Acuity Launches in Massachusetts Middle School

CTB/McGraw-Hill's Acuity™ formative assessment solution is being launched in the largest middle school in Massachusetts this month to provide educators with comprehensive student learning data that will drive differentiated instruction and enhance student learning and performance relative to the state exam.

Acuity is being used for Grades 6-8 mathematics at Higgins Middle School in Peabody, Mass. The interim Acuity math assessments will be administered to approximately 1,500 students four times per year, prior to the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) summative assessment in May.

"In trying to fill the need around formative assessment solutions we looked at several products but Acuity was the best match for us. It gives us the opportunity to get the data, continually look at the data, and make informed decisions about teaching and learning around that data. We can find out where kids are at any given point in the year and make adjustments in the instruction accordingly. Teachers already do this very well, but with Acuity it's like power-raking the lawn instead of hand-raking the lawn," said Joe Mastrocola, assistant superintendent of Peabody Public Schools. "We knew we wanted to use data better to differentiate instruction and be able to gauge where kids are academically so we could create lessons they can respond to and put a Response to Intervention program in place and help the students before it's too late."

The district initiated this assessment program because Higgins Middle School is in its second year of restructuring under Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education due to lack of Adequate Yearly Progress in subgroups of students in math. With Acuity, teachers will be able to analyze class-wide and student-specific results to determine where intervention strategies need to be applied and to spark discussion about areas of instructional need and effective strategies for teaching to them.

The Acuity system provides:

-- Instructional resources linked directly to individual student or class test results

-- Easy-to-use reports that include a distractor analysis report showing why students may be choosing incorrect answers, allowing teachers to identify and adjust instructional approaches

-- Online item bank and the ability for educators to add items to create custom assessments

Acuity heralds a new generation of comprehensive assessment programs that can change the way educators perceive assessment -- as a critical learning and teaching tool. Acuity contains four elements of a comprehensive formative assessment: ongoing measurement opportunities, in-depth reporting, analysis of performance data, and resources for targeted instruction. For an interactive product demonstration, go to www.AcuityforSchool.com or call 800.538.9547 to schedule a live product demonstration.

About CTB/McGraw-Hill

As the nation's leading publisher of standardized and standards-based achievement tests for pre-school, elementary, middle, high school, and adult education, CTB/McGraw-Hill LLC offers a broad range of assessments, software and services. CTB/McGraw-Hill LLC is part of the Assessment and Reporting group of McGraw-Hill Education (MHE), a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP). MHE is a leading global provider of print and digital instructional, assessment and reference solutions that empower professionals and students of all ages. McGraw-Hill Education has offices in 33 countries and publishes in more than 60 languages. Additional information is available at www.CTB.com.

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SOURCE: CTB/McGraw-Hill

CONTACT: Media Inquiries
Kelley Carpenter
Director, Communications
(831) 393-7196
kelley_carpenter@mcgraw-hill.com

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