Accountability and assessment of a student's growth is a vital element in their school experience. KUSD strives to provide multiple measures of assessment that recognize a variety of learning styles and accurately display what a student knows and what is being taught in their classroom. District and state assessments are intended to complement progress reports, report cards and teacher conferences to create a well-rounded portrait of each student. Assessments are imbedded within the curriculum whenever possible and interruptions to instruction time for administration of standardized tests are kept as minimal as possible.

Students in K-3rd grade are evaluated three times a year using the DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills), fall, winter and spring. This assessment is used as a predictor of early reading success, or failure. It allows teachers to modify and adjust their instruction to better meet the needs of each student. The DIBELS is the reading DAP for K-3rd grade students. The DIBELS assessment aligns the district with the state's reading initiative, Arizona Reads.

State mandated standardized testing includes the Terra Nova in grades 2 and 9 and the Dual Purpose AIMS in grades 3-8. Testing for both the Terra Nova and DPA will be the week of April 7th-11th. The test will include mathematics, reading, and writing, plus a science test for grades 4 and 8.

High school students have five test opportunities beginning in the spring of their 10th grade year to pass the High School AIMS in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing. Meeting the standards on these three subject tests is a graduation requirement for the state of Arizona. A science test will also be taken once during high school, but is not currently a graduation requirement. 11th-12th grade retesting for AIMS will be held October 30th-November 2nd, 2007. The reading/writing test for grades 10-12 will be February 26th and 27th , followed by math on April 8th and science on April 9th.

High School Students in the 2008 and 2009 graduating classes may also retest in order to Exceed Standards to qualify for the AIMS Honor Scholarship. Students in the Class of 2009 must qualify for this scholarship during the 2007-2008 school year, since they will not be allowed to retest during their 12th grade year.

Special Education students will be assessed in a manner and level consistent with their IEP.

AIMS and TerraNova Preparation

• Testing Dates
• AIMS Practice Questions Grades 3, 5, and 8
• Student Study Guides for Grades 3 through High School
• AIMS Sample Tests grades 3 through High School
• Arizona Department of Education's AIMS Information Center

Test Results

• 2007 AIMS HS Guide to Test Interpretation
• 2007 AIMS DPA Guide to Test Interpretation (Grades 3-8)
• AIMS Blueprints
• AIMS Performance Level Descriptors