Florida Standards Assessments (FSA) English


Most of the information below was created for the original FSA ELA. Be sure to check the DOE website for updates, additional information, postings, and any changes: http://www.fldoe.org/accountability/assessments/k-12-student-assessment/fsa.stml

Order of Information in this Post:
  1. General Information about the assessment.
  2. Information about the reading portion of the assessment.
  3. Information about the writing portion of the assessment. 
(You will need to scroll down to find the information you are seeking.)

 FSA ELA Fact Sheet
http://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/5663/urlt/ELA-MathFSAFS1617.pdf

 FSA ELA Important Information:
https://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/2014/11/links-to-important-information-about.html

More Information for Students and Parents:
http://www.fsassessments.org/resources/?section=1-students-and-parents 

 Take the Training Test on the Department of Education website to familiarize yourself with the test format and question types on the Writing (March) and Reading Components (April):
https://login8.cloud1.tds.airast.org/student/V264/Pages/LoginShell.aspx?c=Florida_PT

 Training Test Answer Key for Reading Component (April):
https://login8.cloud1.tds.airast.org/student/V264/Pages/LoginShell.aspx?c=Florida_PT

Full-Length FSA Practice Tests
http://infotrac.galegroup.com/default/marg9873?db=TERC (For ATC students, remember the password that you wrote down during class. Then click on "High School Tools." Look at the drop-down menu for the FSA Practice Tests.)

See below for information regarding different components of the assessment. I have listed details about the Writing component first, followed by details about the Reading component (scroll down).



 Grade 10 FSA Reading, Language, & Listening Assessment
Dates for ATC--to come

Each day a session lasts 90 minutes. Day One--Questions 1-32;
Day Two--Questions 33-64.


Take the Training Test on the Department of Education website to familiarize yourself with the test format and question types on the Reading Component (April):
https://login8.cloud1.tds.airast.org/student/V264/Pages/LoginShell.aspx?c=Florida_PT

Training Test Answer Key for Reading Component (April)
https://fsassessments.org/assets/documents/answer-keys-computer/FSA_10R_Practice-Test_Answer-Key-CBT_Updated-Nov_2017.pdf

FSA ELA Training Test (Reading--April) on DOE Website--Synopsis:
http://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/2014/11/fsa-ela-training-test-on-doe-website.html#more

**FSA ELA Question Stems (Reading--April):
http://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/2015/09/grades-9-and-10-fsa-ela-question-stems.html

Reading Test Length: 60–64 items

Note: Approximately 6–10 items within the Reading, Language, and Listening components are experimental (field test) and are not included in students’ scores. Because the field test for the Text-based Writing component will be conducted in December 2014, no additional field test tasks will be included in the operational assessments of this component.

Grades 9, 10
  • Key Ideas and Details: 15-25% (based on 20% with 60 items: 12 items)
  • Craft and Structure: 25-35% (based on 30% with 60 items: 18 items)
  • Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: 25-35% (based on 30% with 60 items: 18 items)
  • Language and Editing: 15-25% (based on 20% with 60 items: 12 items)
  • Text-Based Writing: The weighting of the Text-based Writing component relative to the Reading, Language, and Listening component will be determined in spring 2015 after analysis of field test and operational data. 
Please note that the above estimates of the number of items in each category are my inferences; the estimates are not those of the DOE or of the test creator.

Reading Item Types on Test (Format)

Hot Text items require the student to either click on a response option or drag a response option to another location. In the drag-a-response option, the student may be given five possible responses, for example. The student then must click on and drag one or more responses to an space in a chart, list, or graphic organizer. Hot Text items may also require students to select/highlight details from a text (words, phrases, or sentences). Some Hot Text items are two part. For example, Part A asks the student, "Which is a theme of the passage?" and Part B asks the student, "Which detail supports the development of the theme in Part A?"

Examples:

1. Character A’s view of Character B
changes during the course of the
text. Select a detail from the text
that supports this conclusion.

2. Part A: How does the main character
change from the beginning of the
text to the end?
Part B: Provide a detail from the text that
supports this conclusion.

Multiple-Choice items require students to select a single answer option (A, B, C, or D).

Example:

1. What is a theme of the passage?

Multi-Select items allow students to select more than one answer option. These are different from multiple-choice items, which allow students to select only one response. Multi-Select items may also require the student to select/highlight multiple pieces of textual evidence.

Example:

1. Select two details that advance
the argument that _____.

Open-Response Items require students to use the keyboard to enter the response into a text field (box). Different types of open-response items may appear on the test.

Example:

1. Identify a central idea of the text.
Then, explain how the author uses
details to develop this central idea.

 New Item Type (2017-2018)
Categories of Item Types on Reading Component (April) 

 Key Ideas and Details as well as other question types: https://www.gallaudet.edu/tip/english-center/reading-(esl)/types-of-questions-and-tests/types-of-reading-questions.html

 Craft and Structure: http://www.slideshare.net/tracywatanabe/craft-structure-close-read-questions

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: http://svesd.net/files/DOK_Question_Stems.pdf

Language and Editing: http://education-portal.com/academy/topic/nystce-english-language-arts-revising-and-editing-written-texts.html and http://englishgrammar101.com and http://www.grammarbook.com and http://englishteststore.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11387&Itemid=427 

 Open-Response: Write three to five sentences. Be specific. Cite text (briefly; quote words and phrases) to support your response.

All question types: https://www.testprepreview.com/common-core-test-prep.htm

Miscellaneous Information:

The following link is helpful in addition to the Florida Standards Assessments (FSA) practice test site:
http://www.cpalms.org/Public/

See the following link for a Quick Guide to the tests. Page 12 in the link describes and gives visuals of the item types listed above:

Great Resources for Teachers:
Additional Information for Common Core Assessments--
http://www.smarterbalanced.org/assessments/practice-and-training-tests/

 Common Core Standards with Strategies for Teaching--
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/common-core-classroom-strategies.shtml

For even more information, check out the following links:
http://achievethecore.org/page/397/using-the-ela-literacy-publishers-criteria-to-better-understand-the-standards

Grade 10 FSA Writing Assessment
Date for ATC: to come

Take the Training Test on the Department of Education website to familiarize yourself with the test format and question types on the Writing Component (March):

FSA ELA Brainstorming and Planning for Writing Prompt (Prewriting):
https://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/search?q=fsa+brainstorming

Informative Essay Exemplar (from the SAGE Portal of Utah; Utah is using the same testing company):
http://sageportal.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Utah-practice-test_grade-11-scoring-sample-2014.pdf

Responding to the FSA Informative/Explanatory Writing Prompt (March):

FSA ELA Informative/Explanatory Writing Prompt--Strategies for Responding:

Peer Editing--FSA ELA Informative/Explanatory Writing Prompt Essay Rubric:
FSA ELA Sample Argumentative Prompt from Florida DOE Website:
http://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/2016/02/fsa-ela-argumentative-prompt-from.html
Argumentative Essay Exemplar (from the SAGE Portal of Utah; Utah is using the same testing company):

Responding to the FSA ELA Argumentative Writing Prompt:
FSA ELA Argumentative Writing Prompt--Some Additional Advice:
Information from SAGE, the Assessment Site for Utah (Florida is using the same test company). This link provides sample essays for the Writing Prompts on the Florida DOE website:

http://sageportal.org/resources/?section=1-general-teachers   Click on "Teachers," then "Sage Assessment Subjects," then "ELA" folder icon, then "Writing Information" folder icon. The "Grade 9 Writing Scoring Sample" PDF is an example of the Informative Essay. The "Grade 8 Writing Scoring Sample" PDF is an example of the Argumentative Essay. 

Sample  Writing Prompts (March):

Resources for Essay Writing
http://achievethecore.org/page/2725/text-complexity

FSA ELA Sample Informative/Explanatory Prompt--Black Death

FSA ELA Sample Informative/Explanatory Prompt--Memory:
http://scholarmulhern.blogspot.com/2014/11/fsa-ela-sample-informativeexplanatory_17.html

FSA ELA Sample Argumentative Prompt--Middle East Wars:

FSA ELA Sample Argumentative Prompt--Student Data:

Writing Rubrics on Department of Education Website: 
Scoring is based on a 10-point rubric: Purpose, Focus, and Organization (4-point rubric); Evidence and Elaboration (4-point rubric); Conventions of Standard English (2-point rubric)

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