Corinth School District receives approval to use Cambridge assessments in place of MAAP tests
Dec. 15—CORINTH — Corinth School District has received approval to use the Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education assessments in place of the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) tests this school year.
The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) submitted a proposal on behalf of Corinth School District in September and was granted approval on Nov. 30 from the U.S. Department of Education to use the Cambridge assessments for Corinth students, along with students in any other districts that adopt the Cambridge program.
The approval will allow MDE to include Cambridge assessment scores in the state accountability system for the 2022-23 school year.
"Mississippi is one of four states to clear the U.S. Department of Education's rigorous peer review process to implement a locally selected, nationally recognized high school assessment in the state's accountability system," Kim S. Benton, interim state superintendent of education, said in a statement. "We are working with Corinth to provide additional information to the U.S. Department of Education to ensure this approval will extend beyond the 2022-23 school year."
The district began using the Cambridge Assessment International Education curriculum in 2010 and first requested to use Cambridge assessments in lieu of MAAP tests in its initial District of Innovation application in 2016. According to Corinth School District Superintendent of Education Lee Childress, district officials believe the Cambridge program provides students with a more rigorous, process-oriented course of study with wide-ranging content that helps prepare students for college and careers.
Corinth's elementary and middle school students will continue to use the MAAP as the statewide assessment for learning, but the Education Department's approval clears the way for the district to use Cambridge scores instead of MAAP scores for eighth through 12th grade students taking English Language Arts, Biology, Math and U.S. History.
Corinth's high school students previously had to take both MAAP and Cambridge end-of-course assessments. According to Childress, it has been a challenge for the district's teachers to cover standards required for both sets of tests. This decision will allow educators to concentrate solely on the Cambridge assessments, and Childress expects to see improved test scores and student learning.
After a four-year process, the superintendent called the U.S. Department of Education's approval "affirming and encouraging."
"This approval allows us to continue providing our students with a world-class 21st-century educational experience," Childress said. "We are grateful for the steadfast support of the Corinth community during this time and appreciate the support and assistance of Cambridge International Assessment Program and the Mississippi Department of Education during this process."
The transition process began with Cambridge convening panels of teachers to conduct an alignment study of the Cambridge assessments with the Mississippi College and Career Readiness Standards. Other steps included the compilation and review of data and evidence to meet the seven critical elements required in peer review.
Submission of the evidence to the U.S. Department of Education was the final step in the initial review process.
Additional steps are still needed to complete the process, including a standards validation study with 60 Mississippi educators to take place in August 2023 after state test results for the 2022-23 school year are returned.
