Discovery Education Assessment Achievement Level ...

Discovery Education Assessment
Achievement Level Descriptors: English/Language Arts, Grades 3-5

The Discovery Education interim benchmark assessments are designed to measure student progress towards the
end-of-grade expectations set by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) by providing targeted evidence of
student achievement in support of the overall claim about what students know and can do.

Overall Claim for Assessment: Students can demonstrate that they are on-track for college and career
readiness based on the expectations of the Common Core State Standards.

Discovery Education describes student performance on the interim benchmark assessments using four levels or
categories, defined at a high level as follows:

 Achievement Level 4: Level 4 students demonstrate thorough understanding of and ability to apply
knowledge and skills set forth in the Common Core State Standards and tested on the interim
assessment.

 Achievement Level 3: Level 3 students demonstrate adequate understanding of and ability to apply
knowledge and skills set forth in the Common Core State Standards and tested on the interim
assessment.

 Achievement Level 2: Level 2 students demonstrate partial understanding of and ability to apply
knowledge and skills set forth in the Common Core State Standards and tested on the interim
assessment.

 Achievement Level 1: Level 1 students demonstrate minimal understanding of and ability to apply
knowledge and skills set forth in the Common Core State Standards and tested on the interim
assessment.

The purpose of this document is to summarize the Achievement Level Descriptors (ALDs) for the indicated
subject and grade levels. The ALDs provide teachers, parents, and other stakeholders concrete examples of the
expectations for each category of student performance and how those particular knowledge and skills are
measured by the interim benchmark assessments.

The ALDs summarized in this document were designed to match the rigor and depth of the CCSS and
benchmarked against the descriptors published by two of the multi-state assessment consortia, the Smarter
Balanced Assessment Consortium and the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers
(PARCC).

Achievement Grade 3 English/Language Arts
Level
Level 4 Discovery Education Interim Benchmark Test
Level 3 Achievement Level Descriptor

Level 2 Level 4 students demonstrate thorough understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:
Level 1
 Comparing and contrasting the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the
same or similar characters

 Comparing and contrasting the most important points and key details presented in two texts of on the same
topic

 Determining the points of view of the narrator or those of the characters
 Writing or revising more than one complex paragraph demonstrating specific narrative techniques,

chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies

Level 3 students demonstrate adequate understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Describing characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explaining how their actions
contribute to the sequence of events in texts of moderate to high complexity

 Referring to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as
chapter, scene, and stanza; describing how each successive part builds on earlier sections

 Describing the connection between sentences and paragraphs in texts of moderate to high complexity
 Demonstrating understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating specific narrative techniques, chronology, or

appropriate transitional strategies

Level 2 students demonstrate partial understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested on
the interim assessment by:

 Determining the central message, lesson, or moral of a text of low to moderate complexity and explaining
how it is conveyed through key details in the text

 Explaining how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a
story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)

 Describing the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in
technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect

 Determining the meaning of words and phrases, including general academic or domain-specific
 Distinguishing literal from non-literal meanings of words and phrases
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating some narrative techniques, chronology, or

appropriate transitional strategies
 Applying and editing grade-level grammar, usage, and mechanics to clarify a message and edit narrative,

informational, and opinion texts
 Evaluating the reliability of sources for research projects that build knowledge about a topic
 Gathering information from print and digital sources; taking brief notes on sources and sorting evidence

into provided categories
 Using knowledge of language and its conventions when writing; choosing words and phrases for effect
 Acquiring and using accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific

words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships
 Knowing and applying grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words

Level 1 students demonstrate minimal understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Asking and answering questions, using explicit details and information from the text to support answers or
basic inferences in texts of low complexity

 Recounting stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from different cultures
 Determining the main idea and supporting details of a text of low complexity
 Writing or revising one simple-structure paragraph demonstrating minimal use of narrative techniques,

chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies
 Demonstrating command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage and capitalization,

punctuation, and spelling

Achievement Grade 4 English/Language Arts
Level
Level 4 Discovery Education Interim Benchmark Test
Level 3 Achievement Level Descriptor

Level 2 Level 4 students demonstrate thorough understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:
Level 1
 Comparing and contrasting the point of view from which different stories are narrated, including the
difference between first- and third-person narrations

 Comparing and contrasting a firsthand and secondhand account of the same event or topic; describing the
differences in focus and the information provided

 Writing or revising more than one complex paragraph demonstrating specific narrative techniques,
chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies

 Demonstrating understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings

Level 3 students demonstrate adequate understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Comparing and contrasting the themes, settings, and plots of stories from different cultures
 Locating information to support central ideas, selecting text evidence to support conclusions or inferences
 Integrating information from two texts on the same topic
 Explaining events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what

happened and why, based on specific information in the text
 Referring to structural elements of poems and drama, using terms such as verse, stanza, dialogue, and stage

directions
 Distinguishing literal from non-literal meanings of words and phrases used in texts of moderate to high

complexity
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating specific use of narrative techniques, chronology,

or appropriate transitional strategies

Level 2 students demonstrate partial understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested on
the interim assessment by:

 Determining the central message, lesson, or moral of a text of low to moderate complexity and explaining
how it is conveyed through key details in the text

 Describing a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text
 Explaining how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text
 Interpreting information presented visually or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines,

and explaining how the information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears
 Determining the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating some narrative techniques, chronology, or

appropriate transitional strategies
 Evaluating the reliability of sources for research projects that build knowledge about a topic
 Gathering relevant information, taking notes, categorizing information from sources
 Using knowledge of language and its conventions when writing; choosing words or phrases for effect
 Acquiring and using accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and

phrases, including those that signal precise actions, emotions, or states of being (e.g., quizzed, whined,
stammered) and that are basic to a particular topic

Level 1 students demonstrate minimal understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Determining the main idea of a text of low complexity; recounting the key details and explaining how they
support the main idea

 Providing a concluding statement or section related to the ideas or opinion presented
 Writing or revising one simple-structure paragraph demonstrating minimal use of narrative techniques,

chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies
 Demonstrating command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage and capitalization,

punctuation, and spelling

Achievement Grade 5 English/Language Arts
Level
Level 4 Discovery Education Interim Benchmark Test
Achievement Level Descriptor
Level 3
Level 4 students demonstrate thorough understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
Level 2 on the interim assessment by:

Level 1  Comparing and contrasting stories in the same genre on their approaches to similar themes and topics
 Analyzing multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting important similarities and differences in the

point of view they represent
 Comparing and contrasting the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect,

problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts
 Determining the effect of figurative language and literary devices, or determining connotative meanings of

words and phrases used in context of texts of high complexity
 Writing or revising more than one complex paragraph demonstrating specific narrative techniques,

chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies
 Demonstrating understanding of word nuances and connotation/shades of meaning

Level 3 students demonstrate adequate understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Locating information to support central ideas, selecting text evidence to support conclusions or inferences
 Explaining how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying

which reasons and evidence support which point(s)
 Integrating information from two or more texts on the same topic
 Analyzing a specific part of text and describing how that part contributes to the passage as a whole
 Determining figurative language, literary devices, or connotative meanings of words and phrases used in

context of texts of moderate to high complexity
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating specific use of narrative techniques, chronology,

or appropriate transitional strategies

Level 2 students demonstrate partial understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested on
the interim assessment by:

 Determining a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story
or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic

 Comparing and contrasting two or more characters, settings, or events in a passage of low to moderate
complexity, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact)

 Integrating information from illustrations and the words in a text to draw accurate conclusions
 Writing or revising one or more paragraphs demonstrating some narrative techniques, chronology, or

appropriate transitional strategies
 Applying and editing grade-level grammar, usage, and mechanics to clarify a message and edit narrative,

informational, and opinion texts
 Evaluating the reliability of sources for research projects that build knowledge about a topic
 Gathering information from print and digital sources; taking brief notes on sources and sorting evidence

into provided categories
 Using knowledge of language and its conventions when writing; choosing words or phrases for effect
 Acquiring and using accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and

phrases, including those that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however,
although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition)

Level 1 students demonstrate minimal understanding of and ability to apply knowledge and skills tested
on the interim assessment by:

 Determining meaning of words in a text of low complexity using context or word reference entry
 Providing a concluding statement or section related to the ideas or opinion presented
 Writing or revising one simple-structure paragraph demonstrating minimal use of narrative techniques,

chronology, or appropriate transitional strategies
 Writing informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly
 Demonstrating command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage and capitalization,

punctuation, and spelling