Understanding Student Assessment Scores
October 2024
Jeffco Schools administers many different assessments through the year. Some are required by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) and some are to help teachers serve students more effectively and to give the district current data. You can find all assessments administered by Jeffco Schools here.
The main assessments we’re going to concentrate on for this article are:
How to find your child’s DIBELS, MAP, and CMAS scores in Infinite Campus (Student Insights):
Note: Typically, CMAS is for grades 3-8, PSAT is for grades 9 & 10, and SAT is for grade 11. PSAT and SAT reports are accessed online via College Board and usually available in May. Your student should have a College Board login where they can access their scores. If you are having trouble finding their scores, try My SAT under your student’s profile. Schools should be sending home, with your child, paper copies of their scores in September. Unfortunately, PSAT/SAT scores are not available on Student Insights.
What You’ll See in Student Insights (find more information on Jeffco’s Student Insights webpage):
State Tests
CMAS – To measure student proficiency of the Colorado Academic Standards in English language arts, math, and science.
District Tests
MAP – To help teachers pinpoint individual student instructional needs throughout the year.
DIBELS 8 - Jeffco’s READ Act assessment for grades K-3 that measures foundational reading skills three times per year.
Lectura - Jeffco’s Spanish language READ Act assessment for grades K-3 that measures foundational reading skills three times per year.
ACCESS for ELLs (English language learners only) is an annual state test to measure English language proficiency in grades K-12.
Student Learning Plans (This information is included only for students with these learning plans.)
READ – A READ plan lists the goals a student needs to reach grade level in reading. It also describes the learning supports the school will provide to meet those goals.
ALP – The Advanced Learning Plan outlines programming for identified gifted students and is used as a guide for educational planning and decision-making.
Graduation Requirements
High school students - A summary indicating whether a student has met the Graduation Readiness requirement for Math and English Language Arts as well as minimum credit hours necessary for graduation. More information on graduation requirements can be found on Jeffco’s website and on the state website. Note the SAT math score minimum changed from 500 to 480 for those graduating in 2025 and 2026. Find more information here.
What to Keep in Mind When Reviewing Your Child’s Assessment Scores:
Mainly keep in mind that these assessments are just a snapshot in time. If your child was disengaged or not feeling well when taking the assessment, they may not do well on it. This is why MAP in particular is helpful since it’s given three times a year.
You can ask your child’s teacher for the MAP Student Progress Report for your child and you’ll receive your child’s full CMAS report in September, both of which provide more detailed information than you’ll see on Student Insights.
Growth:
MAP & CMAS – make sure your child is growing, not just meeting expectations. Basically, the district and the state want to see each student with a growth score of at least 50. 50 means a year’s worth of growth, though above 50 is more relevant for how it’s calculated. Make sure your child grows a year for each year’s worth of effort they put in. Every child deserves to grow as much as they can. High achievers need to be challenged to keep growing and just accepting that they are meeting or exceeding expectations isn’t enough. It’s not fair to them if they don’t grow at least a year for every year’s worth of effort they put in.
Percentiles:
CMAS will show you the percentiles of your child’s scores, but what Student Insights shows for MAP, you will not get that information. To find MAP percentiles scroll across the MAP graph in Student Insights where you’ll see your child’s score. NWEA last updated their MAP Norm Tables in 2020. Go to page 21 (17 on the document) for the start of the Math Norm Tables and page 27 (23 on the document) for the start of the Reading Norm Tables. Be sure you are looking at the proper assessment time (fall, winter, or spring) and the proper section (math or reading). There are other tables in the document for assessments Jeffco doesn’t use.
To help your child strengthen weak areas on MAP assessments, Prepdog.org has some help.
MAP Scores – Pathway to Higher Education:
Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) that produces MAP assessments has created a College Explorer Tool where you input your child’s spring scores and their grade and it will show you college options that they are on track for, along with offering information about the colleges.
Getting More Help:
Finally, should you need further guidance to address your child’s educational needs, check the GT Department’s website (especially the Family Resource’s page) to see what opportunities there are for parents to connect with the department. If you need further assistance, you can reach out to your GT Resource Teacher (RT). Each school is assigned an RT. RTs not only identify students for Advanced Learning Plans (ALPs – which means the student is designated Gifted & Talented) but they help teachers with resources to benefit gifted students in their classrooms. Find the RT assigned to your child’s school.
The main assessments we’re going to concentrate on for this article are:
- DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) – DIBELS 8 is a district assessment that monitor the development of early literacy skills in kindergarten through 3rd grade students.
- MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) – MAP is an online assessment given three times a year that measures students’ achievement and growth in English language arts, math, and science. MAP provides real-time, actionable data throughout the school year so teachers can best support their students.
- CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success) – The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) requires that students take the CMAS assessments annually in grades 3 through 8. CMAS measures grade-level expectations in English language arts, math, and science, per the Colorado Academic Standards. Students take CMAS in the spring.
- PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) – The PSAT is the practice version of the SAT for 9th and 10th graders and required by CDE. Students take the PSAT in the spring.
- This should not be confused with the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) which is given in the fall to sophomores and juniors as a practice test and is how juniors qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program. If you are considering the PSAT/NMSQT, please read our article Taking the PSAT – One Day Matters. While written in 2014, it is still relevant today.
- SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) – The SAT is aligned with the coursework of Colorado schools and focuses on the skills and concepts that indicate college and career readiness. The SAT also serves as an admission test and is accepted by colleges across the United States. The SAT is given to all Colorado 11th graders, is required by CDE, and used to demonstrate graduation requirements.
How to find your child’s DIBELS, MAP, and CMAS scores in Infinite Campus (Student Insights):
- When you are logged into Infinite Campus, at the bottom of the left pane, click “More.”
- In the right pane, click “Student Insights.”
- If you have multiple children in Jeffco, in the upper right there is a drop-down box to select which child you are viewing results from.
- District Assessments – if you click this box, you will see MAP scores and growth. MAP is typically administered by teachers 3 times per year.
- State Assessments – if you click this box, you will see CMAS scores and growth reports. CMAS is required by the state and is taken in the spring.
Note: Typically, CMAS is for grades 3-8, PSAT is for grades 9 & 10, and SAT is for grade 11. PSAT and SAT reports are accessed online via College Board and usually available in May. Your student should have a College Board login where they can access their scores. If you are having trouble finding their scores, try My SAT under your student’s profile. Schools should be sending home, with your child, paper copies of their scores in September. Unfortunately, PSAT/SAT scores are not available on Student Insights.
What You’ll See in Student Insights (find more information on Jeffco’s Student Insights webpage):
State Tests
CMAS – To measure student proficiency of the Colorado Academic Standards in English language arts, math, and science.
District Tests
MAP – To help teachers pinpoint individual student instructional needs throughout the year.
DIBELS 8 - Jeffco’s READ Act assessment for grades K-3 that measures foundational reading skills three times per year.
Lectura - Jeffco’s Spanish language READ Act assessment for grades K-3 that measures foundational reading skills three times per year.
ACCESS for ELLs (English language learners only) is an annual state test to measure English language proficiency in grades K-12.
Student Learning Plans (This information is included only for students with these learning plans.)
READ – A READ plan lists the goals a student needs to reach grade level in reading. It also describes the learning supports the school will provide to meet those goals.
ALP – The Advanced Learning Plan outlines programming for identified gifted students and is used as a guide for educational planning and decision-making.
Graduation Requirements
High school students - A summary indicating whether a student has met the Graduation Readiness requirement for Math and English Language Arts as well as minimum credit hours necessary for graduation. More information on graduation requirements can be found on Jeffco’s website and on the state website. Note the SAT math score minimum changed from 500 to 480 for those graduating in 2025 and 2026. Find more information here.
What to Keep in Mind When Reviewing Your Child’s Assessment Scores:
Mainly keep in mind that these assessments are just a snapshot in time. If your child was disengaged or not feeling well when taking the assessment, they may not do well on it. This is why MAP in particular is helpful since it’s given three times a year.
You can ask your child’s teacher for the MAP Student Progress Report for your child and you’ll receive your child’s full CMAS report in September, both of which provide more detailed information than you’ll see on Student Insights.
Growth:
MAP & CMAS – make sure your child is growing, not just meeting expectations. Basically, the district and the state want to see each student with a growth score of at least 50. 50 means a year’s worth of growth, though above 50 is more relevant for how it’s calculated. Make sure your child grows a year for each year’s worth of effort they put in. Every child deserves to grow as much as they can. High achievers need to be challenged to keep growing and just accepting that they are meeting or exceeding expectations isn’t enough. It’s not fair to them if they don’t grow at least a year for every year’s worth of effort they put in.
Percentiles:
CMAS will show you the percentiles of your child’s scores, but what Student Insights shows for MAP, you will not get that information. To find MAP percentiles scroll across the MAP graph in Student Insights where you’ll see your child’s score. NWEA last updated their MAP Norm Tables in 2020. Go to page 21 (17 on the document) for the start of the Math Norm Tables and page 27 (23 on the document) for the start of the Reading Norm Tables. Be sure you are looking at the proper assessment time (fall, winter, or spring) and the proper section (math or reading). There are other tables in the document for assessments Jeffco doesn’t use.
To help your child strengthen weak areas on MAP assessments, Prepdog.org has some help.
MAP Scores – Pathway to Higher Education:
Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) that produces MAP assessments has created a College Explorer Tool where you input your child’s spring scores and their grade and it will show you college options that they are on track for, along with offering information about the colleges.
Getting More Help:
Finally, should you need further guidance to address your child’s educational needs, check the GT Department’s website (especially the Family Resource’s page) to see what opportunities there are for parents to connect with the department. If you need further assistance, you can reach out to your GT Resource Teacher (RT). Each school is assigned an RT. RTs not only identify students for Advanced Learning Plans (ALPs – which means the student is designated Gifted & Talented) but they help teachers with resources to benefit gifted students in their classrooms. Find the RT assigned to your child’s school.
