8th Grade Math: Students will demonstrate grade level math skills by the end of 8th grade

8th grade math is an important indicator of which college prep math classes students will take in high school. Some students will take a combined Math 7/8 in 7th grade and then Algebra I in 8th grade. This will put them on track to take classes such as Geometry, Algebra II, Pre-Calc/Trigonometry or replace these with Advanced Placement classes. We are using the CMAS Math Assessment results to measure whether students will be on track for these advanced math classes.

What is CMAS?

To accurately measure student mastery of 21st century college and career skills and expectations, Colorado adopted assessments that align with the Colorado Academic Standards. Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) assessments are the state’s common measurement tool of student progress at the end of the school year in English language arts (ELA), math, science and social studies.

CMAS Performance Levels

Each performance level is a broad, categorical level defined by a student’s overall scale score and is used to report overall student performance by describing how well students met the expectations for their grade level/course. Each performance level is defined by a range of overall scale scores for the assessment. According to the Colorado Department of Education, the top two CMAS performance levels (Met and Exceeded Expectations) are on track for college and career.

There are five performance levels for CMAS assessments:

Level 5: Exceeded exceptions
Level 4: Met expectations
Level 3: Approached expectations
Level 2: Partially met expectations
Level 1: Did not yet meet expectations