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District 109 presents new Panorama SEL results and explains NWEA/MAP renorming
Summary
District staff presented fresh Panorama SEL survey results and described changes in Panorama questions and NWEA MAP norms/algorithm that alter percentile comparisons; administrators cautioned against year‑over‑year comparisons and said RIT scores remain useful for local tracking.
District staff on Oct. 16 briefed the board on the district's Panorama social-emotional learning (SEL) survey and recent NWEA MAP assessment changes, saying both instruments have updated content and norms that affect how results should be compared to prior years.
Daniel (the district’s SEL lead) told the board the Panorama survey closed on Tuesday and results were released Wednesday; because Panorama’s question language and benchmarks were revised and the reference group expanded, the district can now compare grade bands (elementary vs. middle) rather than lumping all students together. Daniel said one growth‑mindset item — "when you make a mistake, how often do you ask for ways you can do better?" — showed only about 22% favorable responses among elementary students on that question, and he urged the board to interpret changes cautiously because of re‑norming.
On MAP testing, the district explained that NWEA changed both norms and the test-selection algorithm to prioritize grade-level items first. The administration said those changes can shift percentile ranks while RIT (Rasch) scores remain comparable over time; as an example, a RIT that once equated to the 60th percentile may now fall near the 62nd or 68th depending on subject and norming group. Officials emphasized the district will focus on cohort growth and RIT measures to monitor student progress through the year.
Board members asked for additional breakdowns by grade and for deeper item‑level analysis before the winter re‑assessment. Daniel said teacher and parent reports are available and the district intends to provide parent reports at conferences and further analysis of specific Panorama questions before February testing.
