State Education Department Releases Questions from 2018 Grades 3-8 English Language Arts and Mathematics Assessments

The State Education Department today announced that 75 percent of the questions from the 2018 Grades 3-8 English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics Assessments that count toward student scores are now posted online at EngageNY.org. This is the third year in a row the Department has released 75 percent of the assessment questions. Educators and parents will once again be able to review their students’ answers to constructed-response questions this year, giving them an even clearer picture of how well students are doing.

 “We have heard time and again that New York educators value the information they get from the 3-8 assessments and the earlier, the better,” State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia said. “That’s why, for a third year in a row, we are releasing as many of the questions from these assessments as possible. And, this year, the ELA and mathematics testing sessions were reduced to only two days each, resulting in substantially fewer questions than in recent years. I want to thank the hundreds of New York State educators who helped create and review these questions as part of our ongoing effort to deliver rigorous assessments that are responsive to the public’s concerns.”

Test Session Reduction

At its June 2017 meeting, the Board of Regents voted to reduce the number of sessions of the grades 3-8 State assessments in ELA and mathematics from three days each to two. This change took effect beginning with the assessments administered in spring 2018 and applied to grades 3-8. The Department shortened the tests in a manner that still provides for the valid and reliable measurement of student achievement of the standards. As a result of the decision, New York State educators will review the performance standards this summer. Given the need for this standards review, the statewide scores will be released in mid-to-late September.

Released Assessment Questions

The State Education Department released 75 percent of the 2018 Grades 3-8 ELA and math Assessment questions that count toward student scores. Each released multiple-choice question includes the question itself and an item map that provides the answer key and the standard(s) measured by the question. Each released constructed-response (open-ended) question includes the question itself and an item map that provides the standard(s) measured by the question.

The State Education Department has once again released 100 percent of the constructed-response questions from the Grade 3-8 ELA and Mathematics Assessments, as well as the scoring materials used by educators to score student responses to these questions. The questions are posted on EngageNY.org.

Constructed-Responses

Once again, educators and parents will have the opportunity to review student answers to the constructed-response questions from the 2018 assessments, giving them additional information about student performance. The State Education Department has provided guidance for districts on how to implement this review so student privacy is protected and the integrity of the students’ responses is preserved. However, districts will use local discretion to develop their own procedures for reviewing. To view the released questions, visit EngageNY.org.