First-ever Mobile Videos Deliver Standardized Test Scores in Parents' Home Language
HOUSTON, March 18, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Thousands of US parents last week received their children's mid-year standardized test results over their phones - with personalized information, in their native language.
Students in Florida, Illinois and Texas who take the MAP® Growth(TM) assessment have traditionally received results in paper form mailed to their homes. Research has shown that many parents - especially those in non-English speaking homes - find the data difficult to comprehend and frustratingly unclear.
"We owe our families the best information we have regarding their children," said Dan Evans, executive director of Assessment, Accountability and Research for the Pinellas County School District. "We wanted to change the dynamic by offering information in a format that is easy to access and understand. Our parents deserve that and so do our children."
In this pilot project, nearly 50,000 students in grades 3-11 received personalized videos produced by Spotlight, a California-based education technology company. The participating districts are located in Pinellas County (FL), Houston and suburban Chicago.
The MAP Growth assessment, produced by the not-for-profit NWEA®, gauges student achievement in reading, language usage, math and science. The assessment tracks the student's academic growth over time, and compare performance to students across the US and within their local district. Parents are able to view a home language-based breakdown of their children's strengths and weaknesses within each subject, while also gaining a better understanding as to how their academics compare to other students of the same age. The videos also present targeted resources that enable parents to support their children's learning.
The videos translate raw test data into animated videos that visualize and verbalize each student's performance. The videos are texted, emailed or electronically linked within a school's communication system. To date, Spotlight has produced personalized videos in English, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Arabic, Vietnamese, and Hmong.
SOURCE Spotlight Education
