By MATT LINDSEY

PARISHVILLE -- Parishville-Hopkinton Central School tried to make ELA and math assessment test week more fun and positive for its students.

PHCS teachers, support staff, and administrators speak with students about the assessments, and ask that everyone does their best, like any other classroom assessments of understanding, according to Rebekah Grim, spokesperson for BOCES and PHCS.

“During the week, students dress for spirit days associated with the exams, for example wearing neon colors to represent highlighting important information, or camouflage to represent ‘hunting’ for evidence,” she said.

This is done in an effort to make the week more enjoyable for students.

There have been many changes to the 3-8 ELA and math assessments over the past few years based on feedback from educators across the state.

Some changes this school year include students being able to work at their own pace, and those who are actively working on their exams will be allowed to continue to work, independent of recommended time windows, according to Grim.

The length of the exams has been reduced and they now include fewer questions.

“This year, the ELA and Math exams consist of two sessions that are administered over two days for each assessment,” she said. “Last year’s exams consisted of three sessions that were administered over three days for each assessment.”

The questions were developed based on feedback from educators across the state. Each question and reading passage on this year’s assessments was reviewed by at least 22 educators.

Grim said exam results will not be used to evaluate the performance of teachers or principals. A moratorium is in place until the 2019-2020 school year while the state develops a new evaluation system.

“These assessments provide us with important data to guide classroom instruction, and tailor it to students’ level of understanding,” she said.