Know Your Homeschool Laws: Testing or Assessment
Each year, you need to either administer a standardized test, or have your child(ren) assessed by a certificated teacher. You may use the school for this, by asking to take the WASL with them (the WASL is going away, but the new testing will likely be offered to homeschoolers as well. I had a very nice invitation from our local elementary school to join them for the WASL when we lived in the Valley). You do NOT have to use the schools for testing. You may use a professional to administer the test, OR you may order a test that you administer. The qualifications to administer the test are based on the testing company’s requirements.
In the past, we have used the CAT Survey (available from Seton Hall ) and we’ve used the CAT Complete Battery (available from the Family Learning Organization). Family Learning Organization (located here, in Spokane), also has two types of teacher-assessments: a freestyle form and a checklist form, which you fill out and return, and they have a teacher review. There are also homeschool-friendly teachers in the area who are willing to do assessments.
We have chosen to do the testing, because we wanted Farmerteen to have experience on standardized tests. This year, she took the SAT over at CdA Highschool, which fulfills our compliance for testing this year. Depending on how she did, we may also have her take the CAT for her actual grade level.
Assessment is a really good choice for children who have test-anxiety, or whose ability to perform on a test is compromised. An assessment can be a particularly good choice for a special-needs child whose growth and development might show at all on a standardized test, or for a child with really specific interests, whose education is taking h** on a radically different path than a traditional path.
You can alternate between testing and assessment. You are not stuck choosing just one.
RCW 28A.200.010
Home-based instruction — Duties of parents.
Each parent whose child is receiving home-based instruction under RCW 28A.225.010(4)
shall have the duty to:
(3) Ensure that a standardized achievement test approved by the state board of
education is administered annually to the child by a qualified individual or that an annual
assessment of the student’s academic progress is written by a certificated person who is
currently working in the field of education. The state board of education shall not require
these children to meet the student learning goals, master the essential academic learning
requirements, to take the assessments, or to obtain a certificate of mastery pursuant to
*RCW 28A.630.885. The standardized test administered or the annual academic progress
assessment written shall be made a part of the child’s permanent records. If, as a result of
the annual test or assessment, it is determined that the child is not making reasonable
progress consistent with his or her age or stage of development, the parent shall make a
good faith effort to remedy any deficiency.Failure of a parent to comply with the duties in this section shall be deemed a failure
of such parent’s child to attend school without valid justification under RCW
28A.225.020. Parents who do comply with the duties set forth in this section shall be
presumed to be providing home-based instruction as set forth in RCW 28A.225.010(4).