Document Type

Report

Publication Date

2-1-2012

Abstract

Effective at the start of the 2010-11 school year, 2009 Wisconsin Act 28 requires private schools participating in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) to administer the state test, the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examinations (WKCE) in reading, mathematics and science to all MPCP pupils in the same grades as public school students tested under Title 1 of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Prior to the 2010-11 school year, 2005 Wisconsin Act 125 required private schools participating in the MPCP to administer a nationally normed standardized test of their choosing annually in reading, mathematics, and science to the MPCP students enrolled in the 4th, 8th, and 10th grades. Schools are currently given the option to continue to administer other nationally normed tests if they wish, in addition to the WKCE. The law further directs MPCP schools to submit copies of the test scores from all tests and examinations administered to their pupils in 2010-11 to the School Choice Demonstration Project (SCDP) for processing and reporting to the Legislative Audit Bureau. During the 2010-11 school year, all 102 MPCP schools that were required to administer tests did so and provided the results to the SCDP. Specifically, the SCDP received 10,657 WKCE test scores. Sixty-three schools submitted only the WKCE test scores and the remaining 39 schools submitted both nationally normed tests, such as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills and the WKCE. Five MPCP schools were not required to send in scores as they enrolled no MPCP students in mandatory testing grades.

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