Instructional Coach Resources (Acadience)
Benchmark Assessment Windows for 25-26 School Year
Beginning of Year: August 25-September 19, 2025
Standardization is a priority. DO NOT administer an assessment prior to completing an Acadience Assessment Training.
In person training for Acadience Aide, +1-2 additional testing aides from each school will be held at the District Office in the board room from 8:30am-3:30pm on August 18th, 21st, and 22nd. Only one day of training is required. Please choose which date best fits for you and your school.
Asynchronous Training for additional testing aides and/or classroom teachers. Fill out this FORM after you have completed all the necessary courses.
Foundations & Guidelines (Math)
1:1 MEASURES
Reading
Math
WHOLE GROUP MEASURES
Middle of Year: January 5-30, 2026
Standardization is a priority. DO NOT administer an assessment prior to completing an Acadience Assessment Training.
In person refresher training for Acadience Aide, +1-2 additional testing aides from each school will be held at the District Office in the board room from 8:30am-11:30am on December 18th and 19th. Only one day of training is required. Please choose which date best fits for you and your school.
Asynchronous Training for additional testing aides and/or classroom teachers. Fill out this FORM after you have completed the refresher course(s).
End of Year: April 15-May 13, 2026
Standardization is a priority. DO NOT administer an assessment prior to completing the EOY Refresher course(s).
Virtual Training Session will be held on April 7, 2026 from 8:30-10:30 am for anyone who will be administering the 1:1 digital measures for Reading and Math.
Asynchronous Training for additional testing aides and/or classroom teachers. Fill out this FORM after you have completed the refresher course(s).
Supporting Documents
Use the form below to inform the Assessment Department for any personnel needing to be added to the ALO Platform.
UTREx Special Codes
Once testing is complete and entered into ALO, the data will be uploaded into PowerSchool.
Administrators and Instructional Coaches will then work together to correctly code the students needing special coding.
Special Coding needs to be completed for students in grades K-3 for Reading and Math.
The system will code students with a score with either a "Y" or "N" based on their score.
Students without a score, will need to be manually coded with a special code.
log into PowerSchool
Select student
Click on Compliance
Select State Info
Scroll down to the Reading and Early Numeracy Information
Click on dropdown arrows to select Special Codes
Select if student is receiving interventions or not (includes alternate tested students)
Scroll down to bottom of page and click the SUBMIT button
Special Coding Deadlines:
Benchmark 1 (BOY): October 31, 2025
Benchmark 2 (MOY): February 27, 2026
Benchmark 3 (EOY): May 22, 2026
Benchmark Invalidations
If an error or emergency occurs during benchmark testing and cannot be corrected, then an invalidation may be necessary. Refer to the guidance below for Invalidations. If you find that it meets the requirements to invalidate, use the provided document to report the invalidations.
If a digitally administered measure needs to be invalidated, the system will reassign a progress monitoring probe to the Assessment Tab, and will be recorded as a Benchmark score. The Assessment Tab will show which PM probe has been assigned. You will want to pay attention to that information, so you have the necessary student materials ready. (usually the first PM probe for that measure)
In the case of a student that was tested under the wrong name, and has already seen the Benchmark materials, you would need to run a false test on the assessment tab for their Benchmark assessment, invalidate the assessment, and digitally administer the PM probe that the system will assign to the student.
If a paper/pencil administered measure needs to be invalidated, use a PM probe and manually enter that score for the Benchmark Assessment.
Question: When is invalidation acceptable?
Answer: The following reasons are acceptable for invalidating an Acadience Reading or Acadience Math assessment:
if Incorrect student was tested.
if Incorrect student materials were provided to an individual student.
if Administration or scoring errors occurred that cannot be corrected without retesting the student.
if The assessment was interrupted due to extenuating circumstances (e.g., fire drill, internet issue).
Question: If I invalidate the assessment, what are my next steps?
Answer: Reassess the student as soon as possible using progress monitoring materials.
Question: What if the student refuses to participate?
Answer: Stop the assessment without scoring. Try to assess on another day, time, or with a different assesso
Question: Should I test a student without their glasses/hearing aids?
Answer: It is not best practice to test a student without his/her required glasses or hearing aids, or a student who seems ill. Test that student on another day/time.
Question: If my class or a student was accidentally tested on the benchmark assessment rather than the progress monitoring, Can I invalidate the benchmark assessment?
Answer: No. As stated in the USBE’s Testing Ethics Policy, the assessor must ensure students are provided with the correct testing materials and/or logged into the correct test (e.g., Daze).
Parent Notification and Vision Letters
Test items or copies of Acadience assessments are considered secure test items and should never be sent home with parents. Instead use the Parent Report located on the ALO platform when sharing results with parents/guardians.
Along with the assessment results, Parent Notification Letters are required to be sent home for students in grades K-3 for each Benchmark (BOY, MOY, EOY). School Administrators may also choose to send notifications for additional grades.
Every student receives the same Parent Notification Letter
The school may choose to print for the whole school, or each teacher may print the letters on their own. It is up to each individual school on how the letters are printed.
Benchmark Levels are based on the composite score
Red=Well Below
Yellow=Below
Green=On Benchmark
Blue=Above Benchmark
Grade Level Cut Scores for Reading & Math
Teachers fill out a letter for each student
Letters are given out during Parent Teacher Conferences (BOY & MOY), and sent home with students (EOY)
Letters are attached to the Parent Report (Reading & Math) located on the ALO platform.
Vision Letters
For student in grades Kindergarten-3rd who score below or well below benchmark at BOY.
If a student continues to score below or well below benchmark for MOY, they do not need a new vision letter at MOY.
If a student scores at/above benchmark at BOY, but scored below or well below benchmark for MOY, the student would need a vision letter sent home.
Any new students who score below or well below benchmark for MOY would need a vision letter sent home.
Vision letters are not completed for EOY.
Identify students using the ALO platform.
Refer to the composite score when determining the below/well below students.
Teacher can fill out form, or they can ask parents to fill it out during conferences, and leave with the teacher.
Completed forms are turned into the school nurse.
Progress Monitoring Resources
Whenever possible, progress monitoring should be done by the classroom teacher. Under special circumstances, the progress monitoring can be completed using additional resources.
Keep in mind that these items are secure test items. Test items or copies of the Acadience assessments should never be used for student instruction or practice in the classroom or at home. Instead, focus on teaching students' skills.
Non-academic rewards for state assessment are not permitted. Since progress monitoring is part of the early literacy assessment process, it would NOT be appropriate to reward with non-academic rewards. Instead focus on helping students celebrate in intrinsic ways.
Testing ethics should be followed when accessing and utilizing these materials.
SB127 requires that schools progress monitor at the recommended frequency rates. Progress monitoring is required for reading and recommended for math.
Recommended Frequency Rates:
Red: every 2 weeks
Yellow: every 3 weeks
Green/Blue: every 4 weeks
NOTE: MAZE should only be administered once a month for students who are on grade level for fluency and accuracy. It is also not timely enough to show change more than once a month, which is why the authors of the assessment recommend that once a month is the most often you woud ever progress monitor a student on MAZE. You should NOT administer the MAZE to all students, since the purpose of progress monitoring is to ensure that below level students are making adequate progress towards their goals.