3-5 PSSA ELA

An interpretation
and action plan
Created by Laura Ouladdaoud, Anna Sechrist, Amy Steinmetz
District versus state scores
District Strengths
RC6, TDA - 75% or more of 4th and 5th graders in high category
RC3, vocabulary - best performance for 3rd grade
RC2 craft, RC4 writing, and RC7 Literature - high performances for
4th grade
RC4 writing and RC5 language - high performances for 5th grade
District needs
33% increase in low category performers in writing from grade 4
to grade 5
Increase in low category performers from grade 3 to grade 4 in all
but 2 categories (writing and language)
Somewhat higher percentages of low performers in RC2, craft
Except for RC4 writing, highest percentages of medium
performers are in 5th grade.
Focus on writing -
Reporting Category 4
3rd
Grade
4th
Grade
5th
Grade

District 4.6 7.89 8.4

Mean (falls (falls (falls
within within within
+1 SD) +1 SD) +1 SD)

District 4 9 9
Media
n

District 4 9 9
Mode

State 4.3 5.7 6.7

Mean
Focus on writing
Priority Questions
Why is there such a significant drop in 5th grade in RC4 writing? The
5th grade prompt is narrative. Is this a particular mode where these
students are struggling?
Learner Centered Problems
5th grade students struggle with narrative writing.

5th grade students do not understand how to compose different types of narrative writing.
For example, the differences between personal and fictional/hypothetical narrative
writing.

Problems of Practice
Students are asked to write personal narratives for which they can recreate a real
experience they have had. Students are not given enough opportunities to write
fictional/hypothetical narrative stories for which they must imagine characters, settings,
conflicts, and resolutions that are rich in description and unfold naturally
Action Plan
Instruction Wh
al Strategy o
Use fictional narrative mentor Teachers/
texts and focus discussions on Reading
story elements Specialist

Use imagination building Teachers

activities such as readers
theater, puppet shows,
drawing

Explicitly teach the differences Teachers/

between personal narrative Literacy
and fictional narrative Coach

Schedule an author visit to Principal

discuss his/her writing process
for fictional narratives

Use Story writing websites as a Literacy

springboard for writing Coach/Te
chnology
Data Gathering
Short term:
Student/teacher writing conference notes
Teachers observe/ conference with students in other classes. All come together for debrief of strategies
and progress.
Writing Workshop exit tickets about authors craft
Student noticings anchor charts for mentor texts. Subsequent reflections on how they are using
elements from those charts in their own writing (What I tried today/Whats working for me in my
writing...)

Medium term:
Pre and post writing assessments
Student self-assessment goal wall
Writing generated in response to prompts created in-house
Writing generated in response to sample PSSA prompts found on PDE SAS website

Long term:
PSSA data
Plan for Celebration!
Student Wacky Dress-Up Day!

Student Goal Writing Wall

Catered Teacher Luncheon

Flying High! Bulletin Board, visible to all stakeholders, with monthly

growth updates.