- Since the NC Standard Course of Study (NCSCOS) and pacing guides for Language Arts include many areas not tested on the End of Grade test (EOG), the focus of the Reading Benchmarks is based on covered genres and question stems
- The first Reading Benchmark is scheduled for Day 39, the second for Day 83, and the third for Day 124
- The percentage of question stems for reading comprehension (connection, cognition, critical stance, interpretation) is based on the required selections (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and informational [content and consumer, including graphs, maps, tables, and timelines])
Grades |
Time |
Questions
|
Percent of Cognition
|
Percent of Interpretation
|
Percent of Critical Stance
|
Percent of Connections
|
6 |
115 min. |
56 |
29% |
40% |
25% |
6% |
7 |
115 min. |
56 |
26% |
42% |
26% |
6% |
8 |
115 min. |
56 |
29% |
40% |
25% |
6% |
Benchmark Tests In General
Questions are filtered and edited by DPS teachers to represent each of the genres in the NC Standard Course of Study (NCSOS) and pacing guides that are provided by Durham Public Schools (DPS) through the Riverdeep Instruction Organizer (RIO) for all grades. The percentage of questions per unit (found in the RIO pacing guides) reflect the number of days dedicated to each unit and are chosen to reflect accurately the following categories:
-
Various levels of difficulty (easy, medium, hard)
-
The percentage of levels of thinking and reasoning skills
- Knowing 5-10%
- Organizing 5-10%
- Applying 25-30%
- Analyzing 25-30%
- Generating 10-15%
- Integrating 10-15%
- Evaluating 10-15%
DPS Benchmark Tests are designed to mirror their corresponding state test as closely as possible. Results from these tests are used to determine growth expectations for EOGs and assess the attainment of the goals and objectives in the NCSOS. On all tests, students are expected to demonstrate knowledge of important principles and concepts and relate information to everyday situations. In order to align each curriculum’s focus on inquiry instruction and higher-order thinking, the benchmarks have an increased focus on processing information, higher-order thinking skills, and understanding the relationship between each curriculum and real-world applications.
Each item on our benchmarks is related to one of the competency goals in the NCSCOS . The competency goals for each curriculum describe the knowledge and skills that are to be taught in all classes in North Carolina and provide the basis for the content of the items on the test. Many of the items on the cumulative benchmarks assess whether a student can move beyond memorization and apply process skills to the investigation of all subjects.
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