Information for Families about Testing and Assessments

As students start a new academic year, they participate in fall assessments based on their grade level and courses. A  list of assessments for each grade level  provides the fall dates for required tests. Fall assessments may come in many formats.

• Academic screening, growth, and diagnostic assessmentslike Virginia Language and Literacy Screening System (VALLSS), Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP), iReady, and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) identify gaps in foundational academic skills and measure growth in skill development from previous years.

• General abilities testingprovides valuable information that fulfills a state requirement for screening for Advanced Academic Program services.

• Systemwide common assessmentsestablish baseline information for teachers and measure development of content standard knowledge and skills. 

• Classroom assessmentsare part of ongoing teaching and learning. Teachers may assign quizzes, tests, and culminating projects for certain subjects or courses. 

• College entrance exams (high school only)assess college readiness in reading, writing and math. The PSAT is administered to students in grades 10-11. The SAT is offered to students in grade 12.  

• Summative assessmentslike Standards of Learning (SOL) exams measure how students have learned content and skills from coursework. The fall SOL window is only for students who have previously earned  high school  course credit who require a verified credit to meet graduation requirements. Students who are enrolled in a semester course may also be participating in the SOL. 

As we approach the end of the school year, students will be participating in spring assessments based on their grade level and courses. A list of assessments for each grade level provides the spring dates for required tests. Spring assessments may come in many formats.

• Summative assessments like Standards of Learning (SOL), Advanced Placement (AP), and International Baccalaureate (IB) exams measure how students have learned content and skills from coursework.

• Screening and  growth assessmentslike Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP), Virginia Language and Literacy Screening System (VALLSS) monitor students' advancement towards expected skill level. iReady, and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) measure growth in grade-level skills since the fall.

• Performance assessmentsallow students to demonstrate strengths and competencies, such as Portrait of a Graduate Presentations of Learning (POG-POL) or Career and Technical Education (CTE).
• Classroom assessmentsare part of ongoing teaching and learning. Teachers may assign culminating projects or final exams for certain subjects or courses. 

Look in the SIS ParentVUE Documents section to find student score reports following each assessment window throughout the year. A webpage for each assessment provides translations and information to interpret scores.  

• Academic screening and growth assessments - Virginia Language and Literacy Screening System (VALLSS), Early Mathematics Assessment System (EMAS), iReady, and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) tests
• Advanced academic program screeners - Naglieri General Ability Tests (NGAT)
• Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener
• Standards of Learning (SOL) tests , including integrated reading and writing (IRW)
• Virginia Alternate Assessment System (VAAP)
• Annual English language proficiency assessment - WIDA ACCESS
• WorkKeys

Watch for score reports to be distributed from your student’s school for the following assessments: 

• Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) Career Exploration Program
• Career and Technical Education (CTE) industry credentials

For each of the tests with reports distributed via ParentVUE (see above), paper reports are distributed ONLY to families without ParentVUE accounts.

If your student took part in a college readiness assessment or college-level exam results are accessed directly from the testing organization. 

• ACT weekend tests
• Advanced Placement (AP)  exams
• International Baccalaureate (IB)  exams
• Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT)
• SAT School Day and SAT weekend tests

State and federal assessment expectations impact opportunities to refuse testing. FCPS provides a process for schools to use when caregivers wish to refuse or decline state assessments. Schools use this process to make sure caregivers understand what refusing or declining participation means for the student, including any potential impact for on-time graduation.  Parents and guardians who choose for their students to  not participate  in state assessments should notify the student’s school for next steps.

1. Standards of Learning (SOL)  or  Virginia Alternate Assessment Program (VAAP):  State law allows parents and guardians to refuse test participation for required SOL and VAAP tests in  grades 3-8 and  high school .
2. WIDA ACCESS or  alternate English language proficiency assessment: Federal law does not provide for parents and guardians to "refuse" English language proficiency assessments. However, parents and guardians may choose to decline participation for their students.
3. Academic screening, growth, and diagnostic assessments (PreK-8):  Although the following tests are low-stakes and delivered in a classroom setting, because they fulfill state requirements, parents and guardians may refuse participation:
   • Virginia Language and Literacy Screening System (VALLSS) in grades PreK-8
   • iReady Reading and  Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Math in grades 3-8
   • Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP) assessments in grades PreK-K, including the Early Mathematics Assessment System (EMAS) and Child Behavior Rating Scale (CBRS)
4. Naglieri General Abilities Tests (NGAT) or  approved alternate abilities screener:  Parents and guardians may refuse participation for these assessments, which fulfill state requirements as one of the measures used for Advanced Academic Program (AAP) identification.

FCPS students are also expected to take certain standardized tests to provide schools with information for planning appropriate, high-quality learning experiences. Like with state assessments, parents and guardians may refuse division-required standardized testing for their students. Contact the student's school for additional information about refusal.

• Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments  in grades 9-12
• Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) in grades 10-11
• Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener in grades 3-12

Other assessments are embedded as part of daily learning in the classroom. Refusal is not available for assessments that are embedded in the curriculum. This includes:

• Local alternative assessments (LAA) used place of SOL tests in some grade levels 3-8
• Performance-based assessments (PBA) allowing students to demonstrate learning in a variety of ways and used for locally awarded verified credit in some high school social studies courses
• Systemwide common assessments,  such as unit assessments, used to monitor learning of content standards
• Quizzes and exit tickets  designed by the teacher to check for understanding

A parent or guardian should consider the following important points before deciding to refuse any test:

• Certain state- and division-mandated tests (such as NGAT, MAP, VALLSS) are used to help a school identify appropriate placement for the student in advanced academic, enrichment, intervention, and other programs. While no single test is used in isolation to make such decisions, in some cases when the student does not test, his or her appropriate placement could be temporarily delayed.
• If a student does not test, the school will not have academic data from the assessment to inform plans for their classroom instruction and will rely on information from other assessments and data sources.
• As more students do not participate in assessments, it can become more challenging for the school to gain a clear reflection of how it is meeting the instructional needs of its students as a whole.

A parent or guardian should consider the following additional implications before refusing SOL or VAAP tests:

• If the student is in high school, refusing certain SOL tests could impact on-time graduation. Virginia requires verified credits to earn a standard or advanced studies diploma, and SOL tests are the most common way credits are verified.
• Refusing a SOL Reading test in grade 5 or grade 8 automatically includes refusal of the integrated reading and writing (IRW) component.
• The student will be assigned a score of zero (0) for each SOL or VAAP test refused.  This 0 will display on the student's score reports and academic records.
• Refusals negatively impact the school's publicly reported annual pass rates and may affect the school's performance category under the Virginia School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF).

Parent and guardian refusal of testing must be updated annually. If caregivers choose to refuse testing for one or more tests administered in FCPS, they should first contact their student's school. The assessment coach, school test coordinator, or the student's teacher can address questions the caregivers may have about the test content, format, purpose, and available testing accommodations or adjustments. 

After speaking with school staff, caregivers that are choosing to refuse the testing will need to officially notify the school of this decision. For certain tests like SOL and WIDA, the school will need to document the family or caregiver decision for state reporting. A form, letter, email, or documented phone conversation may be accepted for the refusal. 

The Virginia Department of Education, College Board, and other entities overseeing standardized test practices establish guidelines and restrictions on student access to personal electronic devices, such as cell phones, within the test environment. These restrictions are designed to maintain test security and to minimize potential distractions while students are taking tests. Students are not permitted to take SOL tests on their personally-owned devices; all online SOL testing must use FCPS-owned computers. 

While in the testing room, students may not have access to cell phones or other electronic devices that can transmit, receive, photograph, or record information while any students are testing, except in limited cases where specially approved for use of a health management device or a hearing aid with internet-connected device. 

In accordance with the  FCPS Cell Phone Policy , students will not be permitted to test until phones and other electronic devices are secured. This may mean a delay in testing for students who refuse to remove their cell phones or other electronic devices from within reach while testing (such as from pockets and desks or from purses and backpacks kept next to the student).

If the student is testing at the time of the discovery of the cell phone, electronic device, or unauthorized material, the student will not be permitted to continue testing and the student will be subject to procedures for addressing test security concerns, investigation of scholastic dishonesty, and possible disciplinary action in accordance with the FCPS  Students Rights and Responsibilities (SR&R) document . 

If there is a determination that the student cheated, the student will not be permitted to continue testing, the test will be invalidated, and the student will receive a score of “0.” The student will not be eligible for a retest during the current administration.

School Board policy prohibits schools and teachers from giving tests, quizzes, or other assessments on a designated Religious/Cultural Observance Day. If a student is scheduled to take a required assessment on the day following a Religious/Cultural Observance Day, school staff must communicate the test schedule at least seven (7) calendar days in advance.

With the hundreds of cultures and dozens of religions represented in the FCPS community, it is certain that some observance days important to students and families are not included in the FCPS school year calendar. Sometimes, these additional observance days may coincide with scheduled tests for a student's grade level . In these cases, schools and families often need to work together to determine if schedule adjustments are needed and, if so, how best to meet students' needs, given testing guidelines and available school resources. Examples of adjustments that may be appropriate in some cases include:

• Arranging an alternative or make-up testing date if the student will need to be out of school on the scheduled date;
• When an observance involves fasting, scheduling test sessions in the morning when energy levels are likely to be highest.

When an observance is not on the FCPS calendar, parents and guardians are encouraged to:

1. Review the division testing dates for required assessments at each student's current grade level.
2. Contact school staff to let them know about any religious or cultural observance students will be observing this year that are within the division testing windows.
3. Talk with school staff about the specific schedule planned for each student's tests as the testing window approaches. Keep in mind schools may not have the full details until a few weeks before testing begins.
4. Share any concerns about each student's observance impacting test performance and work with school staff to determine the best option to address the student's needs. 

Computer adaptive testing (CAT) is an assessment model that provides a customized test experience for each student. Each CAT assessment begins with a question of moderate difficulty. A correct response leads to a more difficult question, while an incorrect response leads to a less difficult question. Because question difficulty is tailored to each student's responses, CAT assessments can measure a student's performance with fewer total questions than are needed with a traditional assessment. All students complete the same number of questions for the overall test.

Students cannot skip questions when taking a CAT assessment. They must answer a question before moving to the next question. For most CAT assessments, students are unable to return to earlier questions to review or make changes. In some reading CAT assessments, a group of questions may be connected to a reading passage. Students may navigate back and forth among questions tied to each passage. Once students move to the next passage, they can no longer return to questions from the earlier passage set. 

In Fairfax County Public Schools, CAT is used for a number of assessment types, including:

• iReady and MAP tests for reading and mathematics, grades 1-12
• Standards of Learning (SOL), reading and mathematics, grades 3-8
• WIDA ACCESS, English language proficiency (multilingual learners only), grades 1-12

Teachers and other instructional staff in schools work with students to prepare for CAT and provide opportunities for students to practice this assessment format. 

VDOE first introduced CAT SOL assessments in the 2014-15 school year and has expanded use of this model each year. Continued development of CAT is part of VDOE’s efforts to provide students with the best possible testing experience, based on evidence that CAT increases students' focus and engagement during testing. VDOE offers additional information about use of CAT in state SOL assessments .