Overview of Testing in Tennessee

Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) has been the state’s testing program since 1988, and it includes TCAP assessments in math, English language arts, social studies, and science, as well as alternative assessments, like MSAA and TCAP-Alt, for students with special needs.

The following are assessments offered in Tennessee.

Required

TCAP for Grades 3–8

TCAP End-of-Course Assessments

MSAA for Students with Disabilities

TCAP-Alt for Students with Disabilities

ACCESS for English Learners

ACT and SAT

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

Optional

TCAP Grade 2 Optional Assessment

TCAP Grade 2 Alternate Assessment for Students with Disabilities

Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)

International Computer and Information Literacy Study (ICILS)

Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)

International Early Learning and Child Well-being Study (IELS)

Innovative Assessment Supports

Operational Testing vs. Field Testing

The majority of tests are operational. This means that the test is officially scored, and results will be shared with districts, schools, teachers, and students. Some tests, however, are field tests. This means that the test isn't officially scored and reported; rather, it provides valuable information to the department of education in order to inform future test development.

Sometimes students take stand-alone field tests where the entire test would not be officially scored and reported but would instead be used to help the department design future tests.  In most cases, field test questions are included within operational tests. In this scenario, a student would not know which question was a field test question and which questions was an operational test question. Student responses to the field test questions would not "count" toward a student's score on the test, but their responses would help the department of education design future test questions.  Field tests strengthen future operational tests by ensuring each question measures what our students should know and can do.