Assessment Spotlight, Issue 349
California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) email update, January 09, 2025.Focusing on the CAASPP System and English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC)—and including, when timely, updates on California’s other statewide assessments. For questions related to test administration, coordination, and trainings, visit the CAASPP and ELPAC website
.
Criteria for Alternate Assessment Participation Webinar
Register Now
for the January 2026 Supporting Individual Needs: Criteria for Alternate Assessment Participation webinar. Choosing the right statewide assessment is an essential part of designing a meaningful Individualized Education Program (IEP). Assessments should measure each student’s learning, strengths, and instructional experience while providing useful data to guide teaching and support progress.
Join the California Department of Education (CDE) and the High Quality IEPs project staff for an overview of alternate assessment criteria and strategies for reviewing participation criteria to ensure appropriate access to assessments for students.
Audience: Special and General Education Administrators, local educational agency (LEA) Testing Coordinators, and Educators
Date: January 28, 2026, 10–11 a.m.
Systems Downtime Reminder
The CAASPP and ELPAC Test Operations Management System will be unavailable for a scheduled downtime from Friday, January 16, at 5 p.m. to Tuesday, January 20, at 8 a.m. to prepare for the opening of the 2025–26 summative assessment window. Visit the CAASPP-ELPAC System Downtime Schedule web page
for more information.
January’s Featured Resource in Tools for Teachers
This month’s featured Tools for Teachers resource, ELPAC Listening Domain—Listen to a Speaker Support an Opinion (LSO) Task Type
(account required), is a ready-to-use professional learning resource designed for a training facilitator to introduce educators to this ELPAC task type assessed in grades 6–12. This resource helps facilitators lead focused, meaningful training that builds understanding for this listening task and helps educators develop skills to support English learners in the classroom.
Trainers are provided with everything needed to facilitate a successful session, including a presentation slide deck, supporting materials, and clear, step-by-step directions. The activities in this resource are structured to actively engage educators in the formative assessment process as they learn. Educators experience a listening task from a student’s perspective and reflect on the potential challenges students may face. Formative assessment activities like Sticky Notes and Sort and Think-Pair-Share support collaborative discussion around instructional strategies and resources available, including ELPAC Interim Assessments and related Tools for Teachers instructional resources.
To view this and other Tools for Teachers resources, LEA staff need a Tools for Teachers account, which is free of charge and can be obtained either through self-registration, described in the flyer How to Self-Register for Tools for Teachers
(PDF), or by contacting their testing coordinator.
To receive future CAASPP and ELPAC updates and notifications, subscribe to the CAASPP mailing list by sending a blank email message to subscribe-caaspp@mlist.cde.ca.gov. Are you a new subscriber? For previous Assessment Spotlight issues, visit the California Department of Education Assessment Spotlight web page.