CAASPP study guide
CAASPP · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The CAASPP & ELPAC site is the California Assessment System's working hub for testing coordinators and educators, not a single credential exam. It gathers the state's assessment programs in one place: the Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for ELA and Mathematics, the California Science Test (CAST), the California Alternate Assessments (CAAs), the California Spanish Assessment (CSA), and the English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC), which includes Initial ELPAC, Initial Alternate ELPAC, Summative ELPAC, and Summative Alternate ELPAC. The CAASPP study guide has 7 sections and about 2,996 words.
01Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for ELA
The Smarter Balanced Summative Assessment for ELA measures the California Common Core State Standards for English language arts/literacy in grades 3–8 and 11. California is a governing state in the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, and this test is a required CAASPP component for every student except those who take the California Alternate Assessment.
453 words, about 2 min02Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for Mathematics
The Smarter Balanced Summative Assessment for Mathematics measures the California Common Core State Standards for Mathematics in grades 3–8 and 11. Like the ELA test, it combines a computer-adaptive section with a performance task, and it is untimed.
395 words, about 2 min03California Science Test (CAST)
The California Science Test measures the California Next Generation Science Standards (CA NGSS), adopted in 2013, in grades 5 and 8 and once in high school. The LEA chooses the high school grade - 10, 11, or 12 - and applies it consistently; grade 9 is not an option.
441 words, about 2 min04California Alternate Assessments (CAAs)
The California Alternate Assessments are the CAASPP tests for students whose IEP team has determined that they have the most significant cognitive disabilities and will be instructed and assessed against alternate achievement standards. There are CAAs in ELA (grades 3–8 and 11), mathematics (grades 3–8 and 11), and science (grades 5, 8, and once in high school).
443 words, about 2 min05California Spanish Assessment (CSA)
The California Spanish Assessment is an optional CAASPP test of Spanish reading/language arts, aligned to the Common Core en español and offered in grades 3–8 and in high school. Because it is optional, each LEA decides whether to administer it; results do not feed the state accountability system.
391 words, about 2 min06ELPAC (Initial, Initial Alternate, Summative, Summative Alternate)
The English Language Proficiency Assessments for California consist of four tests: Initial ELPAC, Initial Alternate ELPAC, Summative ELPAC, and Summative Alternate ELPAC. All measure the California ELD standards in four domains - Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.
436 words, about 2 min07CAASPP and ELPAC Interim Assessments
Interim assessments are optional, locally administered tools that use the same item types, blueprints, and accessibility resources as the summative tests. They are not reported to the CDE for accountability and cannot substitute for a summative test.
437 words, about 2 min