National/State Assessments
To find out how Fulton students scored on these tests, please visit the District Test Scores Page.
Georgia Milestones Assessments
The Georgia Milestones Assessment System (Georgia Milestones) is a comprehensive summative assessment program spanning grades 3 through high school. Georgia Milestones measures how well students have learned the knowledge and skills outlined in the state-adopted content standards in language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. Students in grades 3 through 8 will take an end-of-grade assessment in each content area, while high school students will take an end-of-course assessment for each of the eight courses designated by the State Board of Education.
Features the Georgia Milestone Assessment System include:
- open-ended (constructed-response) items in language arts and mathematics (all grades and courses);
- a writing component (in response to passages read by students) at every grade level and course within the language arts assessment;
- norm-referenced items in all content areas and courses, to complement the criterion-referenced information and to provide a national comparison; and
- transition to online administration over time, with online administration considered the primary mode of administration and paper-pencil as back-up until the transition is complete.
Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS)
Iowa Tests of Basic Skills are norm-referenced tests. Georgia law mandates that a nationally norm-referenced test, such as the ITBS, be administered annually to students in grades three, five, and eight. The purpose of a norm-referenced test is to obtain information about the performance of Georgia's students and compare it with that of students in a national sample. The results are used for evaluation, decision-making, and instructional improvement.
Georgia Alternate Assessment (GAA 2.0)
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA) and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) require that states ensure all students, including those with significant cognitive disabilities, have access to challenging academic standards and participate in the state’s assessment program. The U.S. Department of Education defines alternate achievement standards as establishing performance expectations that differ in complexity from grade-level achievement standards. These standards must be aligned with the state’s content standards, promote access to the general content standards, and articulate the highest achievement levels possible for the individual student. This means teachers may customize learning expectations for students who participate in alternate assessments.
For students with disabilities, each student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) team determines how the student shall participate in Georgia’s student assessment program. If a student’s IEP team determines that a student cannot meaningfully access the Georgia Milestones Assessment System, even with maximum appropriate accommodations, then the student must participate in the GAA 2.0.
The GAA 2.0 is designed to ensure that students with significant cognitive disabilities are provided access to the state academic content standards and given the opportunity to demonstrate achievement of the knowledge, concepts, and skills inherent in the standards.
This assessment will provide meaningful information about classroom instruction and help identify students’ areas of strength and improvement through standardized tests. Unlike the original GAA, GAA 2.0 is not a portfolio-based assessment. Thus, it will measure students’ achievement and not progress. The GAA 2.0 will be administered to all eligible students in the following areas:
- Grades K, 3-8, and 11 will be assessed in English language arts and mathematics.
- Grades 5, 8, and 11 will also be assessed in science and social studies.
The GAA 2.0 will include standardized items with multiple access points. The intent is to reduce the teacher’s burden related to selecting or developing tasks; bring greater standardization to the administration; improve scoring reliability; and introduce an online task submission system.
Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT)
The SAT is an optional test given to measure reading, writing, and mathematical reasoning skills related to successful performance in college. The SAT previously tested students through verbal and math sections. The test was restructured in 2005 and now has three sections – math, critical reading, and writing. Each are scored within a range of 200-800 points, combining for a total of 2400 rather than 1600.
ACCESS for ELLs
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ACCESS for ELLs (Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State to State for English Language Learners) is administered, annually, to all English learners in Georgia. ACCESS for ELLs is a standards-based, criterion referenced English language proficiency test designed to measure English learners’ social and academic proficiency in English. It assesses social and instructional English as well as the language associated with language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies within the school context across the four language domains. ACCESS for ELLs meets the federal requirements that mandates require states to evaluate EL students in grades K through 12 on their progress in learning to speak English. |
Resources ACCESS for ELLs General Information ACCESS Proficiency Level Descriptors for Grades 1-12 ACCESS Proficiency Level Descriptors for Kindergarten
ACCESS Parent Guide for Score Reports English | Spanish | French | Chinese | Arabic | Haitian | Hmong | Portugese | Russian | Somali | Tagalog | Urdu | Vietnamese Alternate ACCESS Parent Guide for Score Reports English | Spanish | French | Chinese | Arabic | Haitian | Hmong | Portugese | Russian | Somali | Tagalog | Urdu | Vietnamese Microsoft Translator Download Directions |