Tennessee Department of Education Press Release
This month, the Tennessee Department of Education is promoting the annual Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP), which will be administered to students in grades 3-8 from April 15 – May 3.
Students in schools across the state will take state summative assessments in general education subject areas—including English language arts (ELA), math, science, and social studies—to show what they know and collect valuable data to inform strategic decision-making on how to best support Tennessee students.
Overall, the statewide 2022-23 TCAP student participation rate was 99%, with 92 districts achieving a 99% participation rate, with the state-level results demonstrating increases in academic proficiency for students across all tested subjects and grades.
“Annual TCAP assessments measure students’ understanding of a variety of subject areas and helps inform strategic data-driven decisions at the state-, district-, and school-levels,” said Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds. “We want to equip teachers and parents with the most effective tools so their students can feel prepared on test day.”
Annual TCAP assessments are an essential part of Tennessee’s public education system and serves multiple purposes for the state, including:
- Provides feedback about students’ academic progress and how it aligns with grade-level expectations
- Gives families and teachers a high-level perspective about how a student is progressing compared to peers across the district and state, including a student’s strengths and growth opportunities
- Builds confidence and transparency about students’ readiness for postsecondary and the workforce among Tennessee colleges, universities, and employers
- Helps educators strengthen instruction and reflect on their practice
- Highlights exemplar districts and schools to learn from across the state
The department provides parents and caregivers with on-demand access to their students’ state test results and see sample test questions through the TCAP Family Portal. Resources to support educators in helping their students prepare for testing can be found through Schoolnet, a statewide formative platform.
The department also provides a variety of at-home resources for parents to support their child’s reading development, including interactive Decodables and more on Best for All Central. Click here for additional learning acceleration resources.
TCAP, the state’s testing program since 1988, includes summative assessments for English language arts (ELA), math, science, and social studies for grades 3-8, high school end-of-course (EOC) exams in English I and II, Algebra I and II, Geometry, Integrated Math I, II, and III; Biology, and U.S. History. TCAP also includes the TCAP-Alternate Assessment for students with disabilities, and the optional TCAP Grade 2 Assessment in math and ELA.
For more information on the state’s assessments, click here.
For Tennessee Department of Education media inquiries, contact [email protected].
