A Chronology of Events: 2001

A Chronology of Events: 2001

In February and March 2001, the fourth administration of the FCAT included assessments in writing, reading and mathematics in grades 3-10. After completing quality control processes, Department of Education staff approved the score reports and distributed them to the districts. These reports included scores from the machinescored portion of the test, the FCAT writing, and the norm-referenced components. The machine-scored items for the Sunshine State Standards portion of the FCAT and the writing test results were used to calculate school grades. The performance items were scored separately in grades 4, 5, 8, and 10, and reported to the districts in mid-summer.

During the summer of 2001, the Department recalculated the test results for all grade ten students. The new results were based on the inclusion of both machine-scored items and performance items.

In August, the State Board of Education established the FCAT passing scores students will have to earn as one of the requirements for receiving a regular high school diploma. The passing scores are 287 in reading and 295 in mathematics. All students tested after February 1, 2002, will have to earn scores of 300 for both reading and mathematics.

The Board also voted to delay implementing Step 2 of the FCAT Achievement Levels until 2004.