Assessment
ASSESSMENT
Columbus uses a variety of assessment data in order to improve school programs. Annual assessments include the state-required Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA). Columbus also evaluates student progress via Math Benchmark assessments, the Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System in Reading as well as Criterion Reference tests. Decisions for math and reading curriculums are based on student performance on the MCA test. As part of the Forest Lake Area School district, state and national guidelines are followed and curricular objectives are adjusted accordingly.FAST:Universal screening is the process of regularly checking every student’s performance (taking their “temperature”) periodically during the school year. This helps to identify students who are responding well to core instruction (on track), as well as those who may require supplemental (some risk) or intensive (high risk) intervention and instructional support as an integral component to an effective MTSS program.
Columbus uses a variety of assessment data in order to improve school programs. Annual assessments include the state-required Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA). Columbus also evaluates student progress via Math Benchmark assessments, the Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System in Reading as well as Criterion Reference tests. Decisions for math and reading curriculums are based on student performance on the MCA test. As part of the Forest Lake Area School district, state and national guidelines are followed and curricular objectives are adjusted accordingly.FAST:Universal screening is the process of regularly checking every student’s performance (taking their “temperature”) periodically during the school year. This helps to identify students who are responding well to core instruction (on track), as well as those who may require supplemental (some risk) or intensive (high risk) intervention and instructional support as an integral component to an effective MTSS program.
Results of assessments are used as an ongoing analysis of student achievement. Results are also used to evaluate individual student progress and effective teaching in individual classrooms, as well as offer a base for goal setting for individual students and for tracking student growth. Specialized programs can often be generated, as a result of assessment outcomes, to better meet the academic needs of individual students. Assessments also provide valuable information to parents regarding the academic progress of their child.
Students at Columbus score above the State Standards in Math and Reading.Staff and students always celebrate learning at Columbus Elementary!