Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR)
Established by Senate Bill 376 in 1997 and amended by Senate Bill 366 in 1999, the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program requires that all public school districts in California administer a single standardized test, designated by the State Board of Education (SBE), to all students in grades 2 through 11.
The STAR tests measure student achievement in:
- Mathematics
- English-Language Arts
- Science
- History-social science
Teachers, parenst and education officials can use the results to identify strengths and weaknesses in order to improve student learning. Students and their parents can compare individual academic abilities against grade-level requirements and the results of other students in that grade. Test takers include students with disabilities and students whose first language is not English.
Each spring, California public school students in grades two through eleven take a STAR test developed by grade and subject.
The STAR Program includes four tests:
- The California Standards Tets (CSTs) are for California public schools and are aligned to the state content standards. All students in grades two through eleven take the CSTs for the subjects listed for their grade.
- The California Modified Assessment (CMA) is a grade-level assessment for students with disabilities in California public schools who meet the state criteria.
- The California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA) is for California public school students who have significant cognitive disabilities and cannot take the CSTs even with accommodations or modifications.
- The Standards-based Tests in Spanish (STS) have been developed for Spanish-speaking English learners in California public schools. These tests measure the achievement of state content standards in reading/language arts and mathematics in Spanish.
The California Board of Education determined the performance levels as:
- Advanced - This category represents a superior performance. Students demonstrate a comprehensive and complex understanding of the knowledge and skills measured by this assessment, at this grade, in this content area.
- Proficient - This category represents a solid performance. Students demonstrate a competent and adequate understanding of the knowledge and skills measured by this assessment, at this grade, in this content area.
- Basic - This category represents a limited performance. Students demonstrate a partial and rudimentary understanding of the knowledge and skills measured by this assessment, at this grade, in this content area.
- Far Below/Below Basic - This category represents a serious lack of performance. Students demonstrate little or flawed understanding of the knowledge and skills measured by this assessment, at this grade, in this content area.
The goal in California is to have all students perform at the proficient or advanced level.
www.starsamplequestions.org/index.html
This website has been developed to help parents and teachers understand the CST performance levels and provide sample test questions for review.
Once on the home page, follow these steps:
- Click on the link at the top of the page: Sample Test Questions
- Once the STAR Sample Test Questions page opens pick a grade level from the pull down menu; a subject; and a performance level; then click on the submit button.
No fees. State mandated tests.
Exams are ordered by the district.
For further information visit the following web page: Star Program Information
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