Springfield teachers get ready for PARCC tests

Staff report

NEW MIDDLETOWN

Three teachers at Springfield Intermediate School are integrating Google Docs/Classroom and Schoology into their classrooms to prepare students for the Partnership for Assessment for Readiness for College and Careers tests.

Students in Emily Shurtleff’s English class have been using Google Docs to compose, share and revise peer papers.

“Students are all submitting their written work online, and will shortly be starting to share it with each other with the goal to edit and revise before submitting final copies,” Shurtleff said.

She created questions and a rubric modeled after PARCC sample essay questions.

This year, students in her class will be taking all tests online through Schoology to help prepare them for the upcoming online state tests.

“Even though our school has opted to take the paper-pencil version this year, I realize that online testing is coming, and I wanted to prepare my students for that format as soon as possible,” Shurleff said.

The actual test questions themselves have been modeled after PARCC sample questions. All multiple-choice questions are two part, and the answer to the second pertains to what they have chosen for the first.

A social studies and a science teacher at the school are doing similar preparations.