NWEA Action Planning for Improvement 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A principal wants to evaluate whether an action plan's professional development component is effective. Which indicator would MOST directly measure this?
- Number of PD hours logged by teachers
- Change in instructional practices observed in classrooms (Correct answer)
- Teacher satisfaction survey scores
- Number of new curriculum materials purchased
Correct answer: Change in instructional practices observed in classrooms
Observable changes in instructional practice directly reflect whether professional development is translating into improved teaching, which is the intended outcome.
Question 2: A data team is prioritizing which students to include in a Tier 2 intervention as part of their action plan. Which MAP Growth criterion is MOST appropriate for identifying Tier 2 candidates?
- Students whose RIT scores are above the 50th percentile normative mean
- Students whose RIT scores fall between the 25th and 40th percentile with below-expected growth (Correct answer)
- Students with perfect attendance but below-average grades
- Students who scored below proficiency on state tests two years in a row
Correct answer: Students whose RIT scores fall between the 25th and 40th percentile with below-expected growth
Tier 2 typically targets students who show moderate risk — below normative expectations but not the most intensive need — making the 25th–40th percentile with low growth an appropriate criterion.
Question 3: A school revises its action plan mid-year after fall-to-winter MAP Growth results show students are not on track. This practice is an example of:
- Reactive planning that undermines goal stability
- Adaptive management using interim data (Correct answer)
- Summative assessment-driven decision making
- Norm-referenced curriculum alignment
Correct answer: Adaptive management using interim data
Adjusting an action plan based on interim MAP Growth results is a hallmark of adaptive management, ensuring the plan remains responsive to actual student progress.
Question 4: Which of the following NWEA MAP Growth reports would help a data team evaluate whether a specific instructional intervention is closing an achievement gap over time?
- Student Profile Report
- Achievement Status and Growth Summary (Correct answer)
- Descartes Item Difficulty Report
- National Norms Percentile Chart
Correct answer: Achievement Status and Growth Summary
The Achievement Status and Growth Summary displays group-level achievement and growth trends, making it ideal for tracking whether an intervention is narrowing a gap over multiple terms.
Question 5: An action plan includes the strategy: 'Teachers will provide differentiated small-group instruction targeting DesCartes skill statements at each student's instructional RIT level.' This strategy is BEST characterized as:
- Whole-class remediation
- Data-informed differentiated instruction (Correct answer)
- Test preparation drilling
- Universal screening protocol
Correct answer: Data-informed differentiated instruction
Using each student's RIT level to target DesCartes skill statements for small-group instruction is the definition of data-informed differentiated instruction.
Question 6: A school's action plan sets a goal for students with disabilities to achieve average or above-average growth compared to NWEA growth norms. Why is comparing to growth norms — rather than status norms — especially important for this subgroup?
- Growth norms are easier to meet than status norms
- Growth measures progress from each student's starting point, making it a fairer measure of improvement (Correct answer)
- Status norms do not apply to students with disabilities
- Growth norms are required by federal law for special education
Correct answer: Growth measures progress from each student's starting point, making it a fairer measure of improvement
Growth norms measure how much each student advances from their own baseline, which is more equitable and informative than comparing absolute performance levels across diverse learners.
Question 7: Which step in the action planning cycle comes IMMEDIATELY after analyzing MAP Growth data to identify needs?
- Evaluating the success of prior interventions
- Setting measurable improvement goals (Correct answer)
- Publishing results to the school community
- Scheduling the next assessment window
Correct answer: Setting measurable improvement goals
After needs are identified through data analysis, the next step is establishing clear, measurable goals that the subsequent strategies will aim to achieve.
NWEA Action Planning for Improvement 3
A principal wants to evaluate whether an action plan's professional development component is effective.
Which indicator would MOST directly measure this?