Exam for Acceleration & Credit-by-Exam

For additional information regarding Exams for acceleration (EA) and Credit-by-exam (CBE), please see the CBE page on the Forney ISD website. 

Credit by Exam (CBE) and Exam for Acceleration (EA) are terms that are occasionally used interchangeably, but they are not utilized for the same purpose. 

Credit by Exam (CBE) is used to earn credit for a (HS) course, when a student has had PRIOR instruction, and under the following conditions:

• The student is enrolling in the District from a non-accredited school program

• The student has failed a subject or course

• The student has earned a passing grade in a subject or course, but has failed to earn credit because of excessive absences 

The student must score a 70% or higher on a CBE to earn credit. For students currently enrolled in FISD, the first condition does not apply. Failure to earn a score of 70% or better will require the student to complete the course for which they need credit. 

Exams for Acceleration (EA) provide an opportunity to earn grade level (intention to “skip” a grade level) OR individual course credit in which no prior formal instruction has been completed. The EA is designed for a very small percentage of learners who have both the academic and emotional need to advance a course. 

• EA is not designed for grade level recovery when a student is retained in a previous grade level.

• Students must demonstrate mastery of 80% or higher on an EA to have the opportunity to move on to the next exam in the testing sequence (second semester for course credit, or the next core content exam) before the student earns credit or is accelerated a grade level. 

• The only students that should take an exam for acceleration are those who display an extremely advanced level of understanding of the learning objectives assessed on the EA which will be the grade level or course above the grade level or course in which your student is currently enrolled.

Acceleration Applications

All requests for CBE or EA applications must be made through the campus counselor and are due by 5pm on the deadline. Once the correct form has been submitted (by student, parent/guardian, teacher, or counselor) the DTC will reach out to the campus counselor to talk about the next steps dependent upon the grade level of the student and if they are attempting grade level acceleration, course acceleration, or credit recovery. Students should not take an exam for a course in which they are currently enrolled. 

Application Links - use these links for all test windows. 

• https://bit.ly/ForneyKinderAccel

• https://bit.ly/Forney_1-8GL_Accel

• https://bit.ly/Forney_6-8_CourseAccel

• https://bit.ly/Forney_HS_CourseAccel

If a student/parent requests a CBE:

• Ask the student/parent to complete the appropriate application from the list above

• Once the form has been submitted, DTC will contact the appropriate counselor to discuss the next steps dependent upon the details

• I will send a confirmation e-mail when the CBE has been ordered and login information has been received from UT

CBE Testing Calendar

Exam for Acceleration - Eligibility & Administration

Counselor/Campus is responsible for scheduling and administering exams for acceleration once the tests have been ordered and received. Exams expire 60 days from the date that UT processes them. Exams are non-refundable and non-transferable so scheduling within the appropriate window is extremely important. 

Students may only accelerate in one course per subject in any assessment window.

• Example: Student wants to accelerate to earn credit for Spanish 1 & 2 in CBE window C (July-September). This student would only be able to earn credit for Spanish 1 during window C. If they were successful on Spanish 1 (semesters 1 & 2) in window C, they would be allowed to attempt Spanish 2 in window D if desired. 

Students may attempt a specific exam only once during each window. Retests for the same grade level/subject are not allowed during the same window (ex. A student takes the English 2 CBE in April and is not successful. The student must wait until July to attemp the retest if offered)

Grade Level Acceleration- Before the first exam is ordered, a student must meet the district minimum assessment requirements for MAP and STAAR (if applicable) and have recommendation for acceleration by campus staff (teacher, counselor, admin) 

• Kinder 

  • Student must be:

    • 5-years old before September 1st

    • Registered for kindergarten in FISD 

    • Multiple test sessions may be required if the student is successful, dependent upon how parent/guardian wants to schedule

  • No minimum assessment history required

• 1st-8th 

  • Current FISD students - DTC will review the student's assessment history

  • New FISD students - if no MAP or STAAR scores are available, counselor will need to schedule MAP Growth tests for Math and Reading prior to the CBE being ordered

Course Acceleration 

• 6th-8th

  • Before the first exam is ordered, a student must meet the district minimum assessment requirements for MAP and STAAR (if applicable). 

  • Current FISD students - DTC will review the student's assessment history

  • New FISD students - if no MAP or STAAR scores are available, counselor will need to schedule MAP Growth tests for Math and Reading (if student desires to accelerate in Math or Reading) 

  • If student wishes to accelerate in science and no other data is available, a released STAAR science test will be administered prior to the CBE being ordered

• High school

  • Students may attempt an exam for acceleration in any course for which the prerequisites have been met and in the order of the district usual course sequence

  • Students may not take an exam for acceleration for a course in which they are currently enrolled

After CBE Testing

Results will be sent to the principal and counselor of the school where the student is registered. The campus will communicate results with student and or parent/guardian. The testing office will not give out any information regarding the results of the exam for acceleration testing. 

Parent Communication

Grade Level Acceleration Approval Letter - K-8th - Coming soon

Grade Level Acceleration - Did not qualify K-8th  - Coming soon

Course Acceleration 6th-8th - Approval - Coming soon

Course Acceleration HS - Approval letter - Coming soon

Course Acceleration HS - Did not Qualify letter - Coming soon

Student Acceleration/Advancement

Students will only be placed in a new grade level or course at the beginning of the school year. This means that all four core EAs (for K-8th grade level or course acceleration) or both semesters (HS course acceleration) need to be completed prior to the first day of the new school year. 

K-8 Grade Level Acceleration

• Kinder-8th - If the student is successful (80% or better) on all four core subject exams s/he will be accelerated to the next grade level at the beginning of the school year. 

• All grade level accelerations are on a probationary basis. Should the school or teacher feel that it is in the best interest of the child to be placed back in their original student cohort you will be contacted. 

6th-8th Course Acceleration

• At the middle school level, students who accelerate in math beyond Algebra 1, 8th Integrated Language Arts, 8th Science, or 8th US History will be required to take the next course in the district’s prescribed course sequence at the high school campus or in an online format from the TX-Virtual School Network (parents are responsible for cost) or Edgenuity during the school day. Forney ISD will select the online course. 

• Students may only take the accelerated course at the high school campus if scheduling permits and will be responsible for providing their own transportation. 

• Students taking an accelerated course in an online format will be provided a class period during the school day and will be expected to work on the course during that period. A proctor will supervise the students and assist with any technical issues. 

• Courses taken via TX-VSN (parents are responsible for cost) or Edgenuity will not count in the student’s GPA for ranking but will count for high school credit. Additionally, online courses are not at the pre-AP level.

HS Course Acceleration

• If a student successfully earns credit a high school course prior to the beginning of the new school year, they will be enrolled in the next course in the districts usual course sequence. 

Additional Considerations for Acceleration

• Kindergarten Acceleration

  • When recommending acceleration, consideration is given to students who can clearly function at an above average level academically AND meet the social, emotional and behavioral demands of first grade as well. Please carefully review the "Is My Child Ready for First Grade in FISD?" to determine if your child meets the minimum criteria for entering first grade prior to submitting a request for your child to skip kindergarten in FISD.

• 1st-8th Grade Level Acceleration

  • Social maturity – When advancing a course, your child’s social and emotional maturity may not match the maturity level of the other students in the course. 

  • Student desire- A student should have the desire and drive to accelerate and maintain the workload of the higher level class. 

  • Teacher/counselor recommendation- Teachers and counselors see your student on a daily basis and may be able to provide additional information regarding whether or not acceleration would be appropriate. 

  • Students may take an Exam for Acceleration during any of the four testing windows. However, placement in a new grade level will only occur at the start of a school year, regardless of when an EA is taken. All four content areas tests must have been completed and passed before the first day of school in order to accelerate. 

• 6th-8th Course Acceleration 

  • Transportation - As a middle school student your child may need to attend the high school in order to take his/her next course. Transportation to and from the high school may be the parent’s responsibility. 

  • Master schedule - We cannot guarantee the alignment between the middle school and high school master schedules. Your child may be limited in the times and formats (e.g., online, distance learning, etc.) in which a class is offered. 

  • Course sequence - There is NO guarantee that the next course in the sequence will be available at either the home campus or another campus. If that course is available on another campus, district transportation will not be provided. 

  • Social maturity – When advancing a course, your child’s social and emotional maturity may not match the maturity level of the other students in the course. 

  • Student desire - A student should have the desire and drive to accelerate and maintain the workload of the higher level class. 

  • Teacher/counselor recommendation- Teachers and counselors see your student on a daily basis and may be able to provide additional information regarding whether or not acceleration would be appropriate. 

  • Course opportunities later in high school- In some situations, accelerating now may put your child in a position where he/she is limited in course options as a high school junior or senior. Make sure you are clear on the ultimate goal of acceleration, Early Graduation, Associate’s degree, other (discuss with your counselor)

    • Students are required to have 26 credits in order to graduate. With the modified double block schedule students are required to take a minimum of 6 classes during senior year for attendance funding. If a student is not planning to graduate early, acceleration may put the student ahead of schedule for those 26 credits and end up taking classes senior year that will not count for credit. 

• High School Course Acceleration

  • Course sequence - There is NO guarantee that the next course in the sequence will be available at either the home campus or another campus. If that course is available on another campus, district transportation will not be provided. 

  • Social maturity – When advancing a course, your child’s social and emotional maturity may not match the maturity level of the other students in the course. 

  • Student desire- A student should have the desire and drive to accelerate and maintain the workload of the higher level class. 

  • Teacher/counselor recommendation- Teachers and counselors see your student on a daily basis and may be able to provide additional information regarding whether or not acceleration would be appropriate. 

  • Course opportunities later in high school- In some situations, accelerating now may put your child in a position where he/she is limited in course options as a high school junior or senior. Make sure you are clear on the ultimate goal of acceleration, Early Graduation, Associate’s degree, other (discuss with your counselor)

    • Students are required to have 26 credits in order to graduate. With the modified double block schedule students are required to take a minimum of 6 classes during senior year for attendance funding. If a student is not planning to graduate early, acceleration may put the student ahead of schedule for those 26 credits and end up taking classes senior year that will not count for credit. 

    • Grade level prerequisites for Advanced Placement (AP) courses must be met before a student can be enrolled in an AP course
      Ex. a student who is successful on an English 1 CBE and accelerates into English 2 as a freshman will not be allowed into AP English (pre-requisite = Junior) as sophomore, the student will be placed in on-level English 3 class

Languages Other than English - Exam for Acceleration (Avant Assessments)

• Avant Assessments is a computer adaptive language test used for acceleration in Spanish 1 and/or 2. This test will allow students to demonstrate their proficiency without any pre-set limits which makes it possible to earn for more than one level of Spanish credit with one test. 

• Students will complete section over the four language domains: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing

• Review Guides

  • Spanish Exams for Acceleration will be ordered from the University of Texas and are based on grade level/course Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)

  • See TEKS on Texas Education Agency

  • Any state adopted grade level textbook can be used to study

  • These review sheets will give information about the format of the test, how to study for the exam and what assignments and additional materials (if any) are due at the time of the exam. They do not tell you what to study since the test is based on the grade level and subject TEKS

  • University of Texas review guides

Testing Opportunities 

• Spanish

  • Due to the volume of testers, Spanish 1 and 2 EAs will be administered in the spring of each school year. An application will be available in January of each school year for the spring administration in April/May

• Non-Spanish LOTE requests - these may be taken at any during the school year according to the application windows above

Additional information:

• An email will be sent prior to testing, to the student and counselor with testing details. This will serve as a reminder of testing and gives the student specific testing details.  

• A score of 80 or better is required for to earn credit fora specific levels of Spanish I or II.

• SPECAL CIRCUMSTANCES - If you have a special situation or a student who needs LOTE credit, in Spanish or another language reach out to Tandi directly at tjowen@forneyisd.net, x10341, or Google Chat

Credit-by-Exam (credit recovery)

Form Link: https://bit.ly/Forney_HS_CourseAccel 

• All requests for credit recovery must be made through the campus counselor

• Counselor/Campus is responsible for scheduling and administering exams for recovery once the tests have been ordered and received. Exams expire 60 days from the date that UT processes them. Exams are non-refundable and non-transferable - schedule with student during the window. 

Eligibility guidelines to apply for credit-by-exam (credit recovery)
 

A student who has previously taken a course or subject - but did not receive credit for it - may, in circumstances determined by the counselor, principal, or attendance committee, be permitted to earn credit by passing an exam on the essential knowledge and skills defined for that course or subject. 

To participate in the Credit by Exam with prior instruction, the student must have been enrolled in a formal course as evidenced by:

• Only students enrolled in FISD are eligible for credit by exam (credit recovery)

• A transcript from an accredited or non‐accredited institution or other documentation that establishes evidence of a formal course

• A syllabus listing daily assignments

• An explanation of the time parameters of the course

• Documentation of the student’s performance throughout the course

• Documentation of alignments to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

Score reporting and credit earned

• The student scores 70% or above on both semesters of the Credit by Exam assessment in order to earn credit for the course.  

• All Credit by Exam applications must be made through the school counselor. Students may complete applications at any time during the year, but must meet the application deadlines established to test in a specific testing window.
  
  

Payment

The district does not pay for exams with the intended purpose of credit recovery and the parent/guardian assumes the cost of credit by exam. Tests are $25 for each course per semester to be proctored by a district employee (must be taken on campus) or $35 per course per semester for a remotely proctored exam (can be taken at home) and checks can be made out to Forney ISD and must be turned in with application before tests will be ordered.