Using Data to Inform Learning Design - RPI

As teachers, we know that assessing our students' reading skills is essential for tracking their progress and identifying areas where they need extra support.  As a BT in 'testing week' I felt a bit overwhelmed with how to make sense of all the data, let alone how I would use it to plan effective reading instruction. The past 3 weeks I've gotten to analyse my students' PAT Reading Comprehension assessments as part of the Manaiakalani Reading Programme Intensive (RPI). In this post, I will explore the results of my class' most recent assessment and how I plan to use this data to inform learning design.

The assessment data revealed that the majority of Year 4 students (57%) were at stanine 5-6, and 43% were at stanine 7-8.

Additionally, 100% of Year 4 learners were at or above expectation.  This was very encouraging to see.  I have made it a personal teaching and learning goal to maintain the at or above level the year 4's currently have and sustain that acceleration throughout the year.

In Year 5, 82% of learners were at or above expectation, and in Year 6, 50% of learners were at or above expectation.  Seeing the different year level results side by side has made clear to me that our Year 6's will need a lot of support.

Strengths : 

• Retrieval questions were a strength, with learners showing the ability to find and use information to answer questions.  This is positive sign that they have a good understanding of the texts they have read.

While the results showed significant strengths, there were also some gaps in students' learning :

• Inference needs to be worked on more as it is improving, but needs work when making inferences within the text as opposed to pictures. 

• Additionally, narrative and poem text types are a knowledge gap.

• This could be due to limited knowledge around unpacking poems and narratives.

The assessment data also revealed that students struggled with certain text types.  In Year 4, explanation, poetry, and report were identified as problem areas.  In Year 5 and 6, narrative, poem, procedural, and recount were also identified as problem areas.

Using Data to Inform Learning Design : 
So how can we use this data to inform our learning design? An approach we were shown at the first two RPI sessions was creating a task board that includes activities that address the gaps and problem areas identified in the assessment. For example, to address the knowledge gap in narrative and poem text types, we can include activities that help students unpack and analyse these types of texts.  We can also include activities that focus on making inferences within the text.
In Week 8 and 9, I introduced task boards to my reading groups.

Task boards outline specific reading activities and targets for each reading group I have.  Using the task board as a means for targeted instruction helped both the students and myself to see how their assessment results connected to their learning goals.  I found that this also gave them a sense of ownership over their progress.

I also introduced the use of a digital modelling book with each of my groups.  I've begun to put questions into the modelling book that are similar to questions a group may have answered incorrectly in their PAT tests.  I make sure to tell them that the questions in the modelling book are in the same style of ones "we got wrong" as a means of motivating them to think about the way they answer them - I think this has been effective and improved both engagement and care for their work.

Another approach is to co-construct learning goals with students based on their assessment results.  For example, if a student struggled with inference, we can work with them to set a goal to improve their skills in this area.  This approach empowers students to take ownership of their learning and encourages a growth mindset.

From my RPI homework I have taken away the following points :

• Analysing assessment data is essential to teaching and learning (it's not just there for reports!)
• By understanding the strengths and gaps in our students' learning, we can tailor our learning design to meed our students needs