CALIFORNIA ASSESSMENT OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE AND PROGRESS (CAASPP)

On January 1, 2014, the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) System was established. The primary purpose of the CAASPP System is to assist teachers, administrators, students, and parents by promoting high-quality teaching and learning through the use of a variety of assessment approaches and item types.  The CAASPP System encompasses the following assessments:

 

Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments (SBA) for English language arts/literacy (ELA) and mathematics in grade three through eight and eleven.  The Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments which are delivered by computer consist of two sections: a computer-adaptive test and a Performance Task (PT) based on the Common Core State Standards for ELA and mathematics. The computer-adaptive section includes a range of item types such as selected response, constructed response, table, fill-in, graphing, etc. The PT is extended activities that measure a student’s ability to integrate knowledge and skills across multiple standards—a key component of college and career readiness. 

 

California Alternate Assessments (CAAs) for ELA and mathematics in grade three through eight and eleven.  Students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are unable to take the Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments even with accessibility supports and whose individualized education program (IEP) indicates assessment with an alternate test.  The content of the alternate assessment is based on alternate achievement standards derived from the Common Core State Standards. The CAAs are a computer-based two-stage adaptive test. The CAAs are administered to students in a one-on-one environment with a testing examiner that is familiar with the student. More information about the alternate assessments and the alternate achievement standards can be found on the CDE CAASPP California Alternate Assessments Web page.

 

California Science Test (CAST) for students in grades five, eight and once in high school.  The CAST is required from all students in grades five, eight, and assigned a grade in high school unless their IEP indicates assessment with an alternate test. The CAST includes stand-alone or discrete items and performance tasks (PTs). The discrete item types consist of selected response, constructed response, table, fill-in, graphing, etc. The PTs are extended activities that measure a student’s ability to integrate knowledge and skills across multiple standards.  The CAST is aligned with the California Next Generation Science Standards (CA NGSS) and was adopted by the State Board of Education in September 2013.  Capistrano Unified administers the CAST to students in grade 11 and in grade 12 if the student was not evaluated in Grade 11.  Once the high school student takes the CAST, the student has met the science assessment requirement.

 

California Alternate Assessment (CAA) for Science in grades five, eight, and once in high school.  The CAA for Science is administered to students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are unable to take the CAST even with accessibility support and whose IEP indicates assessment with an alternative test. The content of the alternate assessment is based on alternate achievement standards called the Science Core Content Connectors and are linked to the performance expectations from the California NGSS. Test examiners administer the CAA for Science students in a one-on-one environment. 

 

California Spanish Assessment (CSA) is a new assessment under development for the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) System. This assessment, presented in Spanish, serves the more than one million students who speak Spanish as their primary language as well as those who are learning Spanish as an additional language. The purposes of the CSA are to:

• Measure a student’s literacy in Spanish language arts and provide student-level data in Spanish literacy.
• Evaluate the implementation of Spanish language arts programs at the local level.
• Provide a high school measure suitable to be used, in part, for the State Seal of Biliteracy.