Thank you, all! I really appreciate the advice and comments. It is extremely frustrating to me.

To answer some of your questions:

Here's the process they used: The child had to score above the 95th percentile in Reading or Language in MAP for the winter test. If the child did not, but had scored above the 95th in the fall or spring of the previous year, then the parents could appeal. The appeal was for the child to be allowed to take an in-house writing and reading test. But, the scores were placed on a matrix. They had to score 25/35 possible points. My daughter scored 98th percentile in Language Arts for MAP, so she got 4 points. But, because she was in the 92nd percentile, she went in to the test with a 0/7 in Reading. She basically had to ace the reading/ writing in-house test. She got 11/12 on the reading portion. She got 16/20 on the writing test -- which translated into 8 of their matrix points. It all added up to 23/25.

I appealed this, and she was allowed to re-test. On the second test, she got the same writing score, but an 8 on the Reading, so she got an even lower score.

In terms of grades, she has always gotten A's and has been praised by her teachers. She tested out of the district spelling program in 3rd grade and has been given RIDICULOUS lists of random words, or of words based on greek/ latin roots, but without a real application of word study. She has been allowed to read whatever she wants at school, with the exception of two books in three years.

When I told her that she was being asked to take a test to take Advanced Language Arts, she told me she didn't want to take it because she HATES Language Arts. And this is coming from a girl who literally started a novel also night and finished it this afternoon. She and one of her best friends (who also didn't test in) started writing multiple books together, including a sequel to Hunger Games.

I should add that I am an English teacher, which makes me potentially biased. But, I think that it mostly makes me qualified to assess that she can handle whatever the 6th grade Advanced LA teacher has to throw at her. She could handle my 9th grade class.

Here's what I sent in already:

We would like to speak with you regarding the ALA testing/ appeal for our daughter. We are concerned about the placement process in general and, of course, our own daughter’s placement.


From previous conversations with you, we know that there is a concern that parents in the district would push their children to take courses that are above their ability level and instructional needs. We would certainly not advocate for our child, or any other one, to be pushed into a stressful academic situation. However, the process is not adequately identifying students’ instructional needs. The current matrix awards points to a student based on their national percentile. NWEA suggests that RIT range is what should be used to target instruction and in placement decisions (http://legacysupport.nwea.org/support/article/1200). Our daughter got zero points for her MAP reading score. Yet, the instructional targets based on her RIT range are the same as targets for students scoring 5, 6, or 7 points on the matrix for their MAP scores. If DD had been awarded even two points for her RIT range, she would have the required 25/25 points on the matrix.


We understand that the ALA committee tried to remedy the impact of fluctuating MAP scores on placement by looking back at previous MAP tests. While her score is at the 92nd percentile, our daughter has not shown growth in her RIT score on the MAP Reading test since third grade. In fact, for one of the testing sessions, she showed negative growth. The lack of growth is evidence that her instructional needs are not being met in the regular program.


We recognize the difficulty for the district in having to select a few students to benefit from this program, and are sorry that any child must be denied this opportunity if they want to accept the challenge. However, reason and common sense insist that we continue to make the case that our daughter’s educational needs are not being met by the regular program, based on her recorded testing and academic performance in the district. We would be happy to compile multiple data points that indicate that she would be best placed in an advanced curriculum if you feel that is necessary.

We ask for you to reconsider placement for her in the Advanced ALA class for the 2015-2016 school-year. Please let us know if we can make an appointment to speak with you in person about this matter.


SO, I got a meeting. I am almost certain that it is a meeting to be told why she is correctly placed in the Regular class. Polarbear, I agree with you. I think that I will ask for a copy of the complete ALA curriculum. I can assess the difference and fill in the gaps for her on my own.

I have to say though that I am really furious.

Thanks again! I will also go look at the threads referenced.