Item: Renaissance Star Assessments
Rating: 8
Author: Rosemarie Seus

Overall Satisfaction with Renaissance Star Assessments

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use the Renaissance Star Assessments to test VPK children three times a year on what they have learned throughout the school year. This helps to prepare them for the material they will learn in kindergarten. With these assessments, it also helps to guide the curriculum in determining what is good for the children to learn while in preschool.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Gives relatively simple questions for the children to answer
The use of many easy to understand pictures in the question
The option to repeat the question so that the child can hear it
The option to use either a tablet or a computer, so the child can use the device that they are more comfortable with

Cons

Support for students who are learning English as a second language
Bigger pictures

Return on Investment

It has allowed me to see what content to focus on with the VPK children, both in a group and with individual children
I realized that I had to focus on having the children learn content not only in their native language but also in English as well
Sometimes, I do feel as if I am helping the child learn only to be able to pass the Star Assessments rather than focusing on practical material (holding a pencil, being able to tie shoes, writing the name, etc.) as the child grows throughout the year.

Usability

It is relatively simple to use and it is easy to explain to the children how to take the assessment, especially on a tablet. On a laptop, it is usually more difficult and I have to assist the students on pressing the button or moving the mouse to choose their response. On a tablet, I am usually able to just watch as the children take the assessment.

Key Insights

Do you think Renaissance Star Assessments delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Renaissance Star Assessments's feature set?

Yes

Did Renaissance Star Assessments live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Renaissance Star Assessments go as expected?

I wasn't involved with the implementation phase

Would you buy Renaissance Star Assessments again?

Yes

Likelihood to Recommend

Renaissance Star Assessments are great for students who already know English and know how to use a device, especially a tablet. The children can listen to the question, choose an answer, then move on to the next question. These assessments are less appropriate for students learning English as a second language. Since the questions are in English, and most students primarily speak another language, they do not understand the questions and get many of them wrong. As a result, they score low and it appears as if the child has not been learning when in fact the low score is due to a language barrier. I think there should also be some type of block to choosing an answer until after the question is presented because some children like to press answers before the question is finished and then try to move on. I think having the answers be unclickable before the question is finished would be a benefit for the children to pay more attention to the question.

Comments

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Renaissance Star Assessments - Early Literacy

Modules Used