High School Proficiency Assessment
Encyclopedia
The High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA, pronounced "hess-puh" or sometimes just "H-S-P-A") is a standardized test
administered by the New Jersey Department of Education
to all New Jersey high school students in March of their junior year. Together with the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge
(NJ ASK) administered in grades 3-8, the HSPA is part of a battery of tests used to assess student performance in New Jersey's public schools.
The HSPA is administered over a course of three days simultaneously in all high schools throughout the state of New Jersey. The exam tests students' proficiency in a variety of academic subjects including mathematics and language arts literacy. As of September 1, 2001, state law in New Jersey requires that all students pass the HSPA for high school
graduation.
Students who do not pass the exam on their first try have two opportunities to retake it during their senior (and final) year. Additionally, for those who are still unable to pass the exam or feel that they are "not good test-takers," the state department of education gives students the option of participating in a "Special Review Assessment process" (SRA) to demonstrate their academic abilities.
Before the test, chief school administrators, principals, and guidance counselors stress the importance of the test and make it clear that students should pass the exam on the first try. By doing so, they could focus on the future. Without any need for remedial classes, they have more opportunities for electives.
The exam, first administered in 1989, was originally called the High School Proficiency Test (abbreviated as HSPT) and was taken during the freshmen year. If the examination was failed, it could be taken each year until it was passed. In 1993, only students who were in eleventh (Grade 11) were allowed to take the exam and the name was changed to HSPT-11 to reflect the change in 2001.
Alternate Proficiency Assessment (APA) is a portfolio-based assessment method used to measure academic progress for students with severe disabilities who are unable to participate in the standardized assessment tests. The APA is given to a student in each content area where the student's disability is so severe that the student is not receiving instruction in the skill being measured and the student cannot complete any of the types of questions on the assessment in a content area even with appropriate changes and accommodations.
Standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a...
administered by the New Jersey Department of Education
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered in Trenton.The Department is responsible for ensuring that...
to all New Jersey high school students in March of their junior year. Together with the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge
New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge
NJASK or the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge is a standardized test given to all New Jersey public-schooled students in grades 3-8 during March, April, or May, and is administered by the New Jersey Department of Education....
(NJ ASK) administered in grades 3-8, the HSPA is part of a battery of tests used to assess student performance in New Jersey's public schools.
The HSPA is administered over a course of three days simultaneously in all high schools throughout the state of New Jersey. The exam tests students' proficiency in a variety of academic subjects including mathematics and language arts literacy. As of September 1, 2001, state law in New Jersey requires that all students pass the HSPA for high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
graduation.
Students who do not pass the exam on their first try have two opportunities to retake it during their senior (and final) year. Additionally, for those who are still unable to pass the exam or feel that they are "not good test-takers," the state department of education gives students the option of participating in a "Special Review Assessment process" (SRA) to demonstrate their academic abilities.
Before the test, chief school administrators, principals, and guidance counselors stress the importance of the test and make it clear that students should pass the exam on the first try. By doing so, they could focus on the future. Without any need for remedial classes, they have more opportunities for electives.
The exam, first administered in 1989, was originally called the High School Proficiency Test (abbreviated as HSPT) and was taken during the freshmen year. If the examination was failed, it could be taken each year until it was passed. In 1993, only students who were in eleventh (Grade 11) were allowed to take the exam and the name was changed to HSPT-11 to reflect the change in 2001.
Alternate Proficiency Assessment (APA) is a portfolio-based assessment method used to measure academic progress for students with severe disabilities who are unable to participate in the standardized assessment tests. The APA is given to a student in each content area where the student's disability is so severe that the student is not receiving instruction in the skill being measured and the student cannot complete any of the types of questions on the assessment in a content area even with appropriate changes and accommodations.