Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment System (PVAAS) - Evaluating Growth, Projecting Performance

What is PVAAS?

PVAAS is a statistical analysis of PSSA assessment data, and provides districts and their schools with progress data to add to achievement data. This new lens of measuring student learning provides educators with valuable information to ensure they are meeting the academic needs of cohorts of students, as well as individual students.

To help you understand PVAAS analysis, think of academic progress/growth in terms of a child's physical growth, and the growth charts utilized by a child's physician.  Growth charts are an important tool for monitoring a child's development, but they are just one of the indicators used by the physician to ensure a child is growing at the minimum expected level and on the trajectory to grow as expected.  A physician would not use a growth chart in isolation to diagnose a child; however, the growth chart would provide valuable information that may warrant further exploration.

PVAAS Reporting?

PVAAS provides two types of information, value-added (or growth) data on cohorts of students and student level projection data.  The value-added, or growth, analyzes available data from previous years (looking back) to help schools evaluate how much cohorts of students have gained in a school year by answering questions such as:  Did a group or subgroup of students make a year's worth of growth for a year's worth of schooling?

The projection data uses the data already analyzed to help schools project (looking forward) to the future by answering questions such as:  What is the percent likelihood of a student being proficient on a future PSSA?  Projection data can be used for intervention planning and resource reallocation.

As in previous years, PVAAS is available for reading and math in grades 4-8 (this year's current 5th through 9th graders).  In 2008, PVAAS reports were available for reading, math, science and writing in grade 11 (this year's current 12th graders), as well as for science in grades 4 and 8 and for writing in grades 5 and 8.

PVAAS is one of the many tools provided to districts from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.  Districts and schools are using PVAAS, in conjunction with achievement data, to make sure all students are on a trajectory to proficiency.  Utilizing all the data available (progress and achievement), educators are able to make data-informed instructional decisions to ensure the academic growth and achievement of all students.

The Department has developed numerous resources specifically targeted to the overview, introduction, implementation and integration of PVAAS.  For additional information on PVAAS and value-added professional development opportunities and resources, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Education's web site at www.education.state.pa.us, email at pdepvaas@iu13.org or call               (717) 606-1911