A new assessment will be gauging your students’ capabilities for beyond high school.

Students enrolled in English 11 courses will soon be taking part in the College and Work Readiness Assessment (CWRA), developed by the Council for Aid to Education (CAE).  The CWRA is a problem-based test designed to measure critical thinking, analytic reasoning, problem solving and written communication skills. It was administered last year to more than 18,000 high school students nationally.

Although students do not receive a formal grade, data gathered from CWRA performance tasks are reviewed and used to improve instruction at individual schools and across the division. Additionally, the skills assessed by the CWRA are among the outcomes for student success identified in the school division’s strategic plan, Compass to 2015, as being essential for success as 21^st century learners, workers, and citizens.

All students enrolled in English 11 courses must participate in this mandatory assessment.

The CWRA will be administered Jan.16 – 24.  An overview of the CWRA, including a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and a link to the scoring criteria are posted on vbschools.com.