Go back to school with your kids with a new online assessment program

MEDIA RELEASE Wednesday 4 February 2004 Go back to school with your kids with a new online assessment program In a first for Australia, the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) has launched its latest initiative in online assessment with iAchieve at home, an educational support activity for children and parents at home. The iAchieve at home program brings together the latest advances in educational measurement and internet technology to provide a series of web-based multiple-choice tests in English and Mathematics for students in Years 3-10. Tests are available for different ability levels and individual reports are provided as feedback for students and parents on test scores and a measurement of the student’s performance against comparable groups throughout Australia. “The most exciting feature about this program is that students get immediate feedback in a way that empowers them to take control for improving their own learning,” said ACER’s, Professor Jim Tognolini. “Many parents have told me that they want to be better informed and more involved with their child’s education, iAchieve at home will enable parents to become more involved in supporting learning at home.” Students in the iAchieve at home program complete a test at the beginning and end of the year and can see how they have progressed during the year. A team of 15 test writers, IT specialists and teachers have been working for the past year to develop this web-based based teaching support All test items assess a national curriculum outcome, have been reviewed by experienced teachers and trialled in schools. “Because students can log on to iAchieve at home from home any time, this gives families the flexibility they need when combining busy lives with a desire for more information about how their children are progressing at school. This means students can find out early when they are doing well or when they might need to work harder or get extra help.” Professor Tognolini said that developments on iAchieve at home are continuing with ACER staff working to provide parents with access to general information about education and learning through the broader information for parents on the iAchieve at home website. This year English and Mathematics tests are available for students in Years 3 to 10. The program will be expanded in future years to include all subjects across Years 1 to 10. The first set of iAchieve at home test items is now available. The cost of the program is $50 or $25 per subject. To register or find further information, you can visit the website at www.iachieveathome.com.au ****************ENDS*************