2020-2021 Assessment
State Testing
Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP)
TCAP is the state’s testing program and it includes TNReady state assessments (math
and English/language arts), social studies and science. Annual assessments play a key
role in the teaching and learning process, and they are critical to ensure that all
students are meeting higher standards and are making progress on their path to
postsecondary and the workforce. The TCAP assessments are designed to provide
Tennessee students, teachers, and families with better information about what
students know and understand. Visit the state’s Assessment Website for more
information.
TNReady English/Language Arts
TNReady is TCAP’s assessment for grades 3-8 in English/language arts and measures
student performance against specific state standards. This assessment is administered
as four subparts, all administered in the spring semester. TNReady is grade-specific
in grades 3-8 and will account for 15% of the student’s 2nd semester grade this year.
TNReady is TCAP’s assessment, which is administered to students enrolled in English
I/II. This test is administered in the fall or spring semester. It will account for
15% of a student’s semester grade.
Test dates for high school fall semester classes are November 30 – December 17, 2020.
Tests administration dates for grades 3-8 and high school spring semester classes are
April 12 – May 6, 2021.
Detailed score reports will be available Fall 2021.
TNReady Mathematics
TNReady is TCAP’s assessment for grades 3-8 in mathematics and measures student
performance against specific state standards. This assessment is administered as
three subparts, all administered in the spring semester. TNReady is grade-specific in
grades 3-8 and will account for 15% of the student’s 2nd semester grade this year.
TNReady is TCAP’s assessment, which is administered to students enrolled in Algebra
I/II and geometry. It is administered in the fall and/or spring semester and accounts
for 15% of a student’s semester grade.
Test dates for high school fall semester classes are November 30 – December 17, 2020.
Tests administration dates for grades 3-8 and high school are April 12 – May 6, 2021.
Detailed score reports will be available Fall 2021.
.
Science
TCAP’s assessment for grades 3-8 in science measures student performance against
specific state standards. This assessment is administered as one or two subparts, all
administered in the spring semester. TCAP is grade-specific in grades 3-8 and will
count for 15% of the student’s 2nd semester grade this year.
The TCAP Science test will be administered to all high school students enrolled in
Biology. It is administered in the fall and/or spring semester and accounts for 15%
of a student’s semester grade.
Test dates for high school fall semester classes are November 30 – December 17, 2020.
Tests administration dates for grades 3-8 and high school are April 12 – May 6, 2021.
Detailed score reports will be available Fall 2021.
Social Studies
TNReady is TCAP’s assessment for grades 6-8 in social studies and measures student
performance against specific state standards. This assessment is administered as one
or two subparts, all administered in the spring semester. TNReady is grade-specific
in grades 6-8 and will account for 15% of the student’s 2nd semester grade this year.
For high school, it is administered to all students enrolled in US History and
Geography and accounts for 15% of the student’s 2nd semester grade.
Test dates for high school fall semester classes are November 30 – December 17, 2020.
Tests administration dates for grades 6 -8 and high school are April 12 – May 6,
2021.
Detailed score reports will be available Fall 2021.
Grades 2 Assessment
Students in grade 2 will take assessments in English language arts and math. This
test is given to help measure how much a second grade student grows academically over
the course of a school year. Grade 2 tests will not count towards a student’s
semester grade.
Tests administration dates for grades 3-8 and high school are April 12 – May 6, 2021.
Student scores will be available Fall 2020. Scores will be sent home with the
student.
Alternative Assessments
TCAP alternate assessments are for students with the most significant cognitive
disabilities whom participation in the typical state assessment is inappropriate,
even with the use of extensive accommodations. These assessments measure standards in
English/language arts, mathematics, science and social studies for grades 3-8.
Students in high school must complete one science assessment in their sophomore year
and one English and one mathematics assessment their junior year. These tests will
take place over a two-month window in the spring. These tests will not count towards
a student’s semester grade.
The tentative administration dates are March 15 – April 30, 2021.
Detailed score reports are delivered to the schools for distribution.
ACCESS for ELLs
WIDA’s ACCESS for ELLs assessment is for English Language Learners (ELLs) in grades
K-12. This assessment measures English language proficiency levels with respect to
the WIDA ELP Standards and is used as one criterion to determine when ELLs have
attained the language proficiency needed to participate meaningfully in content area.
ACCESS is administered February 17 – April 3, 2021. Scores and other information are
delivered to the schools for distribution in August. Results are not used for grades.
Civics Test
State law requires students to participate in a civics test as a graduation
requirement. While this test must be based on items from the US Citizenship Test, how
and when it is administered is a district decision. DCS chooses to administer its
version of the civics test during US Government and Civics class. The date to
administer the test is determined by the instructor.
ACT
TCAP includes a school day state administration of the ACT in the spring for all 11th
graders as well as an optional national administration in the fall for any 12th
graders. ACT is an achievement test that assesses students’ academic readiness for
college. The ACT measures what students have learned throughout high school and is a
graduation requirement. The test also assesses post-secondary academic preparedness,
and colleges and universities use results to make acceptance and placement decisions.
Administration Dates (Given during school day)
ACT Senior Retake: October 20, 2020
Junior ACT: March 2 or March 30, 2021 {exact date will be set at a later date}
Junior ACT make-up dates: Date to be determined
ACT provides student level reports to students approximately three to eight weeks
after the administration of the assessment.
National ACT testing dates (Saturday testing)
Test Date
Deadline
Late Deadline
Score Release*
Sept. 12, 2020
Aug. 7, 2020
Aug 21, 2020
Sept. 22; Oct. 16 2019
Oct. 24, 2020
Sept. 20. 2020
Oct. 4, 2020
Nov. 3; Nov. 17, 2020
Dec. 12, 2020
Nov. 6, 2020
Nov. 20, 2020
Dec. 22; Jan. 5, 2021
Feb. 6, 2021
Jan. 8, 2021
Jan. 15, 2021
Feb. 16; Mar. 1, 2021
Apr. 17, 2021
Mar 5, 2021
Mar. 19, 2021
Apr. 20; May 4, 2021
June 12, 2021
May 7, 2021
May 21, 2021
June 22; July 6, 2021
July 17, 2021
June 11, 2021
June 25, 2021
July 27; Aug. 10, 2021
*The first date is when multiple-choice scores come out, and the second date is when complete scores become
available
National Assessment of Educational Progress
NAEP is a national assessment of what America’s students know and can do in various
subject areas, and its results serve as a common metric for all states and selected
urban districts. Assessments are conducted periodically through sampling in
mathematics, reading, science, writing, the arts, civics, economics, geography, US
history, and technology and engineering literacy.
District Testing
District assessments are not part of TCAP and are administered at the discretion of
DCS. In some cases, the state mandates students are to be tested for a particular
purpose but the district has flexibility in how to test those students. Other
district assessments are required by local policy or administrative directive.
Universal Screening/STAR
The state requires districts to universally screen students as part of its Response
to Instruction and Intervention system, and DCS uses STAR assessments to meet that
requirement. The purpose of STAR is to provide a data snapshot of a student’s current
performance at three points during the school year and, in some cases, progress
throughout the school year, in a variety of academic areas using national norms as
comparison points without a large sacrifice of instructional time.
These tests include:
STAR Early Literacy (grades PreK-2)
STAR Reading (grades 3-11)
STAR Math (grades 3-8)
STAR Benchmark dates are as follows:
To Be Determined
Common Assessments (grades 9-12)
Common assessments at Dyer County High School will be given in math and English.
Common assessments are used to gather evidence for the purpose of improving learning,
and to provide evidence of student achievement for the purpose of a judgment about
student competence and/or program effectiveness. Results are typically available with
2 days of testing. Student scores count as 50% of the student’s grade.
These assessments will be administered on the following dates:
Common Assessment (Year-long Courses)
To Be Determined
Common Assessment (Semester-Long Courses)
To Be Determined
Semester Exams
Semester exams are given at the end of each semester for high school courses.
Semester exams are constructed by teacher teams at the school level and are
administered according to the school’s specific semester exam schedule.
CASE Benchmark Assessments
TE21’s CASE Benchmark Assessments are designed to gauge the academic progress of
students and to provide timely feedback that can be used by teachers to guide
instruction. CASE assessments are administrated to students in grades 3-12 in
Mathematics, English/Language Arts and Science.
CASE assessment dates are to be determined.
College Readiness Tests
ACT
While the state’s TCAP system includes its own administration of the ACT, there are
seven other national testing dates for ACT throughout the year. Students often choose
to participate on one of these dates to include the writing portion of the ACT (which
is not available during the TCAP administration). Students can also use these dates
to retake the ACT for a higher score, increasing post-secondary opportunities.
Registration for ACT’s national testing dates is done through the vendor’s website.
Advanced Placement (AP)
Students enrolled in college-level AP courses in high school may choose to take the
corresponding AP subject exams in the spring to assess their mastery of the content.
Success on these AP exams leads to opportunities for earning college credit or
advanced standing at most post-secondary institutions.
Registration for AP exams is conducted at the school level. Contact Dyer County High
School AP Coordinator for information about scheduling and fees. More information is
available at The College Board’s website.