High School

WHAT ARE ALL OF THESE TESTS?

A Helpful Guide to Understanding Educational Assessment

California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) All California public school students must satisfy the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) requirement, as well as all other state and local requirements, in order to receive their high school diploma. The purpose of the CAHSEE is to improve student achievement in high school and ensure that students who graduate from high school can demonstrate competency in the state content standards for reading, writing, and mathematics.

The CAHSEE has two parts: English-language arts (ELA) and mathematics. The ELA part addresses state content standards through grade ten. In reading, this includes vocabulary, decoding, comprehension, and analysis of information and literary texts. In writing, this covers writing strategies, applications, and the conventions of English (e.g. grammar, spelling, and punctuation). The mathematics part of the CAHSEE addresses state standards in grades six and seven and Algebra I. The exam includes statistics, data analysis and probability, number sense, measurement and geometry, mathematical reasoning, and algebra. Students are also asked to demonstrate a strong foundation in computation and arithmetic, including working with decimals, fractions, and percents. www.cde.ca.gov

California Standards Tests (CST) and the Standardized Testing and Reporting Program (STAR)
The STAR Program is designed primarily to help measure how well students are achieving the California content standards and provide information about how well schools and school districts are meeting state and federal accountability requirements. All students in grades two through eleven must participate in the STAR Program each spring, including students with disabilities and English learners. www.cde.ca.gov

The STAR Program for 2007 has five components:

  The California Standards Tests (CSTs) are standards-based tests that measure the achievement of state content standards in English-language arts, mathematics, science, and history-social science.

  The California Achievement Tests, Sixth Edition Survey (CAT/6 Survey) are nationally norm-referenced tests that measure the achievement of general academic knowledge in core subjects and provide national comparisons (for grades three and seven only).

  The California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA) is an alternate assessment that measures the achievement of state content standards in English-language arts and mathematics (and science, beginning in 2008). This test is for students who have significant cognitive disabilities and cannot take the CSTs even with accommodations or modifications.

  The Standards-based Tests in Spanish (STS) are designed for Spanish-speaking English learners to measure the achievement of state content standards in reading-language arts and mathematics in Spanish (for grades two, three, and four in 2007).

  The Aprenda, La prueba de logros en español, Tercera edición (Aprenda 3) is a nationally norm-referenced achievement test of general academic knowledge in Spanish for Spanish-speaking English learners (for grades five through eleven in 2007).

CELDT (California English Language Development test) is a required state test for English language proficiency that must be given to students whose primary language is other than English. www.cde.ca.gov

Spanish Assessment of Basic Education (SABE) The SABE/2 Spanish-language test battery gives an accurate and useful picture of students' academic strengths and weaknesses and provides the detailed information teachers need to plan effective individual and group instruction. www.ctb.com

PSAT/NMSQT stands for Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. It's a standardized test that provides firsthand practice for the SAT Reasoning Test™. It also gives students a chance to enter National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) scholarship programs. The Preliminary SAT^®/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test is a co-sponsored program by the College Board and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). www.Collegeboard.com

SAT Reasoning Test is a test that is used by colleges as a part of its admissions process. The SAT Reasoning Test is a measure of the critical thinking skills you'll need for academic success in college. The SAT assesses how well students analyze and solve problems—skills learned in school that are needed in college. The SAT is typically taken by high school juniors and seniors.

The SAT includes several different question types, including: a student-produced essay, multiple-choice questions, and student-produced responses (grid-ins). www.Collegeboard.com

SAT Subject Tests (formerly SAT II: Subject Tests) are designed to measure knowledge and skills in particular subject areas, as well as ability to apply that knowledge. Some colleges use the Subject Tests for admission, for course placement, and to advise students about course selection. www.Collegeboard.com

ACT is a test that is used by colleges as a part of its admission process. The ACT test assesses high school students' general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work. www.act.org
The multiple-choice tests cover four skill areas: English, mathematics, reading, and science.

The Writing Test, which is optional, measures skill in planning and writing a short essay.

Advanced Placement (AP) is a cooperative educational endeavor between secondary schools and colleges and universities. AP allows motivated high school students with the opportunity to take college-level courses in a high school setting. Currently there are 37 courses and exams across 22 subject areas in the AP program. www.Collegeboard.com

The Early Assessment Program (EAP) is a collaborative effort among the State Board of Education (SBE), the California Department of Education (CDE) and the California State University (CSU). The program was established to provide opportunities for students to measure their readiness for college-level English and mathematics in their junior year of high school, and to facilitate opportunities for them to improve their skills during their senior year. The goal of the EAP program is to have California high school graduates enter the CSU fully prepared to begin college-level study. www.calstate.edu/EAP/

The Entry Level Math (ELM) and English Placement Test (EPT) The California State University system requires potential students to take the English Placement Test (EPT) and the Entry Level Mathematics Test (ELM) prior to enrollment in the CSU.  These tests are designed to measure preparedness for college level courses. Students can be exempted by means of scores earned on other appropriate tests such as the EAP, the SAT, and ACT.

The EPT and the ELM are not admission tests; instead, they determine eligibility to enroll in specific courses. Students who are required to take the EPT and the ELM but fail to do so will not be allowed to register for General Education courses at the CSU. Not performing well on the tests will require placement in an appropriate remedial or developmental program or activity during the first term of enrollment. www.ets.org

PTSA Mock Exams for SAT, ACT and PSAT Westview PTSA and Princeton Review offer mock tests for SAT, ACT, and PSAT. These tests give students a chance to take tests, receive their scores, and learn strategies to utilize before they take the real SAT and ACT tests. These tests do not get sent to colleges and give students a chance to get accustomed to standardized tests prior to taking actual exams.

These mock exams are a fundraiser for the PTSA and all profits are utilized to support Westview programs. The PTSA recommends that freshmen and sophomores take the mock PSAT and that sophomores and juniors take the mock SAT and/or ACT so they are ready in their junior year to take the real tests.