knowledge and skills are included, and emphasizing core content. It has improved the progression of its standards through well-considered development of each content domain across grades 2–8. In the process, New Jersey increased the specificity and measurability of its standards and also clarified the use of technology. By reducing the number of standards from 16 to five, the state was able to highlight connections among the principal domains of mathematics and enhance the focus, coherence and utility of the document. m
The revision of the language arts literacy standards resulted in a set of strong standards for the early grades, but the late-elementary, middle and high school standards still need improvement.
New Jersey’s standards in language arts literacy have improved but to a lesser degree than the math standards. Headway has been made in raising rigor and articulating progression, but this is generally confined to grades K–4, where New Jersey has given special attention to early literacy. The standards in grades 5–12 are not as clearly articulated as those in K–4 and, as a result, are not as challenging. m
New Jersey’s 4th-grade mathematics assessment is rigorous and well aligned with the standards, but the 8th- and 11th- grade tests are not as challenging as the standards imply they should be.
Achieve reviewers were impressed with the quality of the state’s 4th-grade math test. The test questions are well crafted and have an appropriate level of intellectual demand. The test also makes good use of its open-ended items to assess standards not readily assessed by multiple-choice items, namely, reasoning, problem solving and communicating mathematically. The 8th- and 11th-grade tests did not fare as well in the Achieve review. Although the 8th-grade test shows a good emphasis on algebra, the relatively low level of demand of the test as a whole results from having too many “whole number” items and too many items that do not require students to demonstrate their mathematical knowledge in appropriately challenging ways. The same issues with low cognitive demand are found in the high school assessment. In fact, the test aligns better with the 8th-grade standards than the 12th-grade standards. m
New Jersey’s assessments in language arts literacy have some strengths, but they do not effectively measure the depth and breadth of the standards.
Achieve found New Jersey’s assessments in language arts to have three exemplary characteristics: they contain authentic passages; they include open-ended items that are designed to assess advanced thinking — a hallmark of quality tests; and they directly measure writing to determine how well students respond to the totality of a writing task — organizing and developing their response to match a specific audience and purpose. Measuring Up — New Jersey
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Achieve, Inc., 2004