State Testing

The SBA is an assessment system used by Washington and other states belonging to the Smarter Balanced Consortium.  The tests are designed to measure how well our students are progressing toward meeting the student learning standards. 

The tests assess two areas: English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics and are required of all students in grades 3-8 and 10 annually (each spring).

Meeting standard on the High School SBA is one path toward meeting graduation requirements for many students. For more information about Graduation Requirements and the various pathways to meeting those requirements, review the district's Graduation, College & Career web page.

For additional information regarding Smarter Balanced Assessments, please see the OSPI website here.

The Washington Comprehensive Assessment of Science (WCAS) measures the level of proficiency that Washington students have achieved based on the Washington State 2013 K-12 Science Learning Standards, which are the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). All students are assessed on their knowledge of the standards through the WCAS in grades 5, 8, and 11. The tests fulfill the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requirement that students be tested in science once at each level: elementary, middle, and high school.

While passing the High School WCAS is not a graduation requirement, participating in the test in the 11th grade is still a state and federal requirement.  Students achieving a level 3 or 4 may be eligible to use the WCAS toward credit retrieval in science for graduation requirements.

For more information about the WCAS, please see the OPSI website here.

Title III of the Every Student Succeeds Act requires states to assess the English language proficiency of students receiving English language development (ELD) services at school. Washington state uses the WIDA consortium assessments to measure English proficiency for these students. WIDA assessments are based on the  WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework, 2020 Edition. Washington state began administering the WIDA ACCESS as the annual assessment in the 2021-22 school year.

For additional information regarding the WIDA consortium, please visit the consortium's website.

ELP Screener:  The WIDA Screener is used to determine initial eligibility for ELD services. This is an online assessment that measures proficiency in the four language domains of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. This test is typically administered to potential English learners upon initial enrollment in a Washington school.

ELP Annual Assessments:  The WIDA ACCESS assessment is an online annual assessment given to all students who qualify for English language development (ELD) services. The annual assessment measures students' English language proficiency, both knowledge and skills, in reading, listening, writing, and speaking. Results from this test determine which students remain eligible to continue receiving ELD services.  

ELP Alternate Assessment: The Alternate ACCESS is a paper-based annual assessment of English language proficiency for multilingual students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. IEP teams decide if ACCESS or Alternate ACCESS is the appropriate assessment path for a student. This assessment measures the four language domains of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students who are eligible for this test sit for the test annually.

This program helps bring families, teachers, and early learning providers together to support each kindergarten student's learning and transition into public schools.

The Washington Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (WaKIDS) is a transition process that helps to ensure a successful start to the K-12 experience and connect the key adults in a child’s life. These data help inform state and district-level decisions about education policy and investments, and classroom decisions about individualized learning.

For more information on WaKIDS, please see the OSPI website here.

Alternate Assessments are available to Special Education students whose IEP team has determined that the alternate assessments are appropriate and have designated the use of the alternate assessments  on the student's IEP.

Alternate Assessments include:

• WA-AIM: Washington Access to Instruction and Measurement.  This is a testing alternative to the SBA or WCAS in grades 3 through high school for Special Education students with significant cognitive challenges.

• WIDA Alternate Access:  This is an alternate assessment to the annual EL assessment in grades K-12 for Special Education EL students with significant cognitive challenges.

• Click here to visit the OSPI (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction) state website.
• To contact someone in the district office about State Testing, e-mail the Assessment, Research, and Evaluation office.