Sometimes the paperwork and requirements can seem daunting at first, but once you become familiar with the requirements, New York State paperwork is manageable. Other than the reporting which you can learn about by clicking here, New York State has some relatively minimal testing requirements.
You are required to test your children every other year starting in 4th grade and every year in high school. This works out to either:
- 4th, 6th, 8th, and 9-12 grade (7 tests) OR
- 5th, 7th, and 9-12 grade (6 tests)
While testing is only required in the above years, some families test annually. Below are the pros and cons of annual testing.
Pros of annual testing.
- Comparison. Many parents are comforted by seeing where their children stand compared to standardized norms.
- Can be submitted in place of a written narrative. Some parents prefer submitting test scores rather than writing a narrative.
- Students gain experience with testing. Frequent testing means that students are familiar with the testing process. This could be an advantage later in their academic careers.
Cons of annual testing.
- You already know the results. Since you’re instructing your child, you’re already familiar with their strengths and weaknesses. Tests tend to tell you what you already know.
- Cost. If you test every year at $30 a year you will have spent $360 on tests as opposed to $180 if you test 6 times. Most tests costs more than that and many families have more than one child. For example, if my family tested every year, we would spend at least $2160 on testing through our children’s academic careers.
- Instructional time. In many cases, spending time learning is more valuable than spending time testing.
How does it work?
Step 1. You must receive approval from the school district – either explicitly (approved IHIP for example) or implicitly (failure to object). The district does have the right to decide whether to accept your testing plan, but in general they allow you to choose. Most homeschoolers put their testing plans on their initial IHIP but you can include your plan on your quarterly reports as well.
Step 2. Next you need to order your test by mail or complete the test online. A comparison chart is below to help you pick the test that’s right for you.
Step 3. Finally, you need to submit the composite score to the district with your fourth quarterly report. You do not need to submit individual subject scores.
Below is a chart of the five main tests available to homeschool families. All are available as hard copies.
| Test | Grade Level | Hardcopy | Online | Administer at home | Timed | Cost | Notes |
| California Achievement Test (CAT Survey) | 4-12 | Yes | Yes, both timed and untimed | Yes | Yes, unless online untimed | $29 | Has not been updated since the 1980s. |
| Terra Nova 2/CAT 6 | K-12 | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | $43 | |
| Personalized Achievement Summary System (PASS) | 3-8 | Yes | No | Yes | No | $38, less for multiple copies | Designed for homeschoolers |
| IOWA Achievement Test | K-7, 9-12* | Yes | No | Yes | K-2 untimed 3-12 timed | $32-$45 depending on level | BA/BS required to administer |
| Stanford Achievement Test | 3-12 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | $44 |
*In NY and NJ there is a testing restriction in 8th grade due to an agreement between NYS schools and the publishing company.
For a more complete comparison of all but the PASS test (published by a different company), click here.
If a high school student takes the SAT, that test can be considered their test for the year.
And that’s it – that’s how to administer tests in New York State for homeschooled students.
Questions or comments? We’d love to hear from you!