading, Writing, and Math, and only 5th, 8th, and 10th graders are tested in Science. The 3rd and 4th Grade versions of the CSAP are also available in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
to accommodate the high number of Spanish-speaking students in Colorado public schools who concurrently learn English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. In 11th Grade (Junior year of High School) students are required to take the COACT (a Colorado specific version of the ACT
ACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
) in place of the CSAP. The COACT is also administered by the Unit of Student Assessment.
Assessment
CSAP is graded on a scale of four proficiency/performance levels. Level 4 is referred to as "advanced," level 3 as "proficient," level 2 as "partially proficient," and level 1 as "unsatisfactory." The Colorado Department of Education website details their standards for each level on each test, and how each score is determined.Schools are rated by the averaged CSAP scores of their students. Low-scoring schools are eligible for School Improvement Plan assistance from the Colorado Department of Education. If a school receives an unsatisfactory rating (level 1) for two consecutive years it will be recommended it be turned into a charter school
Charter school
Charter schools are primary or secondary schools that receive public money but are not subject to some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results, which are set forth in each school's charter...
-- unless it had an improvement of 0.5 of a point greater from the standard deviation over the immediately preceding year's overall standardized, weighted total score. Schools with three consecutive unsatisfactory ratings will be converted into charter schools. School districts with consistently low-scoring schools can lose their accreditation.
Exceptions
According to C.R.S. 22-7-409, schools are held accountable for the scores of all their students with three exceptions: (1) students transferring into the school after October 1, (2) students whose dominant language is not English for the first three years enrolled in Colorado public schools, (3) for any students taking the Colorado Student Assessment Program AlternateColorado Student Assessment Program Alternate
The Colorado Student Assessment Program Alternate is a version of the CSAP test for students who meet certain eligibility requirements . Generally these are students with disabilities or in cases where other extenuating factors make taking the CSAP unreasonable.While Colorado public schools are...
(CSAPA) instead of the CSAP.
All School Improvement Plans must address the requirements in the No Child Left Behind Act Section 1116(a)(3)(A). Schools needing additional funding can apply for a Federal Title I A School Improvement Grant
School Improvement Grant
School Improvement Grants are grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Education to state education agencies under Section 1003 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965...
. The Colorado Department of Education provides a How-To document for this purpose on their website.
Funding implications
The No Child Left Behind ActNo Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
has several other Federal Programs that Colorado schools can petition for aid if they qualify. In addition to the Title I A grant these programs include: Title I C - Migrant Education, Title I D - help for Neglected and delinquent children, Title II B - math and science partnership grants, Title II D - grants for enchanging education through technology, Title III - Language instruction for Limited-English Students, Title IV - Safe and Drug Free Schools, Title V A - Innovative Programs, Title V B - Public Charter Schools, and Title VI B - Rural Education Initiative.
However, most Colorado LEAs (Local Educational Associations, e.g. Schools and School Districts) submit a Consolidated Federal Programs Application yearly which covers applications for Title I A, Title II A, Title II D, Title III, Title IV, Title V, and Title VI B programs.
Funds received from these programs are distributed through the CDE to LEAs, and the amounts awarded for each State and Federal grant are published on the CDE website.
Relationship to other assessments
In addition to the CSAP, Colorado is also subject to the same requirements as the rest of the United States in the No Child Left Behind ActNo Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
. The Colorado Department of Education's plans to make Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
(AYP) are published on their website. Results from the CSAP, CSAPA, and graduations rates are used to create AYP calculations for Colorado school districts. The Unit of Student Assessment also administers the National Assessment of Educational Progress
National Assessment of Educational Progress
The National Assessment of Educational Progress is the largest continuing and nationally representative assessment of what our nation’s students know and can do in core subjects. NAEP is a congressionally mandated project administered by the National Center for Education Statistics , within the ...
(NAEP) to Colorado public school students.
If a school is receiving a Title I grant and does not meet all the requirements of their AYP for two consecutive years in the same content area the school must create a School Improvement Plan. The school district is also required to provide transportation for students from the school not meeting their AYP to a higher performing school in the same district.
External links
- Coalition for Better Education (A group of Coloradans against the CSAP)
- Poor Performance on the CSAP Is Highly Correlated with Receiving Free or Reduced Lunch
- Particular Library Media Programs Increase CSAP Scores
- Colorado Department of Education
- CSAP: A Guide for Parents (English and Spanish Brochures)
- CSAP Summary Data
- CSAP District and School Disaggregated Data
- Colorado Law Pertaining to State Assessments
- Implications for use of the ACT within the Colorado Student Assessment Program (pdf)
- Assessing the CSAP: How Can We Assess the Quality of a Large Scale Standards-Based Assessment? (pdf, published 1998)
- NAEP Report for Colorado (pdf)
- Colorado's Model Content Standards by Subject
- School Accountability Search (Quickly provides data related to CSAP and NCLB calculations)
- Denver Post CSAP Articles
- Rocky Mountain News CSAP Scores Look-up