Classification Accuracy of i-Ready and Prior Year State Exams on Year-End Outcomes

The purpose of this study was to compare the classification accuracy of data produced by the previous year’s end-of-year New York state assessment, a computer-adaptive diagnostic assessment ( i-Ready ), and the gating combination of both assessments to predict the rate of students passing the following year’s end-of-year state assessment in English Language Arts (ELA) and math. Overall, the previous year’s end-of-year state assessment yielded stronger classification accuracy over the use of the fall i-Ready diagnostic assessment. The combination of i-Ready with the previous year’s state test demonstrated nominally greater strength in determining student risk level. Therefore, the previous year’s end-of-year assessment may be economically advantageous over administering i-Ready as an additional screening assessment for the strict purpose of determining risk within a multi-tiered system of supports. Implications of these findings and recommendations for further research are discussed.