Assessment and Accountability

Please click the assessment name below for more information.

CAASPP

The California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, or CAASPP, is the state academic testing program that includes the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) tests in English Language Arts and Mathematics and the California Science Test (CAST).

CAASPP is a system intended to provide information that can be used to monitor student progress and ensure that all students leave high school ready for college and career.

The Smarter Balanced Assessment System utilizes computer based tests and performance tasks that allow students to show what they know and are able to do. It is based on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English language arts/literacy (ELA) and Mathematics and has three components designed to support teaching and learning throughout the year: the summative assessments, the interim assessments, and the Digital Library of formative assessment tools.

Our Spring 2023 assessments will be given as follows:

BHHS: March 20th through April 28th
BVMS: May 1st through May 19th
HAW & HM: May 1st through May 19th

ELA and Math: Grades 3-8 and 11

Science: Grades 5, 8, 10 and 12

More information can be found here: https://ca.startingsmarter.org/

Practice and Training Tests can be found here, select student portal: http://www.caaspp.org/practice-and-training/index.html

CAASPP Overview

ELPAC

The English Language Proficiency Assessments for California, or ELPAC, is California's assessment system that is used to determine the English language proficiency of students whose primary language is not English.

Upon registration, parents will be asked to complete the Home Language Survey. If you respond with a language other than English to any of the first 3 questions, your child will be given the Initial ELPAC at their school.

The purpose of the Initial ELPAC is to determine the English proficiency of students entering California for the first time. Identifying students who need help learning English is important so students get the extra help they need to do well in school while receiving instruction in all school subjects.

More information can be found here:

https://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/ca/documents/elpacpgtu.pdf

https://elpac.startingsmarter.org/

OLSAT

The Otis-Lennon Ability School Test, or OLSAT, is the online evaluation given to determine whether or not a student qualifies for the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program.

The OLSAT is a multiple-choice assessment comprised of verbal and nonverbal sections The verbal section contains verbal comprehension and verbal reasoning questions while the nonverbal section contains different types of pictorial reasoning, figural reasoning and quantitative reasoning questions.

All students in 3^rd grade are assessed in the spring, typically during the month of March. Please contact your school counselor for information on testing for students in the 4^th - 8^thgrades.

More information can be found here: https://www.pearsonassessments.com/content/dam/school/global/clinical/us/assets/olsat8/olsat8-overview-brochure.pdf

SAT & PSAT

College Board Suite of Assessments

Freshman attending BHHS will take the PSAT 8/9 on October 12th
Sophomores attending BHHS will take the PSAT 10 on March 1st
Juniors attending BHHS will take the PSAT/NMSQT (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) on October 12th and the official SAT on March 1st.

Both the fall and spring School Day administrations are funded by the District.

Students can create an account and view their scores on College Board's online score reporting portal found here: https://studentscores.collegeboard.org/home

2022-2023 College Board & ACT Opportunities at BHHS

ACT

Free ACT practice exams are offered throughout the school year via the BHHS College and Career Center.

Most colleges accept the SAT or the ACT, so students do not need to take both exams. The best way to determine which test students should focus on (SAT or ACT) is to take a full-length practice test. This will provide students a comparison of scores, as well as their experience with each testing platform.

Keep in mind that many colleges and universities, including the UC schools, require the optional Writing section.

AP® (Advanced Placement)

AP Exams

Research consistently shows that AP students are better prepared for college than students who don't take AP, regardless of their exam score. They're more likely to enroll and stay in college, do well in their classes, and graduate in four years.

There are 38 AP courses in disciplines such as the arts, English, history, social science, math and computer science, the sciences, and world language and culture. You should choose an AP course based on what subjects you're passionate about as well as what classes you do well in.

Taking AP courses in high school can help you: