2024 AASA/AzSCI State Assessments
AASA/AzSCI Testing Schedule
AzSCI State Assessment - 5th and 8th Grade
April 3rd and 4th
AASA ELA, Math, and 3rd Grade Oral Reading Fluency Assessment
April 8th - April 18th
Check with your child's school for their testing schedule
Important Testing Information
It is important that your child is on time to school and present each day of testing. This will help ease any anxiety for you child during this time. They will be able to take the assessments at the same time as their peers and with a familiar test administrator, their teacher! Students who are present and on time for each day of testing will also feel at ease knowing they will be in a familiar environment.
What will my child expect on testing days?
Your child's classroom will look different during the testing period. They can expect any charts, word walls, alphabet strips, multiplication tables, or any other posters that are a resource for the classroom to be covered up. The seating in the classroom may look different as well. If your child sits in a group, they will be sitting by themselves, usually in rows. They will not be allowed to have any materials on their desk except for their Chromebook, a pencil, and scratch paper. Students can have water bottles and are encouraged to bring one; during testing, it will be placed on the floor next to their seats. Teachers will have an alternate place for students to put their backpacks. It is strongly recommended that students do not bring a cell phone to school on testing days. There are strict rules about the materials and resources allowed on testing days. If they do bring a cell phone, it must be shut off, and the teacher will collect it. All student cell phones will be placed in a secure area until the conclusion of testing for the day.
Teachers are limited in what they can help students with during the test. Teachers can repeat directions and read aloud any items in the writing, science, and math assessments at the student's request. The writing, science, and math assessments are also read aloud through the computer. Teachers cannot read aloud any of the reading assessments, assist students in answering a question, guide them to the correct answer, or tell them if they are solving a question correctly.
Why is it important for my child to take these "high stakes" assessments?
All students in 3rd-8th grade across the state of Arizona are required to participate in the AASA assessment each year. All students in 5th, 8th, and 11th-grade students across the state of Arizona must also participate in the AzSCI assessment. The results of these assessments are important to schools and families. The results show families their child's progress toward completing high school and success after high school. They also shows how families their child's school supports their learning. Taking state tests allows your child's principal and teachers to see any differences between groups of student and make any needed improvements so all students succeed. Results helps educators to address learning needs for groups of students who may have performed poorly on the assessment.
Testing Tips For Parents
1. Ensure your child goes to bed early the nights before testing. Children who get plenty of sleep can focus better and think more clearly.
2. Breakfast! Eating breakfast in the morning will give your child's brain and body the fuel it needs to think and perform at its best! Each school campus will provide breakfast for all students.
3. If your child is anxious, worried, or just nervous about state testing, having a conversation with them will help them feel more at ease. This assessment will help your child's school and teachers to know where they are academically, your child's strengths, and their struggles. This assessment is just a point-in-time measure, and your child may have learned more than what they are able to show on this test.
4. Attendance is essential on days leading up to testing and on testing days! In days leading up to testing, teachers review test-taking strategies and complete AASA and AzSCI practice tests. Practice will help prepare your child for the assessments and feel more at ease.
5. Ensure your child is prepared with items they need for testing. Students should have their fully charged Chromebooks - if they carry one to and from school - a reusable water bottle and a light jacket or sweater - some classrooms can get cold. Teachers will provide paper and pencils to all students during testing.