The purpose of this chart is to help you understand the NWEA measurement RIT

scale (RIT scale) and how it can be used to measure academic growth over
time. For more specific information to help support instruction please see
Reference Chart for
NWEA’s DesCartes: A Continuum of Learning. Mathematics

NWEA tests produce scores that make it possible to monitor student growth from year to
year along developmental curriculum scales or continua. The chart inside shows examples
of the kinds of work students can do at various points along the NWEA RIT scale, assuming
they have been exposed to content. This type of information is helpful in supporting
appropriate instruction.

Please note that each subject-area has a unique alignment to the RIT scale. As a result, scores
between subjects are not equivalent.

How to use the charts:

1. Find the column containing the student’s score for a particular subject. For example, if
the student’s score in “Number Sense/Number Systems” is 188, refer to the column
labeled 181-190.
2. Read down the column to locate a sample test question for a given reporting area, such as
“Number Sense/Number Systems.” A student’s score suggests that, currently, they are
likely to get about half of the questions of this difficulty correct.
3. Now look at the questions in the column(s) to the left. The student is likely to get most of
these correct, assuming he or she has been instructed in these skills and concepts.
4. The questions in the column(s) to the right will probably require new learning on the
student’s part.

RIT Scale
We use the RIT scale to measure a student’s academic growth over time. Like units on a
ruler, the scale is divided into equal intervals – called Rasch Units (RIT) – and is
independent of grade level.

Northwest Evaluation Association 503 624-1951 www.nwea.org

©Northwest Evaluation Association 2012. All rights reserved.
MATHEMATICS below 161 161-170 171-180 181-190 191-200 201-210 211-220 221-230 231-240 241-250 above 250
Number Sense/ 68 equals: Round 68 to the nearest tens place. What is 6 in simplest form?
12
Which set contains all the factors of 20? What is the Greatest Common What is √0.64? 43,000 equals: Which is the simplified form of
Factor of 54 and 72? 2 + 3 √-12?
Number Systems A. 60 + 8 A. 60 A. 1
2 A. 0.008 A. 4.3 x 103
How many? 1 2 3 4 5 A. (5, 10, 15, 20) A. 1 A. 8i √3
Students understand and apply B. 60 + 80 B. 70 B. 12 B. 0.08 B. 4.3 x 104
How many dozen doughnuts? 24 B. (2, 4, 5, 10) B. 6 B. 2 + 6i √3
concepts of numbers including A. 4 1 C. 6 + 8 C. 78 2 C. 0.8 C. 4.3 x 105
Which shows 2 of a pizza? A. 2 C. 4 C. (1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 20) C. 9 C. -i √12
representing, identifying, counting, B. 5 D. 600 + 8 D. 80 D. 8 D. 43 x 104
comparing, ordering, equivalence, B. 2 1/2 1 D. (1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 15, 20) D. 18 D. 2 - 3i √12
C. 6 A. 1 D. 4 E. 6 + 80 E. 100 D. 6 E. 43 x 10 5

and number theory. D. 7 B. 2 E. 5 C. 3 1 E. 27 E. -4i √12

E. 12
E. 8 C. 3 D. 4
E. 24

Estimation and 6+2= 63 99 23 5 - 3 = 0.32 ÷ 8 = Which is the most appropriate estimation -6 + (-7) = Which is closest to √10? Which fraction represents a quarter Simplify 5 -4
+ 34 - 56 7 7 for 7298 x 632? of a half?
Computation A. 4
x 3
8
A. 4.3 A. 13 A. 3.0 A. 625
A. 7 A. 7298 x 632 1
A. 16 D. 1 1
Students understand the processes B. 8 A. 31 A. 34 A. 56 B. 0.15 B. -1 B. 3.2 2 B. 20
for computation and can accurately C. 9 B. 37 B. 42 B. 66 B. 2 C. 0.04 B. 7000 x 600 C. 42 B. 1 E. 3 1
C. 3.5 8 4 C. 625
compute and solve problems using C. 71 C. 43 C. 69 C. 7298.4 x 632.9
D. 26 C. 2
7
D. 0.4 D. 1 D. 5.0 C. 3
whole numbers, fractions, decimals, E. 62 D. 97 D. 53 D. 59 E. 43.75 D. 7290 x 600 E. -13 8 D. -20
D. 0 E. -625
integers, rational, and real numbers. E. 98 E. 155 E. 68 E. 8000 x 600
E. 7

Algebra Which number does not fit? + 7 = 13 Which sign goes in the ? 52 - = 12 Jill sold bags of raisins. The first day she Which point of the graph shows the If 6n = 102, n equals Evaluate gh - b if The graph shows the flight home of a Ken works as a salesperson in a local What is the x intercept of 4x + 2y = 8?
sold 6 bags and the second day she sold coordinates (9, 8)? homing pigeon over a distance of 60 km. electronics store. He earns $200 each week
Students understand and apply 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10 =? 14 6=8 = A. 12 g = 4, h= 9, b = 12 A. -4
12. On the third day she sold 18. y plus 6% commission on his total sales.
algebraic concepts including A. A What is the pigeon’s average speed
A. 4 A. 6 A. + A. 30 If Jill continues to sell bags following the 10
B
B. 17 A. 48 for the trip? Which equation correctly represents Ken’s B. 1
2
extending patterns, simplifying B. B 9
C 60
B. 5 B. 9 B. - B. 32 same pattern, how many bags will she sell 8 A C. 108 B. 37 weekly earnings? Let s = Ken’s total sales.
expressions, solving equations 7 A. 600 km/h
50 C. 2
on the sixth day? C. C 6 D. 196 Distance 40
and inequalities, using coordinate C. 6 C. 10 C. ÷ C. 40 5
C. 25 from 30 A. E = 0.06s($200) D. 4
D. D 4 E. 612 B. 60 km/h Home
graphing, and solving functions and D. 7 D. 11 D. < D. 42 A. 54 D. 30 3
D. 24 (km) 20 B. E = 6s + $200 E. 8
E. E 2 C. 10 km/h 10
matrices. E. 10 E. 18 E. > E. 64 B. 48 E. 24 1
E D E. 1 0 2 C. E = 0.06s + $200
x 4 6 8 9 10
C. 36 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 D. 6 km/h
Time (h) D. E = 6s($200)

Geometry Which shape does NOT have any corners? Which of these is a triangle? The pictures show the same object from Which shape has symmetry? Which figures show a line of symmetry? The diagram shows the top, front, and side What type of transformation is shown? Which of these nets would fold into Students at a middle school built a model of Using the Pythagorean Theorem, a2 + b2 = c2, If the two pentagons are similar, what is
different views. views of a solid. Which solid could this be? a closed cube? their school. The school is 700 ft long and 500 when a = 9 and b = 12 , then c = ? the value of x?
Students understand and apply A. D. A. D. A. A. translation ft wide. If the students used a scale of 10 ft = 21 2x + 1
geometric concepts including B. rotation A. D. 1 in., what are the dimensions of the model? A. 8 A. 19
B. Top View Front View Side View
identification and classification Which picture shows the same object? 1 2 3 4 5 B. 21 B. 11
C. reflection A. 70 ft by 50 ft
of 2- and 3-D objects, symmetry B. E. B. E. C. A. D.
A. C. D. dilation B. 70 ft by 50 in. C. 15 C. 17
and transformations, similar and A. 1, 4, and 5 D. 1 and 4 B. E. 15
D. B. E. E. congruent C. 7 ft by 50 ft D. 21 D. 3
congruent figures, Pythagorean B. 2, 4, and 5 E. 2, 3, and 4 3x - 2
B. D. D. 70 in. by 50 in. E. 225 E. 10
Theorem, and scale. C. C. E. C. 4 and 5 C.
C.
E. 7 in. by 5 in.

Measurement Who is the shortest? What is the area of the figure? Dante has 3 dimes, 2 nickels, and 4 pennies. 10″ This solid is built byy stacking cubes. 4 yards = Regina needs 2 ½ pounds of fertilizer Use the formula C = πd and π = 3.14 Calculate the surface area of this The diameter of sphere A is twice the size
for her plants. How many ounces is rectangular solid. of sphere B. What is the ratio of the volume
Students understand and apply Metric 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 A. 18 square units How much money does Dante have? 2″ A. 16 feet Find the circumference of this circle to the
2 ½ pounds? of sphere A to the volume of sphere B?
concepts of measurement including nearest inch. A. 79 cm2
The pencil is about how many B. 9 square units A. 21 ¢ = 1 cubic unit B. 20 feet
measuring, conversion, using A. 16 ounces B. 110 cm2 A. 8 : 1
centimeters long? C. 20 square units B. 29 ¢ What is the perimeter of this rectangle? Whatt iis th l
the volume off th
the solid? C. 144 inches A. 157 in. 3 cm
appropriate units, and calculating Annika Daniel Lucia Meiko Marcus B. 20 ounces C. 120 cm2 B. 1 : 8
D. 16 square units C. 36 ¢ A. 9 cubic units D. 80 inches B. 150 in. d = 50 in.
perimeter and circumference, area, A. 5 cm D. 4 cm A. 12″ D. 16″
C. 30 ounces D. 128 cm2 C. 2 : 1
A. Annika D. Meiko B. 6 cm E. 8 cm E. 5 square units D. 39 ¢ B. 10 cubic units E. 36 inches C. 1,570 in. 8 cm
surface area, volume, and rate. B. 24″ E. 20″ D. 1 : 2
B. Daniel E. Marcus C. 12 cubic units D. 40 ounces D. 53.14 in. E. 158 cm2
C. 7 cm E. 44 ¢ C. 8″ E. 1 : 1
C. Lucia D. 16 cubic units E. 48 ounces E. 46.86 in.

Statistics and Liz

= 1 piece Who read the most books?
Student Council Election Results
Student Number of Votes
Ken wants to bake cookies for his class. How much more of the dog food sold is A box contains 13 balls. 3 balls are red, Diana received scores of 100, 63, 80, 85 If the average of five numbers is 50 Look at the box and whisker plot. For these test grades, which measures of
Ari He wants to know what cookie to bake. dry than canned? 5 are blue, 4 are orange, and 1 is yellow. and 92 on her math tests. What is her and four of the numbers are 25, 75, central tendency are equal to 80%?
Probability Cam
of candy A. Al
Books Read
Ann Dog Food Sold mean (average) score? 30, and 70, what is the fifth number?
Lee Mark Which question is best to find out what A. 40% What is the probability of picking a red ball? A. mean and median only
Students understand and apply B. Sue
Sue kind of cookies to bake? Canned A. 83 A. 75 Minutes Spent Daily on Math at Home

concepts of organizing, reading,

Cleo
C. Kay B. 30% 27% Semi- A. 3 3
D. 13 Which number represents the median of
If Sally studies math for 45 minutes a day at
B. mean only Test Grades:
Books

5
Who has the most candy? How many votes did Mark get? A. Do you like to eat cookies? C. 33% Moist B. 84 B. 50 the data? C. mean, median, and mode 86, 78, 82, 70,
and interpreting graphs, collecting D. Kim 3
B. 10 5
E. 13 home, predict her math grade based on the
B. What is your favorite dessert? Dry 3% C. 85 C. 30 90, 76, 94, 84,
and analyzing data, and interpreting A. Liz D. Lee E. Lane A. 20 D. 17 D. 43% A. 20 D. 35 scatter plot above. D. mean and mode only
70% 1 70, 80, 80, 70
and predicting using probability and C. How many cookies do you want to eat? E. 70% C. 13 D. 86 D. 20 B. 30 E. 45 E. mode and median only
B. Ari E. Cleo Al Sue Kay Kim Lane B. 16 E. 19 A. 50 C. 70 E. 90
combinations. D. What is your favorite cookie? E. 87 E. 10 C. 32.5
C. Cam Students C. 22 B. 60 D. 80

Problem Solving, Jo has 3 books. Mom gave her 2 more. There are 12 donuts in a box. 7 children each Suzana is making a fruit salad. She buys 2 Maria is 5 years older than her brother If you have tables that seat 6 people each, as A phone company charges $0.20 per If 24 girls in a class are 60% of the class, A $30.00 pair of jeans is discounted 20%. A block of ice loses 1/6 of its weight each
How many books does Jo have? eat 1 donut. They want to know how many bananas, 3 apples, 1 pear, and 25 grapes. José. Next year she will be 14 years old. shown, how many people can you seat if you minute for the first three minutes and how many students are in the class? If sales tax is 5%, what will be the final hour that it sits in the sun. If a 180 pound
Reasoning, and Proofs donuts are left. She paid $3.82 for the fruit. How many How old is José now? push two such tables together on the short side? $0.07 for each additional minute. price for the jeans? block of ice is placed in the sun, what will
A. 2 pieces of fruit did she buy? A. 16 it weigh after 2 hours?
Students understand and apply the Lia wants to find out the number of Which number sentence answers the question? Which is the cost of a 24 minute call?
B. 3 A. 8 B. 24 A. $22.80
processes of problem solving including candy hearts in these boxes. What information is NOT necessary to A. 150 pounds D. 120 pounds
C. 4 A. 12 - 7 = D. 12 - 1 = B. 9 A. $1.47 C. 32 B. $24.00
understanding and representing Two children will share the dolls equally.
solve this problem?
Which number sentence could Lia use? C. 10 B. $1.67 C. $24.20 B. 130 pounds E. 90 pounds
problems, developing solution strategies, D. 5 B. 7 - = 12 E. 1 + = 12 A. 12 D. 11 D. 40
How many dolls will each get? A. 2 bananas D. 25 grapes C. 125 pounds
verifying results, and explaining E. 6 A. 4 + 4 + 4 = D. 3 + 3 + 3 = C. 12 + 7 = D. 18 C. $1.68 E. 48 D. $25.20
B. 8 E. 10
A. 1 C. 4 B. 3 apples E. $3.82 E. 19 D. $2.07 E. $28.35
reasoning strategies and proofs. B. 4 + 4 = E. 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 = C. 6
C. 3 + 4 = B. 2 D. 8 C. 1 pear E. $2.08