Advanced Language Arts Philosophy:

In Arlington Heights District 25, students are typically placed in grade level language arts.  Grade level language arts means students are receiving grade level instruction aligned to the Illinois Learning Standards.  Students ready for instruction taught at a faster pace and greater depth than that of grade level language arts are placed in Advanced Language Arts.  In Arlington Heights District 25, placement in Advanced Language Arts begins in sixth-grade.

Advanced Language Arts Placement:

All fifth through seventh-grade students are considered for placement into Advanced Language Arts.  The Department of Student Learning reviews the scores from the NWEA Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Reading Assessment and Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) to determine the students who will be considered for Advanced Language Arts.  Arlington Heights District 25 considers students who score at or above the 93rd percentile on the Reading MAP and/or have a standard age score of 128 or above on the Verbal CogAT assessment.  

Advanced Language Arts Placement Criteria:

Advanced Language Arts class placement is determined by evaluating the following criteria:

1. NWEA Reading MAP Score:  Arlington Heights District 25 will use the fall, winter, and spring administration of NWEA MAP as a universal screener. For students in fifth through seventh-grade, the higher of the three scores will be used to determine placement into advanced classes. 
2. CogAT Verbal Score:  Arlington Heights District 25 administered CogAT in the fall to all third and fifth-grade students as a universal screener.  The most recent score is used when considering students for placement in advanced classes.  CogAT will also be administered to students new to the district in fourth through seventh-grade. 
3. Renzulli Scale for Advanced Reading and Writing:  Teachers in Arlington Heights District 25 complete the Renzulli Scale for students who score 93rd percentile or above on the Reading MAP and/or have a standard age score of 128 or higher on the Verbal CogAT assessment.  The Renzulli Scale is used to gather information about the characteristics of students in the classroom.  Students who have already qualified based on their performance on MAP and CogAT will not require a Renzulli Scale.
4. District 25 Advanced Placement Test: Arlington Heights District 25 administers the District 25 Advanced Placement Test in spring for students who score at the 93rd percentile or above on the Reading MAP and/or have a standard age score of 128 or above on the Verbal CogAT assessment.  This test measures specific knowledge in the area of language arts to determine student readiness for advanced placement.  Students who have already qualified based on their performance on MAP, CogAT, and/or Renzulli Scale will not require a District 25 Advanced Placement Test.

Advanced Language Arts Placement Matrix:

Qualification for Advanced Language Arts requires a minimum of 6 points using a combination of the evaluation criteria on the matrix below:

For any additional questions, please contact Sharon Nelles, Literacy Coordinator, at snelles@sd25.org.