2026 Assessment Data Release FAQs
Frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to the release of 2026 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) and English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) statewide results.What do the scores mean for the Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for English Language Arts/Literacy (ELA) and Mathematics and the California Science Test (CAST)?
Student test results for overall performance are categorized into four achievement levels that describe the relative accuracy and complexity of students’ performance within their grade level.
Each of the four achievement levels for Smarter Balanced ELA and mathematics may be interpreted as follows:
- Level 4: The student demonstrates advanced grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a sophisticated understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills needed for success in future coursework.
- Level 3: The student demonstrates proficient grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a thorough understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills needed for success in future coursework.
- Level 2: The student demonstrates developing grade-level knowledge and skills and shows an initial understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills needed for success in future coursework.
- Level 1: The student demonstrates minimal grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a limited understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills needed for success in future coursework.
Each of the four achievement levels for the CAST may be interpreted as follows:
- Level 4: The student demonstrates advanced grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a sophisticated understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills associated with the performance expectations of the California Next Generation Science Standards.
- Level 3: The student demonstrates proficient grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a thorough understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills associated with the performance expectations of the California Next Generation Science Standards.
- Level 2: The student demonstrates developing grade-level knowledge and skills and shows an initial understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills associated with the performance expectations of the California Next Generation Science Standards.
- Level 1: The student demonstrates minimal grade-level knowledge and skills and shows a limited understanding of and ability to apply the knowledge and skills associated with the performance expectations of the California Next Generation Science Standards.
Levels 2–4 represent grade-level performance at differing degrees of complexity and Level 1 represents minimal grade-level performance.
In addition to the overall achievement level and scale score, students also receive results for specific areas on each test, such as Reading and Listening for ELA, Concepts and Procedures for mathematics, and Earth and Space Sciences for the CAST. This degree of results reporting provides students, families, and educators with more information to better understand student achievement and progress while meeting the requirements of federal law.
How did the demographics of the students tested in the 2025–26 school year change from the prior year?
There continue to be minor fluctuations in the number of students with significant needs. The proportion of students tested who are identified as socioeconomically disadvantaged slightly decreased from 64.6 percent in 2024–25 to 64.4 percent in 2025–26. The number of students who are experiencing homelessness decreased slightly from 4.0 percent last year to 3.8 percent this year.
How well did students perform on the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress overall?
English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics
When compared to the results from the previous administration, the percentage of students in California scoring at the highest levels of performance Level 3 or Level 4 (demonstrating proficient or advanced grade-level knowledge and skills) increased slightly for ELA (48.8 percent in 2024–25; 49.3 percent in 2025–26) and (mathematics 37.3 percent in 2024–25; 38.4 percent in 2025–26). For Black or African American students, Hispanic or Latino students, and socioeconomically disadvantaged students, the increase in the proportion of students scoring at Level 3 or 4 outpaced the increase of students scoring at Level 3 or 4 for all students. Across all grades, average scale scores increased for mathematics, with an upward trend in post-pandemic years. For ELA, most grades also showed an increasing trend in the post-pandemic average scale scores, while some grades had minor fluctuations.
California Science Test
Student performance on the CAST increased by 1 to 4 scale score points on average, depending on the grade. The percentage of students scoring at levels 3 or 4 also increased across grade levels, from 32.7 percent in 2024–25 to 36.0 percent in 2025–26. All student groups have increased proportions of students scoring at levels 3 or 4.
California Spanish Assessment
The 2025–26 administration was the second operational year for the expanded California Spanish Assessment (CSA) that included Speaking (high school only) and Writing domains. Overall, 36,394 students took the CSA in 2025–26 while 36,768 students took the assessment in 2024–25. The percentage of students scoring at the highest level of performance, Level 3, increased slightly from 9.8 percent in 2024–25 to 10.3 percent in 2025–26.
California Alternate Assessments for English, Mathematics, and Science
For the California Alternate Assessments (CAAs) for ELA and mathematics, the percentage of students who reached level 3 (the highest level) decreased by 0.6 and 0.2 percentage points, respectively—when compared to the 2024–25 administration. Similarly, CAA for Science showed a slight decrease by 0.9 percentage points in the proportion of students in level 3.
How well did the student groups perform on the CAASPP?
Compared to last year, average scale scores on the ELA, mathematics, and science assessments continued to increase for most grades, and the percentages of California students scoring at levels 3 or 4 also increased. These results are particularly encouraging for Black or African American students, Hispanic or Latino students, and socioeconomically disadvantaged students who made larger than state average improvements in ELA and mathematics. Refer to the Test Results for California’s Assessments website
for more detailed reports of the 2025–26 results aggregated by school, district, county, and state levels and disaggregated by student groups as well as all prior administration years where data is available.
Is California still using the adjusted blueprint for the Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics?
Yes. Prior to the beginning of the 2020–21 administration, the State Board of Education (SBE) adopted the use of the adjusted form blueprint for the Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for ELA and Mathematics. In September 2022, the SBE approved use of the adjusted blueprints for the 2022–23 administration and for subsequent administrations until the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium approves any changes to the adjusted form blueprints. The blueprints have remained unchanged since that time.
It is important to note that the adjusted form blueprint has comparable proportional allocation of content across the claims while also maintaining the same proportion of depth of knowledge. The adjusted blueprints are comparable to the full blueprints and represent assessments that are valid, reliable, of high technical quality, and consistent with nationally recognized and professional technical standards.
Can results from the adjusted blueprint be compared with results from years that did not use the adjusted blueprint?
Yes. The California Department of Education and its testing contractor, ETS, have performed validity and reliability studies comparing the full form blueprints to the adjusted form blueprints and have concluded that the results from the adjusted form blueprints are reliable and can be compared to those from the full form blueprints used in 2018–19 and earlier administrations.
How well did English learner students do on the Summative English Language Proficiency Assessments for California?
For the Summative ELPAC, the number of students tested decreased by 8.8 percent compared to the 2024–25 school year (950,197 and 866,667 respectively). Changes in the average scale scores on the Summative ELPAC ranged from 1.7 to 8.8 and varied in direction when comparing 2025–26 to 2024–25 results, with improvements for most grade levels except for those in kindergarten and grade two which have a 1.7 and 0.1 point decrease in the average scale scores, respectively. The percentage of students reaching Well Developed (Level 4) decreased slightly by 0.1 percent (15.5 percent last year to 15.4 percent this year). The proportion of students scoring at Beginning to Develop (Level 1) decreased from 23.6 to 21.2 percent, while Somewhat Developed (Level 2) and Moderately Developed (Level 3) both increased slightly at around 1 percentage point each.
For ELPAC test and additional student group results, refer to the Test Results for California’s Assessments website
.
How well did English learner students with the most significant cognitive disabilities do on the Summative Alternate English Language Proficiency Assessments for California?
For the Summative Alternate ELPAC, the number of students tested increased by 7.5 percent to 17,515, compared to the 2024–25 school year total of 16,297. Overall, average scale scores on the Summative Alternate ELPAC decreased for all grades. The percentage of students reaching Fluent English Proficient (Level 3) also decreased from 19.3 percent in 2024–25 to 15.3 percent in 2025–26. For the two remaining levels, Intermediate EL (Level 2) increased slightly from 40.8 to 41.5 percent, while Novice EL (Level 1) increased from 39.9 to 43.2 percent.
What can this data be used for?
Summative assessment results are only one indicator of student achievement. They should be used in conjunction with other indicators, such as report cards, teacher feedback, and classwork to provide a more complete picture of an individual student’s progress in school.
Throughout the year, educators also use diagnostic and formative assessments to gauge student progress toward mastering California’s challenging learning standards. These help teachers adjust instruction to make up for knowledge gaps and learning disparities between students.
In addition, parents and guardians receive individual student score reports so they can support learning outside of the classroom.
Aggregate assessment results should be used in conjunction with other data—such as high school graduation rates, student discipline data, attendance information and college readiness indicators—to get a fuller picture of how schools are helping students succeed. This data, broken down by student groups, is available on the California School Dashboard. This data is also used by schools working with their communities to develop Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAPs). LCAPs empower families, educators, community partners, and students to analyze data to drive important decisions about the best use of state resources.
Are the aggregations posted to the Test Results for California’s Assessments website the same as those used on the California School Dashboard?
The aggregations used on the Test Results for California’s Assessments website
differ from those used for the California School Dashboard
. The data on the Test Results for California’s Assessments website reflects where students tested while the data on the California School Dashboard reflects the groups of students for which each local educational agency held accountable. For more information surrounding the accountability calculations for the California School Dashboard, please visit the Dashboard Resources web page.