Every Child Ready - Criterion 3.3
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Criterion 3.3: Assessment
Curriculum materials include opportunities for student assessment and resources for teacher response to assessment.
Indicator 3.3a
Curriculum materials include multiple, varied assessment opportunities to assess student progress.
Every Child Ready materials meet expectations for providing opportunities to assess student progress (3.3a).
The materials include a range of developmentally appropriate formative and summative assessments designed to guide instruction and monitor student learning. Formative assessments are embedded throughout daily instruction through checks for understanding and Flexible Small Group assessments (Assessment Guide, pp. 5–6, 33), allowing teachers to gauge skill development in real time.
The Materials also include the Every Child Ready Formal Assessment Bundle, which provides teachers with professional learning opportunities in assessment.
Teachers document student progress in the Gradebook using Demonstrating (D), Progressing (P), or Not Demonstrating (ND) ratings (p. 32), supporting consistent tracking of growth. ECR formal assessments (available in English and Spanish) are administered three times per year (baseline, midyear, and end-of-year) and include measures in language and literacy, writing, mathematics, and social-emotional development (PBRS), with standardized protocols, teacher certification requirements, and multiple forms to support reliability.
The assessment system also includes opportunities for authentic, curriculum-embedded assessment, such as observations, checklists, journaling samples, and project-based work. General guidance for accommodations is provided in the Assessment Guide (p. 18) and Assessment Accommodations handout (pp. 1–2), including strategies such as visual supports, repeated directions, and flexible timing for students with IEPs/504s, and specifically states these accommodations should not be adapted unless written into a child’s individualized plan. Materials provide guidance to support consistent assessment administration and include structures that connect assessments to instructional planning.
Overall, Every Child Ready materials provide a comprehensive system of formative and summative assessments embedded within daily instruction, including ongoing checks for understanding, small-group assessments, and standardized measures administered throughout the year. Assessment opportunities include both structured and authentic approaches, such as observations and student work samples, and are supported by tools and guidance that promote consistent administration.
Indicator 3.3b
Curriculum materials support teachers in using and communicating assessment results.
Every Child Ready materials partially meet expectations for supporting teachers in using and communicating assessment results (3.3b).
The materials include some guidance to support teachers in using observations and assessment information to inform instructional decisions, creating opportunities for responsive teaching and adjustment of learning experiences. Teachers are encouraged to use journals, center artifacts, projects, and checklists to understand student learning, and embedded assessment prompts support ongoing data collection. There are some lesson prompts that suggest reteaching, scaffolding, or adjusting groups based on observed performance, and the Flexible Small Groups Guide describes grouping students using baseline, midyear, and end-of-year data along with informal assessments. Standardized administration directions and scoring protocols support consistency, and the Gradebook organizes child-level data. Materials also include lesson internalization protocols for each daily component. Each protocol includes guidance for “data decisions.” These guides help teachers reflect on relevant child data, the class’s unique cultural and linguistic background, and the class's current learning needs. Teachers are encouraged to consider that differentiated instruction may be needed to meet the needs of all learners in the classroom.
The materials also include support for communicating results to families. The Assessment Guide (pp. 35–37) provides steps for explaining results in clear language, and the Reports Companion Guide includes sample reports and narrative descriptions. Newsletters, take-home activities, and student work samples offer additional ways to share student progress.
Overall, Every Child Ready materials include structures to support the use and communication of assessment information. The program would benefit from more robust support for teachers in interpreting assessment items and results, and responding to assessment results through instructional modifications.