Click Here for a letter concerning the 2023-2024 Assessment Schedule
NJGPA
Students in the graduating class of 2023 will not have a graduation assessment requirement. The assessment will be aligned to New Jersey Student Learning Standards (NJSLS) for grade 10 ELA and NJSLS for Algebra I and Geometry. The assessment format will be familiar to students and educators, as it will be delivered on the same platform students use for the current New Jersey Student Learning Assessments (NJSLA). The graduation assessment requirement for the classes of 2024 and 2025 remain in place and are available for districts on the Graduation Assessment Requirements webpage.
NJSLA – ELA, MATH, & SCIENCE
All public schools are required by state and federal law* to test all students in grades 3-8 and high school.
- All students in grades 3 through 8 are expected to participate in statewide assessments for ELA and mathematics based on their current grade level enrollment, not on the level of instruction received during the academic school year.
- The only exception is for students in grades 6 through 8 who are taking any of the high school mathematics courses (i.e., Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II).
- Students in grades 7 and 8 are expected to take the end-of-course assessment that matches their mathematics course enrollment.
- Students in grade 6 who are enrolled in Algebra I are expected to take both the NJSLA Algebra I and NJSLA Mathematics Grade 6 assessments.
- 5th, 8th, and 11th grade students must participate in the science assessments.
- Elementary and middle school students with disabilities, except those with the most significant intellectual disabilities who qualify for the DLM, must participate in statewide assessments.
- Most high school students will take the NJSLA for mathematics in grade 9. Some students may be required to test in grade 10, 11, or 12 instead of grade 9 based on unique circumstances.
- Grade 9 students currently enrolled in an Algebra I course (or Geometry or Algebra II if the student took Algebra I in middle school) must take the corresponding state assessment unless they are repeating the course but have previously passed the assessment associated with the course.
- Students who do not test because they are repeating the course but have passed the assessment will take the assessment in grade 10, 11, or 12 when they are enrolled in the next tested mathematics course.
- Grade 9 students enrolled in multiple mathematics courses will take only one state mathematics assessment per assessment administration. A student must take Algebra I in cases where the student is taking Algebra I and Geometry. In cases where a student is taking Algebra II and Geometry, it is recommended that the student take the Geometry assessment.
- Most students in grades 10 through 12 are not required to take the NJSLA for mathematics this school year (2021-2022).
- Students in grade 10, 11, or 12 who may be required to take the NJSLA for mathematics this school year (2021-2022) are those who:
- Did not take Algebra I in middle school and are enrolled in Algebra I for the first time.
- Took Algebra I in middle school and are enrolled in their first tested mathematics course (Geometry or Algebra II) in high school.
- Started a two-year Algebra I or Geometry course starting in grade 9 must take the corresponding assessment in grade 10.
- Are following a mathematics course sequence where they will take Algebra I after grade 9.
- 9th grade students must take the grade-level specific ELA assessment regardless of the ELA course they are currently enrolled in.
Exception: Students repeating a course who have previously passed the associated assessment are not required to re-take that assessment.
- The NJDOE no longer offers ELA 10.
- Grade-level ELA course/credit assignment determines participation in statewide assessments, not the grade-level homeroom assignment.
- High school students are required to participate in the statewide science assessment in grade 11.
- All English Language Learners must take the New Jersey state assessments.
- Students who are newly arrived English Language Learners must take the mathematics and science assessments. Newly arrived English Language Learners are exempt from taking the NJSLA ELA and the ELA portion of the NJGPA for their first school year.
- Note: students are considered newly arrived if they enroll in a US school after June 1 of the prior academic year. English Language Learners from Puerto Rico are eligible for this exemption.
- English Language Learners enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) (beginner, intermediate, or advanced level) must take the ELA assessment associated with their course equivalent/credit assignment, not the level of the ESL course.
- All students, including students with disabilities, are administered statewide assessments.
- Most students with disabilities will take the NJSLA and NJGPA with appropriate accommodations and accessibility features.
- Students with significant intellectual disabilities who meet specific criteria will be administered the Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) assessments.
- Students with disabilities whose IEPs specify an alternative way to demonstrate proficiencies, will continue to follow the graduation assessment requirement set forth in their IEPs.
DLM
Only those students who have a significant intellectual disability should participate in the DLM assessments. This population of students is approximately one percent of students with disabilities. The vast majority of students with disabilities will take the NJSLA with appropriate accommodations. The IEP team will determine which of the NJSLA accommodations the student will receive and document this in the IEP.
- Under ESSA, only one percent of the student testing population can take the alternate assessment (DLM).
- Anticipated performance on the general education assessment or behavior concerns during testing are not valid reasons for having a student participate in the alternate assessment.
ACCESS FOR ELLS
To comply with federal regulations implementing ESSA, all school districts in New Jersey must administer the ACCESS for ELLs language proficiency assessment to all ELLs in grades K–12 or, as required, the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs in grades 1–12.
• Students identified as ELLs must participate in the assessments even if parents/guardians have refused services for the student.
• Results from the ACCESS for ELLs test administration are used in the calculation of schools’ and districts’ performance on the Progress to English Language Proficiency (ELP) indicator for ESSA school accountability.
- ACCESS for ELLs scores are used for:
• Making decisions about whether students are ready to exit English language support services;
• Decision-making for student placement into appropriate classes or groups for instruction, instructional planning;
• Monitoring the progress that students have made in English language proficiency; and
• Public reporting of English language learner's (ELL's) progress toward English language proficiency and for Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) school accountability systems used to identify what schools need the most comprehensive and targeted support.