KA Stage 2

Section 1: Students
This data includes information about twenty-one students in 6th grade mathematics. These
students attend a Title 1 school located in Rex, Georgia. The students are ages eleven and twelve,
10 females and 11 males. Of the twenty-one students, 15 are African American, 5 are Hispanic,
and 1 Caucasian. There are not learning disabilities or English Language Learners within this
group, however 57% are economically disadvantaged. This information was obtained through
Edutrax, a leader in K-12 assessment and testing that offers a variety of services and applications
designed for school districts to gauge overall student performance and help assess data in order
to raise student achievement at both the state and federal level.

Section 2: Course
The assessment administered to collect this data is an exam given towards the end of unit 3,
which focuses on understanding expressions. The test is only given one time per year, unless
there is time at the end of the year to retest. This exam is mandatory for all 6th graders in Clayton
County Public Schools district located on an online assessment tool called Edutrax, and must be
given between certain dates regardless of if the instructor has fully completed teaching each
standard or not.
Learning Objectives for Assessment
Students will apply and extend previous understandings of arithmetic to algebraic expressions.
● Write, read, and evaluate numerical & algebraic expressions
● Identify parts of expressions using mathematical terms
● Include expressions from formulas used in real-world problems
● Apply order of operations to evaluate expression
● Create algebraic expressions that correspond to real-world situations; use the expressions
to solve problems.
● Apply properties of operations to generate equivalent expressions
● Identify equivalent expressions
● Review finding Least common Multiple and Greatest Common Factor
Section 3: Descriptive analysis
To prepare students for Georgia Milestone testing at the end of the school year, all questions on
this exam was level 3 and 4 on a scale of 1 to 4. Level 3 questions are complex that requires
reasoning, using evidence, and thinking on a higher and more abstract level than 1 and 2. Level 4
questions are extended reasoning that requires level 3 with the addition of planning,
investigating, and applying significant conceptual understanding. Also, all questions were
multiple choice. The class scored an average of 65%, which is below average but still exceeds
the county average which was a 48.9%.

The assessment evaluates the following standards:

KA Stage 2

● MGSE6.NS.4 Find the common multiples of two whole numbers less than or equal to 12
and the common factors of two whole numbers less than or equal to 100.
● MGSE6.EE.1 Write and evaluate expressions involving whole-number exponents.
● MGSE6.EE.2 Write, read, and evaluate expressions in which letters stand for numbers.
● MGSE6.EE.2a Write expressions that record operations with numbers and with letters
standing for numbers
● MGSE6.EE.2b Identify parts of an expression using mathematical terms (sum, term,
product, factor, quotient, coefficient); view one or more parts of an expression as a single
entity
● MGSE6.EE.2c Evaluate expressions at specific values of their variables. Include
expressions that arise from formulas used in real-world problems.
● MGSE6.EE.3 Apply the properties of operations to generate equivalent expressions.
● MGSE6.EE.4 Identify when two expressions are equivalent (i.e., when the two
expressions name the same number regardless of which value is substituted into them.)

The chart below shows students grade level, individual performance, total number of questions
right compared to total questions wrong, and quartile.The students who fall in the 3rd and 4th
quartile represents the top scores. The students who fall in 1st and 2nd quartile represents the
lowest scores.The overall average for this exam is 65%.
Grade 6 Unit 3 District
Assessment
School Rex Mill Middle
Class Lee Ashley M
Student Grd. Level Percentage Score Std Pts Total Quartile
Points
KA 6 75% 15 20 3--4
SB 6 80% 16 20 4
AB 6 60% 12 20 2
DC 6 60% 12 20 2
AC 6 45% 9 20 1
TH 6 40% 8 20 1
RH 6 65% 13 20 2--3
JH 6 65% 13 20 2--3
RHO 6 70% 14 20 3
GI 6 70% 14 20 3
KJ 6 75% 15 20 3--4
MMA 6 45% 9 20 1
MM 6 90% 18 20 4
JP 6 70% 14 20 3
TPJ 6 95% 19 20 4
KR 6 60% 12 20 2
KA Stage 2

RS 6 75% 15 20 3--4
MS 6 50% 10 20 1--2
GT 6 35% 7 20 1
LT 6 65% 13 20 2--3
ST 6 75% 15 20 3--4

This chart breakdowns the points earned for each question item based on each standard. Since all
questions were level 3 and 4, the teacher should be concerned and willing to reteach scores less
than 50%. In this case there are no standards scored below 50%, however the teacher should still
set a goal to reach 70% for all standards.
Grade 6 Unit 3 District Assessment
Standard Description # of Correct Pts Pts # of
Question Sco Poss students
s Tested
GSE EE.1 Write and evaluate numerical 4 78.6% 66 84 21
expressions involving whole
number exponents
GSE EE.2a Write expressions that record 3 71.4% 45 63 21
operations with numbers and
with letters standing for
numbers
GSE EE.2b Identify parts of an expression 4 63.1% 53 84 21
using mathematical terms
(sum, term, product, factor,
quotient, coefficient)
GSE EE.2c Evaluate expressions at specific 3 61.9% 39 63 21
values of their variables.
Include expressions that arise
from formulas used in real-
world problems. Perform
arithmetic operations, including
those involving whole-number
exponents, in the conventional
order when there are no
parentheses to specify a
particular order (Order of
Operations).
GSE EE.3 Apply the properties of 3 52.4% 33 63 21
operations to generate
equivalent expressions
GSE NS.4 Find the common multiples of 3 58.7% 37 63 21
two whole numbers less than or
equal to 12 and the common
factors of two whole numbers
KA Stage 2

less than or equal to 100.

Section 4: Student Strengths and Weaknesses

This chart shows the correct and incorrect test items each student earned by standard.
According to the data analysis, over 70% of the students demonstrated overall understanding of
writing, reading, and evaluating numerical and algebraic expressions. This includes writing
multiple statements that represent a given algebraic expression. For example, the expression x –
10 could be written as “ten less than a number,” “a number minus ten,” “the temperature fell ten
degrees,” “I scored ten fewer points than my brother,” etc. This includes using values for
variables to evaluate.

More than 35% of students showed weakness with identifying parts of expressions using
mathematical terms. The students were not familiar with new terms used in question items such
as variable, coefficient, term, and constant. These words were combined with review terms like
sum, product, and difference. Almost 40% of the students could not use the order of operations
KA Stage 2

to solve expressions. The mnemonic PEMDAS can mislead students into thinking that addition
must come before subtraction and multiplication must come before division. Students fail to see
juxtaposition (side by side) as indicating multiplication. For example, evaluating 3x as 35 when x
= 5 instead of 3 times 5 = 15. Also, students may rewrite 8 – 2a as 6a. Next, almost 50% of the
students could not apply properties of operations to create equivalent expressions. For example,
given the expression x + x + x + x + 4 • 2, students could not write 2x + 2x +8 or some other
equivalent expression. The students struggled with making connections to the equivalent form of
this expression, 4x + 8. Sixth grade is a foundational year for building the bridge between the
concrete concepts of arithmetic and the abstract thinking of algebra, using hands-on materials
(such as algebra tiles, counters, cubes, "Hands on Algebra") to help students translate between
concrete numerical representations and abstract symbolic representations is critical.

The final weakness of the overall students was a review standard found in a previous unit,
least common multiple and greatest common factor. The students need to apply this skill to
expressions in order to perform the distributive property. The students were using any common
factor of two numbers, instead of the greatest common factor which will put the expression in its
lowest term. For example, 4(6x+2) can be simplified and rewritten as 8(3x+1). Students assume
that their answer is correct because it equals the original expression, but the standard wants
students to use deeper understanding to get the correct answer.

Section 5: Improvement Plan

One key aspect of improving test is reliability. To improve reliability, the teacher could
have pre-test students using the same assessment to see where they are and what need to
improve. Also, this could determine if time needs to be spent on conceptual activities that help
students develop a deeper understanding of these ideas. This includes:

● using parentheses, brackets, or braces in numerical expressions and evaluate expressions

with these symbols

● writing and interpreting numerical expressions

● generating two numerical patterns using two given rules Interpreting a fraction as
division
KA Stage 2

● Operating with whole numbers, fractions, and decimals

Even though the teacher did not create this test, there is access to the questions. The
teacher could have used the questions as a guideline to create new questions that increase
difficulty on daily assignments. This will enable the teacher to see reliable student growth. It is
expected that students will have prior knowledge related to the concepts and skills identified for
understanding expressions. The teacher will need to use more reliable resources to ensure deep
understanding of level 3 and 4 questions. This will improve students procedural fluency, which
is defined as skill in carrying out procedures flexibly, accurately, efficiently, and appropriately.
Fluent problem solving does not necessarily mean solving problems within a certain time limit,
though there are reasonable limits on how long computation should take. Fluency is based on a
deep understanding of quantity and number. The teacher should not focus on “how to get the
answer”, instead support students’ ability to access concepts from a number of perspectives.
Therefore, students are able to see math as more than a set of mnemonics or discrete procedures.
Students demonstrate deep conceptual understanding of foundational mathematics concepts by
applying them to new situations, as well as writing and speaking about their understanding. The
rapid recall of arithmetic facts or mathematical procedures. Memorization is often confused with
fluency. Fluency implies a much richer kind of mathematical knowledge and experience.

In addition, the teacher can utilize formative assessments before unit assessments.
Formative assessment lessons are intended to support teachers by revealing and developing
students’ understanding of key mathematical ideas and applications. These lessons enable
teachers and students to monitor in more detail their progress towards the targets of the
standards. They assess students’ understanding of important concepts and problem solving
performance, and help teachers and their students to work effectively together to move each
student’s mathematical reasoning forward.