The new version of uPAR is live!
Here is a quick summary of what you'll see:
Student Benefit
1. Shorter - no student will ever need to read more than 5 passages.
2. Shorter, Smart Recheck - The recheck should take 5-10 minutes rather than an entire class period.
3. Feedback to the Student - We found that students weren’t sure what was happening when they took uPAR. They didn’t have a sense of what and why they were doing what they were doing. We built in feedback all along the way so students can understand what is happening. Then, at the end, we give them a brief summary of what we found. This doesn’t replace the need to do a walk through with teacher/student, but it’s nice to get some immediate feedback.
Teacher Benefit
1. Easier to set up - no gathering independent reading level, grade level, etc - just type an email in (or with a domain license just tell the students to log in).
2. System integration - Integrates with Google Classroom, Google OUs, Domain Licensing. NYC Schools’login, Schoology and Canvas integration.
3. Super Fast Recheck - The new uPAR uses data collected from past uPAR protocols to inform what new information should be gathered and what algorithm should be used.
4. Recheck Graph - Recheck is now graphed on the same chart so you can see progress over time.
5. Track Time - Extra time is the #1 accommodation. We now can tell educators how long it took a student to read a passage independently vs at the same grade level with a text reader. For example, even if a student gets 100% independently and with a text reader, it may take them 3 times longer reading it independently. That tells us they either need extra time or they need a text reader without extra time.
6. Appropriate for all students - old uPAR really only gave good data for students reading below grade level. The new Algorithm gives insightful data for all students, even those reading at or above grade level independently.
Administrator Benefit
1. System Integration - Easy to set up Google Classroom, OUs, LMS integration, domain licensing, etc.
2. Reporting - Able to see reports sorted into different categories across the district easily.