Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) Test – Everything You Need To Know
Throughout a student’s early academic years, the SBAC test plays a vital role in determining your child’s university or college admission. The SBAC is systematically designed to test a student’s academic development. High-performance students will have a higher chance of getting into their desired university.
The SBAC starts in Grade 3 and finishes in Grade 11. It is divided into different stages to monitor a student’s progress and academic learning. Learning how to master the SBAC test greatly boosts your child’s chances of achieving outstanding academic results in the future.
Table of Contents
About the SBAC Test
The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) is a Common Core State Standards test used in 30 states. It acts as an educational benchmark and quantifies students’ performance. The scores are reviewed by the authority to formulate corresponding policies to enhance students’ performance and strengthen their all-rounded ability.
Aside from using it for official reviews, universities will also take into account the score when selecting freshmen. Over the school years, students will take the SBAC three times. The first one is given in Grade 3 to 5. The second one is administered to sixth to eighth graders in middle school with the last one given to Grade 11 students.
Since the test is uniformly given to students in the member states, educational institutions and potential employees reference the score to determine their suitability. Students that perform well in the first and second SBAC tests have the opportunity to join an advanced education program that allows them to skip grades.
For the final SBAC test, students must score higher than the passing line to graduate.
For teachers, the SBAC is the benchmark that directly compares the school with others in the same district or the state. The school knows how its students are progressing and learning compared to others.
Thus, teachers and the principal can formulate a suitable plan for the next academic year if the result is not satisfactory. It helps teachers understand the weaknesses of their students and how to help them improve.
Passing the SBAC test with flying colors provides the student with immensely more options in choosing which bachelor’s degree to take. Every year, parents from the consortium member states spend a large sum of tuition fees to guide their children in acing the test. The power of this standardized test should not be underestimated.
What Is in the SBAC Test?
Every year, the SBAC test is administered in spring toward the end of the academic year. It assesses a student’s ability in:
- English Language Arts (ELA)
- Mathematical fluency
The SBAC Summative Assessments, which are used to record each student’s performance and compare it over the years, consist of two parts. They are the following:
- Performance Task (PT)
- Computer Adaptive Test (CAT)
- English Language Arts (ELA)
The ELA is divided into four parts, namely:
- Reading
- Writing
- Listening
- Research
These parts evaluate a different key skill a student should have absorbed throughout the academic year. Various tasks and question structure is given to create an all-rounded analysis. In each section, the final score is individually presented. The final tally of the subject is the average of these four components.
Mathematics
The Mathematics test is broken down into:
- Problem Solving
- Data Analysis
- Numerical Reasoning
- Basic Principles
- Graph Comprehension
Each year, the content differs depending on the syllabus. In general, students have to master all of the subjects to pass the test as a whole. Failing a single part badly can result in a fail in the final score. Students need to revise each topic.
The Interim Assessments
Before the actual SBAC test, teachers and students can voluntarily choose to take the Interim Assessments. They are the additional tests provided by the state to better prepare students for the actual SBAC test and keep track of their progress.
The Interim Assessments are well-utilized in most states to equip students with the tactics and techniques to tackle the SBAC tests. Resources are available to all schools. Students can also choose to enter the Interim Assessments by themselves even if the school decides not to give them officially.
The entire SBAC test is digitalized. The smart learning system allows for a fairer judgment of the student’s knowledge. According to the student’s performance, the CAT automatically adjusts the difficulty level. If a student keeps giving incorrect answers, the general difficulty in upcoming questions will be lower.
Alternatively, if the student answers correctly consecutively, the difficulty will increase. Adjusting how challenging the test is dissects a student’s performance comprehensively. The school knows exactly where each student is at and can modify its teaching strategies accordingly.
Taking the SBAC test can be a dreadful process as each assessment lasts for four hours. Students should expect to spend no less than seven hours in the test center if they choose to do both tests on the same day.
Students are provided with a calculator and a dictionary for the exam. While the exam must be closed-book, students are free to use as many scratch papers as needed. Overall, the SBAC aims to measure a student’s ability individually and together in a nationwide group.
What Is the Passing Score for the SBAC Test?
Results can be obtained instantly or sent via mail, depending on the state and the school. There are two scoring methods, which are:
- The scale scores
- The achievement levels
The Scale Scores
The scale scores detail a student’s performance in numerical values. The minimum score is 2000, and the highest is 3000. Schools and students use the scoring system to directly implicate the progress made over the years or the school’s quality compared to others in the district.
The Achievement Levels
The achievement levels are broken down into four levels. Students must score at least Level 3 to be considered to have satisfactory results. In Grade 11, passing the SBAC with at least a Level 3 in both subjects is a requirement to graduate. Students who fail will have to retake the SBAC test.
Level 3 indicates a student has demonstrated relevant skills that meet the standards. It shows the student has steadily achieved the study goals set by the school and is ready to move on to the next education stage.
The highest level, Level 4, means a student has shown significantly above-average intelligence and knowledge. They have mastered the skills better than their peers and will likely succeed in future coursework.
Students scoring a Level 1 or 2 in either subject will need substantial improvement if they wish to continue their academic journey. It indicates that they are less likely to perform well in higher education and do not possess the skills needed to graduate.
How to Prepare for the SBAC Test?
1. Get the Practice Test at Testprep Online
There are many ways to prepare for your kid’s SBAC test, but there will not be one as effectively as taking a practice test at TestPrep Online. The platform is a giant library with all the resources for any of the upcoming tests.
By joining TestPrep Online, you will get multiple sets of each test. These are hands-on exercises created by educational experts in the field. Furthermore, there are study notes and revision key points to enhance your child’s understanding and performance up a notch.
Studying without practicing will not work. To succeed in this life-changing test, you need to enlist the best help to aid your child. And TestPrep Online is here to help.
2. Encourage Your Kid to Practice With Classmates
Although the SBAC test puts students in direct competition against their peers, it does not aim to create any hostile study environment. Quite the contrary, students are encouraged to work together regularly in class with the teachers to prepare for the test.
Practicing with peers gives an incredible opportunity to see how others are solving the same question with a shortcut. Classmates will most likely have a hack to quickly squeeze the answer out.
3. Get Help From the Teachers
Encourage your child to seek help from teachers. They are here to help. It is crucial that they have all the concepts clarified before going for the test. Some questions relate to mathematics principles, which will take more than a sharp brain to get.
Stay for the after-class tutorial and extra classes to make up for the topics they lack behind. Most of the time, teachers will have an excellent understanding of the SBAC trends. They can offer insight to make the preparation easier.
4. Formulate a Study Plan
Sticking to a study plan is essential. Break down all the topics and arrange them in the most efficient way. Usually, interchanging between difficult and easy topics boosts performance. If they are battling a big concept today, give them a break and do something simple the next day. It allows their brain to refresh and rest while still absorbing new knowledge.
Revise the study plan as you go. You should formulate a flexible plan for emergencies. For example, your kid may get sick and is unable to study for the weekend. Therefore, you should not pack the schedule with full studying only before the test. They should start prepping way ahead of the exam month.
5. Check Out Past SBAC Tests
In some states, the past SBAC tests are readily available publicly. Students can review the materials to prepare for their SBAC test. The format and content will differ slightly in each member state but the general syllabus remains the same.
These past SBAC tests offer a glimpse into how the syllabus has evolved over the years and how the officials craft the structure. However, you should take the previous tests as references only because the structure is constantly changing.
6. Review Topics From Past Academic Years
Each year, the content of the new SBAC test is built on the knowledge they have mastered from previous years. Hence, they are revising more than what they have learned this term. They should familiarize themselves with past topics to gain a head start in the new term. They will understand the subject faster and perform better.
Moreover, it happens frequently that some questions in the SBAC relate more to the past topics. Revisiting the answer key and formulas is a good way to pass the test. Since the test is designed to document their academic growth, some of the most challenging questions will even involve concepts a bit above their grade.
If they feel confident about their skills, try out a few of the advanced SBAC tests for the next grade and they will be the best prepared student in the entire class.
Summary
Dealing with the SBAC test is possibly the most stressful time of the year. Every test accumulates to determine a student’s fate. To alleviate the burden, you can join TestPrep Online to download the best practice set personalized for your beloved child’s academic needs with superb standards.
Sarah is an accomplished educator, researcher and author in the field of testing and assessment. She has worked with various educational institutions and organisations to develop innovative evaluation methods and enhance student learning. Sarah has published numerous articles and books on assessment and learning. Her passion for promoting equity and fairness in the education system fuels her commitment to sharing insights and best practices with educators and policymakers around the world.
