Center for Standards, Assessment, and Accountability

Keyword: Accountability

CCSS Systems Implementation Guide

The California Department of Education’s online CCSS Systems Implementation Guide was developed to support local education agencies (LEAs) in developing their own local plan for CCSS implementation, based on local needs and resources. The online guide is organized into seven guiding strategies, including professional learning opportunities, instructional resources, assessment, and communication and collaboration with parents, […]

CAASPP Student Score Report Information

This web page links to a number of guides for parents or guardians to help them read and understand the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) student score reports. It also links to other resources, including parent guides to the Smarter Balanced summative assessments, English language arts and mathematics assessments, alternate performance assessments, and standards-based tests […]

Common Core State Standards: Assessment Literacy

This website provides a wide range of information on assessments, including an overview of assessment literacy, California’s assessment system, the purposes and uses of assessments, developing assessments, analyzing data, and effective use of assessment results. It is one in a series of professional development modules designed to help educators transition instruction to the Common Core State Standards. 

Smarter Balanced Assessments: Keep Results in Perspective for Students and Their Families

In this short California Schools article, veteran educator Kathy Caric encourages districts and schools to implement effective strategies to inform parents and students about the value of multiple measures when reporting student progress. She notes that the expected low scores on the upcoming Smarter Balanced assessments may have an unnecessary negative impact on students when compared to […]

What works? Explorations in improving outcomes for Indigenous students

In December 1997, Australia launched a series of Strategic Results Projects (SRPs) designed to explore methods for improving outcomes of aboriginal students. This major report summarizes results from more than 80 funded projects focusing on one or more of the following priorities: educational delivery practices; Commonwealth priorities in literacy, numeracy, and vocational education and training; key transition points; […]

Standardized Testing and the Common Core Standards: You Get What You Pay For?

Assessment costs have always been a political football given the controversy surrounding standardized testing, and that has only intensified with the debate over Common Core. Concerns about the cost of the consortia’s tests likely stem in part from a sense of uncertainty because the consortia have announced estimates, but not firm prices. States may be […]