Standards: While Indiana’s English/language arts and mathematics standards are clear, concise, and strong in some areas, they do not always reflect a clear progression of content knowledge and skills from grade to grade. Some content is repetitive, and other necessary material is missing or incomplete.
Assessments: In general, the Indiana State Testing for Educational Progress, or istep, program, measures the content and skills outlined in the standards and includes a large proportion of well-crafted items. But the tests cover the standards unevenly, are not rigorous enough for the given grade levels, and often are less challenging than what the standards indicate.
Recommendations: Indiana should revise the standards to eliminate repetition across and within grades. The standards should be more rigorous, particularly in the areas of early literacy, algebra, and geometry. The assessments should be revised so that they measure the full range of standards and are sufficiently challenging.
SOURCE: “Measuring Up: A Report on Education Standards and Assessments for Indiana.”
