Introduction
In May 1996, the New Jersey State Board of Education
adopted Core Curriculum Content Standards that define
New Jersey's expectations for student learning. The standards
were developed by a statewide panel of representatives
from education, business, industry, and the interested
public. These representatives participated in a two-year
process to develop the core standards in seven content
areas:
. Visual and Performing Arts
. Comprehensive Health and Physical Education
. Language Arts Literacy
. Mathematics
. Science
. Social Studies
. World Languages
In addition, all areas of instruction include the following
cross-content workplace readiness standards:
1. All students will develop career planning and workplace
readiness skills.
2. All students will use technology, information, and
other tools.
3. All students will use critical-thinking, decision-making,
and problem-solving skills.
4. All students will demonstrate self-management skills.
5. All students will apply safety principles.
Since public education must prepare all students for
the world of work, all content areas need to address
these cross-content workplace readiness standards. To
gauge student progress toward meeting the Core Curriculum
Content Standards, the New Jersey State Department of
Education is developing a comprehensive set of assessments
that measure knowledge and skills at grades four, eight,
and eleven. The Elementary School Proficiency Assessment
(ESPA) is a component of the state's new assessment
program which also includes the Grade Eight Proficiency
Assessment (GEPA) and the High School Proficiency Assessment
(HSPA). Since not every standard can be assessed through
a statewide, standardized, written examination, individual
districts will be involved in measuring the attainment
of some performance expectations outlined in the standards.
This Directory of Test Specifications and Sample Items
for the Elementary School Proficiency Assessment (ESPA)
in Social Studies is a companion document to the New
Jersey State Department of Education's Core Curriculum
Content Standards, 1996, and the New Jersey Social Studies
Curriculum Framework, 1999. This Directory of Test Specifications
consists of content/skill outlines, a test matrix, scoring
rubrics, and sample items. All of these components were
developed by the ESPA Social Studies Content Committee.
This committee is composed of sixteen New Jersey educators
(see listing of names and affiliations on page 3) nominated
by administrators for their subject expertise. The committee
met for four weeks during the summer of 1998 and have
continued to meet regularly. The committee members relied
upon their expertise to design a test that is universally
accessible to all fourth graders and is composed of
test questions that are age- and grade-appropriate.
Curriculum specialists and teachers may use these specifications,
along with the New Jersey Social Studies Curriculum
Framework and the standards themselves, to improve instruction
at the district, school, and classroom levels.
Core Curriculum Content Standards in Social Studies
The Core Curriculum Content Standards in Social Studies
(see page 51) reflect the belief that all students can
acquire an understanding of fundamental knowledge and
principles and develop skills in social studies. These
standards emphasize that learning is a progressive activity
that begins in kindergarten and continues throughout
a student's education in the public schools. They include
cumulative progress indicators for three grade levels
(fourth, eighth, and twelfth) to inform all teachers
about what their students should know and be able to
do at these grade levels. Social Studies standards include
fundamental concepts in civics, history (including economics),
and geography.
Elementary School Proficiency Assessment Content/Skill
Outlines
The ESPA Social Studies test assesses skills and knowledge
that students should acquire from kindergarten through
grade four and that they will need as prerequisites
for learning in later grades. The ESPA content/skill
outlines define the boundaries of the content and skills
that will appear on the test. The outlines do not set
limits on instruction. Rather, the content/skill outlines
indicate to teachers what their students should know
by the end of grade four to have a comfortable testing
experience. The content/skill outlines are divided into
three parts-macro statements, knowledge statements,
and skill statements. A "macro statement" is an interpretation
of the Core Curriculum Content Standard as it applies
to K-4. "Knowledge statements" delineate the content
domain of the macro statement based on the standard's
cumulative progress indicators. The "skill statements"
indicate the skills that students need in order to demonstrate
their understanding of the knowledge statements. |
