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Trustees table adoption of NWEA MAP assessment suite until STAR results are available
Summary
After extended discussion about training, instructional time and predictive validity, the Conroe ISD board voted 4–3 to table approval of the NWEA MAP assessment suite pending STAR correlation data and additional teacher feedback.
The Conroe Independent School District Board of Trustees debated for more than an hour on March 18 whether to adopt the NWEA Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessment suite as a replacement for several existing screeners and interim assessments.
Doctor Medford, who presented the item for Teaching and Learning, said the district piloted MAP at six campuses and recommended approval because the assessment provides diagnostic information teachers can use to tailor instruction. “We’re excited to give our teachers this high quality assessment suite that can really give them time back instructionally as well as just some really accurate data to help our kids,” Medford told trustees.
Trustees pressed staff for details about what MAP would replace, how long each administration would take, training plans, and whether MAP would be predictive of STAAR performance. Dr. Medford and assessment staff said MAP would replace many screening and interim assessments (including several reading and math screeners and the released STAR in grades 3–8), and that MAP sessions typically are recommended to be about 45 minutes though pilot classrooms reported a wide range of administration times.
Concerns from trustees and teachers included:
- The time students spend testing: trustee questions and teacher reports indicated some pilot students finished quickly while others reportedly took most of a day; staff said better training and clearer administration limits reduced that variability. - Teacher readiness to interpret MAP data: staff said the assessment team and instructional coaches would be trained and then train teachers; trustees asked for robust coaching because some pilot teachers reported they did not yet feel prepared to use MAP reports. - Predictive validity for STAAR: staff said districts using MAP have seen stronger STAR predictability than prior interims but acknowledged Conroe lacks long-term local correlation data. Several trustees asked to see STAR correlation before adopting districtwide.
Trustee Horton moved to table the item until after STAR results are available so trustees could review correlation data and gather more teacher feedback; another trustee seconded. The motion to table passed 4–3, and the item was formally recorded as tabled.
Board discussion also covered funding. Staff said the purchase would be paid from the instructional materials technology allotment and would not reduce the district’s general fund. Several trustees said they supported the assessment’s diagnostic benefits but wanted more time to ensure teachers were trained and data were validated locally before a full rollout.
The board will revisit the item after STAR results and additional teacher feedback are collected; presenters said instructional coaches would receive training in May and teachers would receive districtwide training before fall implementation if the board later approves the purchase.
