Next Generation Science Standards

Amplify Turns to Illuminate for Tech to Track NGSS Progress

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 11/28/18

Two education technology companies have worked on an integration intended to benefit districts following Next Generation Science Standards. Illuminate Education, which produces the Data & Assessment (DnA) platform, worked with Amplify, which has developed NGSS-aligned curriculum, on development of a new service to measure student progress for grades 3-8 against the Next Generation standards.

Expected shortly, Amplify's new NGSS Benchmark Assessments will enable educators using both Amplify Science and DnA to view not just Amplify test results but also related assessments and data for a broader view of the academic outlook.

KIPP Foundation, a network of public charter schools run by a nonprofit, piloted the new combination, and reported the use of the data allowed teachers to "provide the best possible science education" for its students. According to Nell Frame, KIPP's manager of assessment products and projects. "Equipping our teachers with curriculum that sets a high bar for NGSS achievement is integral to our regions' transitions to [NGSS]."

Amplify science curriculum, created with the help of the University of California, Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science, places students in grades K-8 into roles as scientists and engineers to explore and analyze real-world phenomena.