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Nevada District Extends Online Assessments

Clark County School District in Nevada is upping its stake in online assessments for its younger students. The massive district this week reported that it's expanding its use of Pearson's AIMSweb, a Web-based assessment and progress monitoring tool.

CCSD has been using AIMSweb to varying degrees for the last 10 years, according to Pearson. Now that use is being upgraded to an AIMSweb Pro Complete subscription and extended district-wide. The implementation will include Web-based data reporting and analytics tools and online scoring and progress monitoring and screening tools. More than 97 percent of Clark County's classrooms have computers with Internet access.

According to details released by Pearson Monday, "Schools throughout CCSD have been using AIMSweb for more than a decade and the move to expand access to all of its young learners is based on the success of its implementation at schools such as Helen M. Smith Elementary School. After four years of using AIMSweb to supports CCSD's [response to intervention] initiative, this ethnically diverse, Title I school with a growing free/reduced lunch population was recently one of just two in Nevada and one of a select group across the nation to earn the coveted Blue Ribbon National School designation from the [United States] Department of Education. School and CCSD leaders attribute part of the credit for this success to the successful way Helen M. Smith Elementary School teachers use AIMSweb."

The new contract extends for five years and covers students in elementary and middle schools (about 200,000 students total). The contract also includes professional development and training services, including private onsite sessions, workshops, and online training.

Clark County School District is one of the largest public school districts in the country and serves about 310,000 students in an area spanning 7,910 square miles in southern Nevada, including Las Vegas. The district comprises 217 elementary schools, 59 middle schools, and 49 high schools, along with 32 alternative or special needs schools.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


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