Bridgeport officials review midyear assessment data; district pinpoints pacing and curriculum focus for math and ELA

Bridgeport School District staff presented midyear assessment findings on March 6, noting uneven results across grades and assessments and recommending targeted pacing and curriculum work to raise student proficiency.

The presentation, delivered to the Instructional Support Services Committee by Dr. Shecky, compared Smarter Balanced results (the state’s annual assessment), the district’s interim assessment benchmarks (IABs), and a midyear NWEA benchmark. Staff said NWEA trends look more positive in several grades while some interim assessments—especially in math—were “focused” checks that covered only a small skill set rather than a full domain, making direct comparisons to Smarter Balanced misleading.

Why it matters: Committee members said the midyear data will guide spring instruction and summer curriculum work. Staff recommended revising pacing maps so instruction emphasizes the state-assessed focus areas and giving principals and teachers clearer, district-level guidance on unit plans and small-group instruction.

Key details - Assessments used: Smarter Balanced (state yearly assessment), interim assessment benchmarks (IABs), and a district-administered NWEA benchmark given in mid-January. IAB1 was administered in December; IAB2 in February; NWEA in mid-January. IAB3 is expected in late March and will be reported in April. - Math: Many of the district’s math interim checks were “focused” items (single skills inside a domain) rather than full interim assessments; staff warned this can inflate apparent performance and said revised pacing is needed so coverage aligns with the Smarter Balanced blueprint. - ELA (English language arts): Staff reported weaker results on comprehension skills—summarizing, inference, finding text evidence—and proposed summer curriculum work to specify lessons that explicitly teach those skills and provide principals with clearer instructional expectations. - New benchmark: District replaced I-Ready with NWEA as the growth benchmark; staff said NWEA is a strong predictor of Smarter Balanced outcomes and shows positive trends in grades 7–8. - Instructional supports: Eleven schools have math coaching through a school improvement grant and publishers’ coaches who model lessons, plan with teachers, and provide in‑the‑moment coaching.

Committee discussion and next steps Committee members asked for grade-level follow-ups and individualized reports. Staff said they will return with the March/IAB3 results at the April meeting and recommended reinstating district and school data teams to analyze and act on benchmark results. Several members urged more professional learning so teachers and principals can use interim data to form focused small-group instruction immediately.

Quoted from meeting participants Dr. Shecky, district presenter: “One of the initiatives that we’re going to propose … is that we redo our pacing and really target those focus areas to get us back on pacing target.”

Closing District staff said they will bring the March interim results (IAB3) to the committee in April and provide more granular school- and grade-level reports to drive small-group interventions and pacing revisions.