APS to update interim reading goals to Emera after Istation merger; board presses on equity and data privacy

The Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education discussed on Sept. 17 changing the language of interim goals 1.1 and 1.2 to reflect Emera as the district’s progress-monitoring assessment after the Istation and Emera companies merged. Superintendent Gabriela Duran Blakey told the board, “Both of those goals originally referenced the Istation assessment tool. But since that time, Istation and Emera have merged into one company. So as a result, the Istation assessment that we previously used for our progress monitoring of interim goals 1.1 and 1.2 is no longer available.”

Why it matters: the New Mexico Public Education Department requires districts to use the statewide assessment for certain progress monitoring and schools use those results to trigger additional monthly monitoring for students not making gains. Board members pressed administrators on how Emera differs from Istation, pilot results, time students spend on the tool, how the tool handles accents and speech differences, and who owns the audio and assessment data.

Administration and vendor details: Blakey said the…