Setting Up the SRT for Success
The Student Readiness Tool (SRT) is designed to prepare students for online testing in TestNav. It is intended to move away from traditional test samples which are heavier on content review than they are the specific tools and question types students experience during high stakes testing.
Before students move into the SRT independently, it is important that they understand the following:
All Students:
- The SRT video lessons have play settings as needed. Students can pause, rewind, and adjust the speed of the narration on each video.
- Each SRT video lesson has embedded (cannot be turned off) closed captions, and each Try It section has a Text-to-Speech player.
- Teacher should review the NEW feature in the SRT. This feature alerts students that there is a new
tool or question type for that year. Some students will only need to review the NEW features, and
others will need to review previous tutorials.
Younger Students:
- Navigation videos are best presented to the whole class, ensuring optimal understanding.
- Teacher supervision is needed throughout the lessons to make sure students are accessing the
assigned tutorial.
- Bookmarking is best reviewed up front as the SRT is housed in this section of TestNav.
- Teachers can lessen test anxiety by clearly stating when the test is taking place and that the SRT
is a fun way to practice. Explain what a state mandated test is and what the test will be
measuring.
- Careful consideration must be made to keep lessons light and short. The SRT is not meant to be used
for more than 30 minutes per sitting.
Differentiation
There are several ways to differentiate content for students in the SRT. Here is a listing of ideas:
- Try-It sections can be read to the student by using the Text-To-Speech controls.
- Video lessons may be paused and replayed to check for understanding.
- Video lessons may be paused, and the Try-It section accessed at the same time in the SRT split screen.
- Teachers may access video lesson transcripts for student support. These transcripts are housed in the Teacher Guide section of PearsonAccess Next.
- Students may access only video lessons or only Try-It sections of the SRT, depending on need.
Pacing
Pacing is an important part of the SRT. The SRT is not meant to be completely consumed in one sitting.
Instead, the SRT is a tool which can be consumed in small chunks as students prepare for testing. The shared lesson plans include pacing recommendations which are as follows:
Keep in mind that many students will not need to repeat content learned from previous years. New content is marked within the tool as NEW!
3rd-5th Grade:
Approximately 8-10 mini lessons
20-30 minutes each
6th-8th Grade:
Approximately 8-10 mini lessons
20-30 minutes each
9th-11th Grade:
Approximately 6-8 mini lessons
20-30 minutes each
Anticipated Questions
This is a misconception that has been studied
throughout the years. Students will perform at a higher level when they completely understand the test format, tools that they have at their disposal, the types of questions they will see, and supports that are available to them. Once students have mastered these things, their performance will be a truer indicator of knowledge and gaps.
Achievement testing is an important part of the school
experience; moreover, when students are anxious and worried, their performance is not
optimal. The SRT is designed to engage students and mimic digital platforms that this
generation of digital natives are used to. After engaging in content that is light with
no stakes, the student is prepared to get serious and do their best on the test.
The beauty of the SRT is in its flexibility. Students can interact with the SRT in a variety of ways such as: muting the video and reading closed captions, pausing and rewinding to review content, and watching the video lessons several times. Remind students that there is no “wrong way” to use their SRT.
The SRT is not meant to be watched in one setting. For younger students, it is recommended that tutorials are limited to no more than 1-3 videos per sitting. It is not recommended that students engage with the SRT for longer than 30 minutes. It Is best utilized in bite-size scenarios.
Yes, the SRT has closed captions that are on the bottom portion of the videos. The Try It sections do not require sound.
The Submit Answers video is made from the lens of the linear test. Students are encouraged to carefully Follow Directions in the video which will support their understanding of adaptative tests and other test configurations.
Known Issues
We will be updating the SRT two times a year. At those times, we
will review content internally and make needed changes and additions. Please send us a note
in our Issue Survey if you notice something that needs to be updated.
The SRT team is aware that delineating the Category names would be a
useful visual support for educators and families. We are working with engineers to make this
a reality in a future phase of the SRT.
The Zoom feature (within the user dropdown menu) is available within the TestNav application. Students will not see the Zoom feature option when using TestNav within a browser (Chrome, Safari, etc).
