RR ISD TAG testing (Round Rock, Atlanta: house, school districts, live)

[some_girl_111]

Hello all

My 3rd grade son was in the GT program for MN. He tested 99% via MN state ISD testing that used a combination of NNAT2, Kauffman test and another Math and Reading academic assessment test (forgot the name).

We forwarded the scores to RRISD however they said there were some additional testing needed.

Any idea what the testing process is for RR ISD Elementary schools? What are the tests they use? Is it NNAT / COGAT or something f else? Also, curious what are the cut offs are?

Just curious how different the testing process is so I can compare it with what my son has already been through. He gets very flustered in a formal testing scenario, so wanna mentally prep him based on what to expect.

Thanks and any help appreciated.

[Idlewile]

Much to my surprise, I found both the initial testing (don't recall which types but not the same as our experience elsewhere), the TAG program and the TAG teachers at RRISD categorically subpar, uninspired and limited when compared to TAG programs and similarly-ranked schools in other states. A big shock considering RRISD and these schools are some on the best in the state.

Our TAG program experience consisted of little more than advanced curriculum (mostly math) and little else out of the box or specialized or nauanced. Meanwhile, here, we have third and fourth graders conducting mock trials and studying and experimenting in support of the hippocampus. That said, with Westwood as the end goal, it all makes sense. Don't get me wrong, we moved into the house we did for exactly THAT track. But after the curtain was lifted, we knew we wanted something different, something more.

[some_girl_111]

Hi Idlewile, he did have a good curriculum challenging creative thinking as a part of GT a Teacher MN. The way I look at it, it is just 3 yrs more before middle school TAG and I know it’s a good middle school.

My ques was more on the lines of what the testing process is. Any idea on that?

[sloppymeg]

I can't remember the testing tools used. They may not have even disclosed that. I looked back over the results sheet provided to me and it doesn't mention the names of the tests.



For reference, we moved from a large school district outside of Atlanta which did rigorous testing. Some of those tests were less than a year old, but RRISD would not accept any of those results. The RRISD school also proceeded to test my kids by pulling them out of recess during the first week, which I wasn't very pleased about. Way to make the new kids feel more awkward!



The end result? We changed school districts the next year as we didn't find the TAG program to be a good fit and didn't want them to end up at Westwood the more we learned. They (and we) have been much happier with the LISD schools. We much preferred the QUEST program combined with PACE that LISD offered.

[mesmer]

They completely changed their testing process last year, so it will be hard to find anyone who knows much about it since not many kids have gone through the new process. They hid the types of testing used in the past, though. I doubt that policy has changed.

[some_girl_111]

Thanks all.

[Pretzeltwist]

Originally Posted by some_girl_111

Hello all

My 3rd grade son was in the GT program for MN. He tested 99% via MN state ISD testing that used a combination of NNAT2, Kauffman test and another Math and Reading academic assessment test (forgot the name).

We forwarded the scores to RRISD however they said there were some additional testing needed.

Any idea what the testing process is for RR ISD Elementary schools? What are the tests they use? Is it NNAT / COGAT or something f else? Also, curious what are the cut offs are?

Just curious how different the testing process is so I can compare it with what my son has already been through. He gets very flustered in a formal testing scenario, so wanna mentally prep him based on what to expect.

Thanks and any help appreciated.

I'm a classroom teacher at RRISD with 12 years experience in the district. TAG services in Round Rock are delivered to a small percentage of students at each school. The idea is that students who are not in the highest percentage groups at that school do not need TAG instruction, but instead would be well-suited to the level of regular instruction that is provided at that particular school. So each individual school has a different cut-off score, and the score can change each year, because only a certain percentage of students will be allowed into the program at any one school. So if you are at a very high achieving school, such as Laurel Mountain, it is very hard to get into the TAG program. Many non-qualifiers at Laurel Mountain would qualify for TAG services in a less-competetive school in the district. The upside of being at a very competetive school in RRISD is that the regular classroom instruction will be at a higher level than it will be at less competetive schools in the district. And understand that RRISD TAG programs are pull-out programs. TAG students are not in a self-contained TAG classroom all day, only for math and/or language arts, so the quality of instruction they'll get in their regular classes in the other subjects is very important, too.