Study finds differential performance on Maryland's K‑readiness assessment; MSDE seeks new, unbiased tool

Maryland education officials presented a study of the current Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) that found evidence of moderate to significant differential item functioning across multiple student groups, particularly Hispanic/Latino students and bilingual/English‑learner students.

MSDE said the study (commissioned by the state and conducted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Technology in Education with WestEd) applied differential item functioning analyses to detect whether student subgroups perform differently on individual KRA items after controlling for underlying ability. The report found that many comparisons across racial and linguistic groups showed statistically significant differentials; the most pronounced disadvantages were for bilingual and multilingual children on some items.

MSDE officials said the finding triggers statutory and policy obligations: the Blueprint directs that the KRA be unbiased across racial and cultural groups. MSDE presented recommended next steps: convene a Maryland advisory panel of experts and educators from diverse constituencies to review flagged items; conduct targeted item reviews; revise score reports and interpretation guidance; and, critically, pursue an emergency procurement so a replacement or revised tool could be ready for fall administration if timing permits.

Interim State Superintendent Wright said the department will include bias‑evaluation documentation in any RFP and require third‑party evidence that candidate tools have been evaluated for differential functioning. Wright urged urgency so the state can be confident it is measuring proficiency equitably and transparently.

Board members asked about training for administrators and implementation timelines; MSDE said training plans and procurement cadences will be built into the emergency procurement schedule. MSDE expects to publish the full study publicly and to incorporate advisory‑panel feedback in an RFP process.