The ALDs: A Cautionary Tale
The ALDs: A Cautionary Tale
February 3, 2023
What are the Achievement Level Descriptions and Why Do I Need to Proceed with Caution?
The ALDs. The Achievement Level Descriptions - B.E.S.T. Standards. What are these you ask? I found that only about 15% of Florida educators, which includes teachers, instructional coaches, and school-based administrators, have heard of the ALDs. So, if these were new to you, you’re not alone.
Okay, so what are they?
In short, they specify (sort of) the parameters of the F.A.S.T. achievement Levels 1 through 5, in grades 3 through 10 in ELA and grades 3 through 8 in mathematics including Algebra 1 and Geometry EOCs.
Here’s the the introduction to the ALD document:
source: https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
Can these be helpful? Absolutely. But, proceed with caution. ⚠️⚠️⚠️ Even in the introduction there is some potentially confusing information, at least to me.
The beginning of paragraph two states that “Level 3...indicates on-grade-level performance” and that “Levels 4 and 5 describe growth beyond the Level 3 expectations and indicate proficiency in the standards.”
Let’s take a look at that, shall we?
Here are what the ALDs state for this 3rd grade benchmark: (formatted by Uncomplicate Ed for ease of reading)
Reformatted from https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
What do you notice? Do you see that Level 4 is the actual benchmark language? Yep, Level 4 is the benchmark level. If Level 3 is “on grade-level" and Level 4 is “proficiency,” does that mean a student can be on level but still not proficient? It seems that is what that means.
In ELA, there are other benchmarks where the only difference from a Level 3 and a Level 4 are the complexity of the texts.
For example:
Reformatted from https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
This pattern of Level 4 meeting the benchmark language and/or the text complexity being the only difference between 3 and 4, seems to hold up all the way through 10th grade.
My notes on ELA.3.R.1.1 between Level 3 and Level 4
For more information on how B.E.S.T. configures text complexity, Appendix B in the B.E.S.T. manual. Excerpt shown below.
What about math?
The same appears to be true for math too! Level 4 is the benchmark level, where level 3 is actually a step below the benchmark.
Reformatted from https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
The only difference is that Level 3, again “on-level” is only to the hundredths place, not the thousandths as the benchmark is written. This means Level 3 is NOT meeting the benchmark.
My analysis of Level 3 for MA.5.NSO.1.1
Additional Info
Level 1: The Level 1 language is the exact same, and I mean the EXACT same at each grade-level and for both ELA and math.
source: https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
Formatting: While the ALDs can be super helpful, the writers DID NOT include which benchmark aligns to which descriptor. I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true. Take a look at the screenshot from the document below:
source: https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
See what we mean? It’s just a long list of bullet points that don’t tell you to which benchmark is aligns. Now, do they seem to just all go in order (R.1.1, R.1.2, etc)? Yes. But still, it would have been nice to see the benchmark code next to each one.
Okay, so what are the implications of these ALDs?
A student receiving a Level 3 on FAST is not actually meeting the benchmark (as they are currently written). This could give everyone a false sense of security. In other words, because they didn’t fully meet the benchmark, when the student heads to the next grade level, they will have gaps in understanding since the benchmarks of one grade pick up right where the previous grade ended. No wonder we see increased gaps as the students grow higher in grade levels! This is why sometimes our 3s drop to 2s – they were never actually proficient, and because they were “on grade-level” (read: Level 3) we didn’t target them for small group, MTSS, or tutoring.
This allows you to be strategic if you want to play the “school grade” game. Meaning, if you have a student who is currently at a Level 2 according to PM2, you can look at the ALDs and only exert your energy on getting her/him to the Level 3, which again, is NOT the benchmark level. While this will work in the short-term in terms of school grade, this will undoubtedly fail you (and more importantly, your students) in the subsequent years. It can however help you to move 4s to 5s!
If you’re playing the long-game of education (which, shouldn’t we all be?) we need to align our instruction (teachers) and support (leaders) to getting our students to a Level 4, not a Level 3.
Final Words of Caution:
Use sparingly. These are NOT rubrics and are not necessarily scaffolded understandings. If you want rubrics for ELA, check out our Roadmaps which include references to the ALDs, but take them further to help uncomplicate teaching and learning comprehension through scaffolded objectives and questions.
These could change. I know, you’re shocked. But yes, these are already the 2nd edition of the ALDs for FAST. Be sure when you're searching for your own copy, you find the one titled “June 2022” and not “March 2022” [note: as of the publishing of this article, February 3, 2023, the June rendition is the most up-to-date.] Or just download the June 2023 one HERE. https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20096/urlt/AchieveLevelDesc.pdf
Don’t overdo it with these things. As with all resources, use them as a guide, but not as a bible. Remember, we teach students to learn, not to pass tests.
I have reached out to the Bureau of K-12 Student Assessment at the Florida Department of Education asking for clarification on the Level 3 "on grade-level" but Level 4 "proficiency of the benchmark" confusion. If I hear back, I'll be sure to share out to our subscribers!
Not a subscriber, but want to be? Cool. You can subscribe to Uncomplicate Ed HERE. We're even doing a giveaway in the month of February where all new subscribers are entered to win a $50 gift card (must be a Florida resident and work in the state of Florida to qualify).
Already a subscriber, but you like money too? Also cool. You can refer AS MANY people as you want to subscribe during the month of February. If they subscribe and include your email address in the referral field, you are entered to win a $50 gift card too. That's right, we're giving away $100 total, and there's no limit to the number of people you refer.
For B.E.S.T. training for your school, check out our website or contact me directly. We’ve been helping schools all over the state, and would love to help your school be ready for the B.E.S.T. and the F.A.S.T.
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