IXL Learning

IXL Diagnostic Assessment

PVPUSD is using the IXL Diagnostic Assessment this year to provide real-time insights into student learning. The tool helps teachers see what students have already mastered and where additional support is needed. With this information, instruction can be more effectively tailored to meet individual student needs.

Students will complete the IXL Diagnostic Assessment in math and language arts twice a year in grades 6–8 and three times a year in grades 1–5. Parents have the ability to view results online after each diagnostic and throughout the year to stay up to date on their child’s progress.

After the diagnostic, teachers can personalize learning by assigning standards-based practice and targeted skill lessons, ensuring students get the right level of support and challenge.

How to View Student Progress

To view student progress:

Sign in to your student’s account through their district single sign-on portal at portal.pvpusd.net
- If you don't know your child's login information, please ask them
- If you have multiple students, you may need to log in through an incognito browser window to access the additional account(s).
Click the IXL logo
Then, access the Student Summary report by navigating to “Analytics” then “Summary”.

Video: IXL overview for parents

VIEW THE STUDENT SUMMARY REPORT
The Student Summary report gives you a comprehensive view of what your student has been learning on IXL, their accomplishments, and areas for improvement. IXL’s Diagnostic pinpoints your student’s current knowledge levels and generates a personalized action plan of skills to accelerate their progress.
Scroll down to the section labeled “Areas to focus on”. Here, you can access your student’s Diagnostic Action Plan.

UNDERSTANDING DIAGNOSTIC SCORES
The action plan features handpicked IXL skills that will help students grow from where they are in each subject strand. Diagnostic scores correspond to grade levels. A score of 500 indicates readiness to begin work on 5th grade skills. A score of 550 indicates 50% proficiency in 5th grade skills.

UNDERSTANDING SKILL PRACTICE "SMART SCORES"

IXL's SmartScore is a unique, adaptive score from 0-100 that measures a student's true understanding of a skill, not just their accuracy. It accounts for question difficulty and consistency, increasing for correct answers and decreasing for incorrect ones. A score of 80 indicates proficiency, 90 shows excellence, and a 100 signifies true mastery of the skill.

How the SmartScore Works

Starts at 0: When a student begins a new skill, their SmartScore starts at 0.

Adapts to performance: The score dynamically changes based on the student's answers, with difficult questions offering larger point increases and incorrect answers having a larger penalty.

Not a percentage: Unlike a percentage, a score of 100 means the student has demonstrated a deep and consistent understanding of the skill, not just answered every question correctly.

Factors it considers: The SmartScore incorporates question difficulty, recent answers, and overall answer patterns to gauge true understanding.

SmartScore Levels and Goals

0-79 (Learning and Practicing): This is the initial phase where students build foundational knowledge.

80 (Proficiency): This is a key target, indicating a strong understanding of the skill.

80-89 (Refining): Students continue to refine their understanding and can be shown more rigorous questions.

90 (Excellence): At this level, students consistently answer difficult questions and show a high degree of understanding.

90-100 (Challenge Zone): Students face the most challenging questions and must prove consistent correctness to achieve mastery.

100 (Mastery): Achieving a SmartScore of 100 confirms that a student has truly mastered the skill.

https://www.ixl.com/inspiration/us/IXL-SmartScore-Guide.pdf

Students can "Learn with an Example"

IXL Also has Video Tutorials for Math and ELA skills

Other Ways to Track Your Child's Progress with IXL Analytics

See here for details: https://www.ixl.com/materials/Analytics_Guide_for_Parents.pdf

IXL FAQ's

Q: Why did the district switch from the iReady Diagnostic to the IXL Flex Diagnostic?

A: Our goal in switching to the IXL Flex Diagnostic is to provide you with even more timely and actionable information in a very similar way. In addition to the recommended skills IXL provides in a Student Action Plan based on updated diagnostic scores, IXL has instructional tools and specific skill practice that connects to our curriculum.

Q: Is the IXL Assessment the same type of thing as the iReady Diagnostic?

A: Like iReady, the IXL Flex Diagnostic is an "adaptive" assessment. It's not a traditional test with a passing or failing grade. Instead, it adjusts the difficulty of questions based on your child's responses to pinpoint exactly what they know and what they are ready to learn.

Q: Can I use the information from the IXL Flex Diagnostic in the same way I used the results from iReady?

A: Yes.

Instead of iReady's "Placement Level"...

You'll see IXL's "Diagnostic Level." This is a score that corresponds to a grade level. For example, a score of 500 indicates your child is ready to work on 5th-grade skills, a score of 600 corresponds to 6th-grade skills, and so on. This gives you that familiar, clear snapshot of your child's current academic level.

Instead of iReady's "Personalized Learning Path"...

You'll use IXL's "Personalized Action Plan." Based on the diagnostic results, IXL creates a customized list of specific skills for your child to practice. This action plan directly targets the areas where your child can make the most progress, just as the iReady lessons did.

Q: Does IXL provide my child with a Lexile level? This helped us to choose independent reading books.

A: While IXL does not provide a Lexile score, you can still use the diagnostic information to guide your child's reading choices. The IXL Language Arts diagnostic will pinpoint your child's overall reading level, again corresponding to a grade level. You can use this grade-level information to help your child find appropriate books at the school library or the public library. You can find Lexile levels by grade at https://hub.lexile.com/lexile-grade-level-charts/

Q: Based on the IXL score, I think my child should accelerate to the next grade level. Is that possible?

A: An IXL score is a helpful tool for teachers to tailor instruction, but it is not intended — nor sufficient — to move a child into the next grade. The IXL diagnostic is designed to give teachers a snapshot of your child’s strengths and areas for growth. It helps guide instruction and identify where extra practice might be needed, but it does not equate to mastery of an entire grade’s curriculum.

Q: My child’s score has gone down (or up). Why is that?

A: As students answer more questions over the course of the year the Flex Diagnostic constantly gathers data on their understanding. As a student answers questions correctly, their working grade level can increase, and if they answer incorrectly, it can decrease. The system continually refines a student’s level as it learns more about what the student knows and is able to do.