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Fourth “R” Assessed by NCEA’s ACRE Test  

(Kansas City, MO/ November 29, 2007)  Catholic school students in the Diocese of Kansas City ~ St. Joseph not only take standardized tests that track mastery of reading, math and science, but also measure their knowledge of the Catholic faith. An analysis of outcomes from the 2006-07 testing confirms that local Catholic school students outperformed peers in Catholic schools across the nation. 

“Through the accreditation process, all schools in the diocese began administering the Assessment of Catechesis / Religious Education (ACRE) in 2004, and our office continually reviews and revises curricula. ACRE provides a way to measure our progress in religious education".

A diocesan curriculum committee for religious education undertook the task of aligning what is taught with the carefully-crafted blueprint in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, published in 1994. All diocesan schools use religion texts that are in conformity with the Catechism and approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism. The ACRE test is a means to evaluate the faith knowledge of students and to make adjustments in teaching practice. As a multilevel tool, the diocese administers ACRE to students in the fifth and eighth grades.

Like other standardized tests, principals track scores from the ACRE test from year to year. The outcomes suggest how students learn and apply the information being taught in the classroom. By grouping questions and answers around particular themes, the faculty can assess how well the curriculum addresses the standards.
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Catholic Schools

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”

- Col 3:1-3

Introduction

"Behold now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
-  2 Cor 6:2

"Catechesis is an education in the faith for children, young people, and adults which includes especially, the teaching of Christian Doctrine imparted, generally speaking, in an organic and systematic way, with a view to imitating the hearers into the fullness of Christian life."

- CCC 5, CT 18

A Word to the Catholic Educator

Those to be catechized, and those who will catechize are what make up the initial body of catechesis among all who will learn the faith.  Jesus Christ is the Word that became flesh through the Divine Will of the Father sent forth through the power of the Holy Spirit so that we might have life and live it abundantly.  It was through His Incarnate Word that Christ, through His Father established for us those redemptive qualities that we receive in our Profession of Faith, the Mass and Sacraments, the Commandments, and in prayer that allow us to fully share into the history of Salvation with our Lord.  We, as the people of God, are a faith sharing community in the created image of God to profess and proclaim the Gospel message.  This mission of catechesis has been practiced from the moment Christ was born.  As part of the Church community we hold a responsibility not only to learn our Catholic faith, but teach it to all who will listen.  The ministry of catechesis serves the Church in a decisive mission.  This teaching first and foremost is passed on through the apostles and their successors, the Bishops of the Catholic Church.

The moment of catechesis is that which corresponds to the period in which conversion to Jesus Christ is formalized, and provides a basis for first adhering to him. (GDC 63)

Quite early on, the name catechesis was given to the totality of the Church’s efforts to make disciples, to help men believe that Jesus is the Son of God so that believing they might have life in His name, and to educate and instruct them in this life, thus building up the body of Christ.  (CCC 4, CT 1;2)

It is in this totality that we must present a complete authentic instruction of the faith, faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church so that the fruits of the Church may not go unnoticed or unpracticed.  Catechetical instruction provides us with a framework to accomplish just such a mission.  This task of catechesis, then, must be carried out under the guidance of the Church, whose duty it is to safeguard the truth of the divine message, and to watch that this ministry of the Word uses appropriate forms of speaking, while prudently considering the help which theological research and human science can give (GCD 38 and NCD 47).  The Bishop holds the primary position of authority over programs of catechesis (NCD 47).