Technical Information for State Tests

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's Accountability Services Division designs and manages statewide assessments that are administered to students enrolled in public and charter schools in grades 3–12. These assessments serve several purposes for the schools, the state, and federal guidelines. The following outlines essential technical evidence that ensure the design, development, and uses of state assessments are valid.

Technical Information

Tab/Accordion Items

Purpose and Overview

The North Carolina Personalized Assessment Tool (NCPAT) is a system of through-grade assessment opportunities aimed towards a balanced assessment system that will provide granular data for immediate feedback about students' performance throughout the year. The system was developed as a pilot under the U.S. Department of Education's Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority (IADA) and includes interim resources (NC Check-Ins 2.0) and a multistage adaptive end-of-grade (EOG) assessment administered at the end of the year. 

The NCPAT system includes: 

  • Mathematics (grades 3–8)
  • Reading (grades 3–8 )
  • Science (grades 5 and 8)

The NC Check-Ins 2.0 are the through-year formative component of the NCPAT system. The purposes are to:

  • provide educators, students, and stakeholders with immediate and detailed feedback on student performance on grade-level-specific content standards to inform instruction for individual student's needs; and
  • provide a reliable estimate to inform a student's end-of-grade (EOG) assessment experience. 

Draft Technical Report

External Evaluations

IADA Annual Performance Report

Additional Resources