Administration Information for the CSA

Overview of the Assessment

The CSA is a computer-based, nonadaptive, summative, grade-level assessment for students in grades three through eight and high school who are seeking a measure that recognizes their Spanish reading, writing, listening, and—for high school only—speaking skills. The CSA is an optional assessment.

The CSA is aligned to the CCSS en Español, which were developed as a joint effort between the San Diego County Office of Education, the Council of Chief State School Officers, and the CDE. The CCSS en Español are a translated and linguistically augmented version of the English-language CCSS for English Language Arts & Literacy. It can be used as an option to meet the SSB primary language assessment requirements. California Education Code Section 51461(a)(2)(A) will be updated with language to include the CSA to meet, in part, the SSB.

Assessments were developed for each grade level from three through eight and one assessment for all high school grade levels.

There is a full-write item for the writing domain that is part of the CSA for all grade levels and the high school grade band; and CR items for the speaking domain only in high school. Full-write and CR items will be scored by ETS.

It is recommended to administer the CSA over multiple sessions spanning several days.

Test Structure

Grades Three Through Eight

For grades three through eight, the CSA is composed of three segments. The first section includes three demographic survey questions. The second and third segments test listening, reading, and writing.

High School Grade Band

For the high school grade band, the CSA is composed of three segments. The first segment includes three demographic survey questions, the second segment tests listening and speaking, and the third segment tests reading and writing.

For speaking items that require students to provide a verbal response, students first listen to a passage and then record their response to the prompt. Students can listen to the passages as often as needed and then record their responses. Students can rerecord their responses as often as needed until they are satisfied with their answer and are ready to move on to the next item. This domain assessment is fully administered in a group setting; it is not necessary to administer the speaking domain in a separate setting.

All Grade Levels and the High School Grade Band

For full-write, CR items, students read a passage and are asked to respond to a prompt. All writing tools, such as inserting accent marks and spell check, are available in the writing section of the assessment.

For the last segment, the TDS provides a stopping marker to ensure that adequate time is available to complete the last reading passage and CR writing item.

Once any segment has been completed, a student can no longer return and change responses.

Testing Window

The CSA can be administered between the first and last day of the LEA’s selected testing window.

Student Survey

The CSA includes a student survey at the beginning of the assessment. The student survey comprises the first three questions on each assessment asking student-specific demographic questions. The TA should guide students through this survey, as accuracy is paramount.

Survey data will be analyzed and summarized once all CAASPP testing windows have closed.

Questions

Each grade-level assessment will present the following three demographic-related questions regarding the student at the beginning of each test form. For the first survey question, students should indicate whether they received instruction in Spanish, inclusive of content area courses, in the previous school year.

  1. Did you receive instruction in Spanish in the current school year? ¿Recibiste educación en español durante el presente año escolar?
    • Yes (Sí)
    • No (No)
  2. Which program were you enrolled in? ¿En qué tipo de programa escolar estuviste matriculado/inscrito?
    • One-Way Immersion (Inmersión únicamente para hablantes de español)
    • Dual-Language Immersion (Inmersión para hablantes de español y de inglés)
    • Developmental Bilingual (Programas de desarrollo del idioma)
    • Heritage Language or Indigenous Language (Programas para hispanohablantes [hablantes de español])
    • (Grade six through high school only) Spanish as a foreign language (i.e., Spanish I, Spanish II, etc.) (Español como lengua extranjera [es decir, Español I, Español II, etc.])
    • None of the above (Ninguno de los anteriores)
  3. What percentage of your school day instruction was provided in Spanish? ¿Qué porcentaje de tu educación diaria recibíste en español?
    • 0–25%
    • 26–50%
    • 51–75%
    • 76–100%

Resources

Preparing for Administration

The CSA PFA contains nonsecure information. A TE can use the PFA to prepare for test administration.

Administering an Online Test Session Document

Directions for CSA administration, including instructions on approving assessments and the script that must be read prior to test administration, can be found in Administering an Online Test Session for the CSA. Instructions for the test administrator are in English, while the SAY statements are in Spanish and should be used when administering the CSA only. Using these instructions to administer a different assessment is a test security incident and must be reported in STAIRS.

Student Accessibility Resources

The complete list of embedded and non-embedded universal tools, designated supports, and accommodations available for the CSA can be found in the California Assessment Accessibility Resources Matrix. This document provides information for classroom teachers, English language development educators, special education teachers, and instructional assistants to use in assigning the appropriate accessibility resources to students.

Assessments will include embedded and non-embedded universal tools, designated supports, and accommodations.

Practice Tests and Training Tests

Practice tests and training tests for the CSA are linked on the Practice and Training Tests web page. Practice tests can be accessed either through the secure browser or through a standard internet browser. There is one practice test for each of grades three through eight and one for all high school grade levels.

Scoring guides in English and Spanish are available on the Practice and Training Tests web page.