Fact Sheets and FAQs

The Colorado Measures of Academic Success, known as CMAS, are the state's common measurement of students' progress at the end of the school year in English language arts (ELA), math, science and social studies.

These assessments are developed collaboratively by the Colorado Department of Education, the assessment contractor Pearson and Colorado educators. In 2025 alone, educators from more than 90 Colorado school districts participated in CMAS development, from writing test questions to reviewing student performance, ensuring questions are Colorado Academic Standards-aligned and are free from bias, and recommending social studies performance level cut scores.

• ELA and math: Students in grades three through eight
• Science: Grades five, eight and 11
• Social studies: Grades four and seven (select schools only, about one-third of schools each year)

The tests allow your child to show what they have been learning and practicing in their classroom, and how well they are connecting with classroom instruction. The results will let you know how well your school is teaching all students and will provide you and other families in your community with information about how local schools are meeting the needs of all students. The results will help you check your child's progress toward mastering the academic standards' grade-level expectations.

The tests provide critical information to the district and state on how well all students in your child's school are doing, so the school can be supported. They allow teachers and principals to see any differences between groups of students and make improvements to instruction so that all students can succeed. The results can highlight gaps in achievement, so steps can be taken to ensure all students are supported in making meaningful progress. And the results can help state policymakers and local school boards identify schools that may need more assistance or resources.

Colorado provides the PSAT/SAT suite of assessments to public school students in grades nine, 10 and 11.

Federal law requires statewide testing in certain grades and subjects. All students in these grades take state tests. By requiring that all students take state tests, the law requires schools to start thinking about all students when designing learning opportunities and setting goals. Not long ago, some students were not included in testing. Back then students with disabilities and English learners were often excluded.

Colorado receives approximately $350 million in federal funds yearly to support the education of children in poverty, English language learners and students with disabilities. States that receive these funds are required by the federal government to administer annual statewide assessments to all students. The minimum required assessments are:

• Grades three through eight for English language arts and mathematics.
• At least once in high school for English language arts and mathematics.
• At least once in elementary school, once in middle school, and once in high school for science.

Colorado law also has assessment and participation requirements. There are also some required assessments specific to certain populations of students (e.g., language screeners for English language learners).

Yes. Colorado's state assessment system includes assessments that are solely required by Colorado law:

• Social studies in fourth and seventh grade (select schools only, about one-third of schools each year)
• PSAT in ninth and 10th grade

Additionally, federal law (and state law) requires statewide testing for:

• English language arts in third through eighth grade
• Math in third through eighth grade
• Science in fifth, eighth and 11th grade
• SAT in 11th grade

CMAS tests in ELA, math, science and social studies will be administered in one window from April 6 through 24.

Colorado's ninth- and 10th-grade students will take the PSAT, and 11th-grade students will take the SAT. The 2026 testing window for the PSAT and SAT is April 13 through 24.

Tests are broken down into individual sessions lasting between 50 and 90 minutes. Some students might test for shorter periods of time based on IEP/504-documented need, but all students are able to "pause" their testing time for up to three minutes allowing them to take breaks without impacting actual testing time.

2025-26 State Testing Content Area and Time:

*Social studies administered at select schools only, about one-third of schools.

Yes. For the college entrance suite of assessments, free PSAT and SAT resources from Khan Academy include interactive questions, guided essay practice, video instruction sessions, thousands of practice questions, a mobile app for daily practice, and the ability to scan and score practice tests.

Yes. Sample questions and tasks for math, ELA, science and social studies -- most of which are "released" meaning they appeared on previous years' tests -- are available here. The practice resources include English and Spanish versions, online and accommodated paper formats, and embedded accessibility features and testing tools.

Districts are encouraged to give students time to interact with practice resources before the window. In addition to sample questions and tasks, supplementary materials are available for use by teachers and parents including scoring guides (with answer keys and scoring rubrics), sample student responses, and Colorado Academic Standards-alignment.

Talk with your child and make sure they understand why they are taking state tests. Also, reach out to your child's teacher about any accessibility needs to see if some supports or accommodations might help your child access instruction and state tests. When talking to your child about the test, use positive language about testing and help your child use positive self-talk, such as, “I can do my best” or “Making mistakes is OK.”

To help reduce nerves, practice stress-reducing strategies, such as breathing exercises, stretching, and other activities with your child as they can use these strategies during the tests (self-directed breaks are allowed and do not take away from CMAS testing time). Remind your child that testing is a regular part of learning and share your experiences with testing in school.

Participation in the state assessments can vary across schools, grade levels and student groups. Participation information should always be reviewed and taken into consideration thoughtfully when interpreting state assessment results, particularly at the district and school levels. As participation rates decrease and vary across student, school and district groups, challenges with interpreting results will increase. Depending on the specific school or district, some student groups may be overrepresented in the results and others may be underrepresented. Participation information may indicate that in some cases, conclusions should be drawn with caution or completely avoided. Data will not support all comparisons and historical uses when participation rates are low. Additionally, participation rates and differences across years should be considered for any comparisons that are made across years.

Colorado law allows parents to excuse their children from state content assessments. This law requires districts to have policies that explain how parents may excuse a student from participating in one or more state content assessments. Contact your District Assessment Coordinator with questions.

According to state law, districts cannot impose negative consequences on students or parents if a parent excuses his or her student from participating in an assessment, including prohibiting school attendance, imposing an unexcused absence, or prohibiting participation in extracurricular activities. Likewise, districts cannot impose unreasonable burdens or requirements on a student to discourage the student from taking an assessment or to encourage the student's parent to excuse his or her child from the assessment.

Legislation passed in 2018 mandates that schools must offer all students who are excused from testing the opportunity to participate in celebrations and/or incentives related to the assessments.

It is important to note that non-participation in state assessments means parents will not have information about their child's attainment and growth on the state standards compared to other students in their school, district and state.

In some cases, low participation on state assessments can impact school and district plan-type assignments. State and federal law have shaped these state assessment expectations. State statute requires assessments for evaluating students' mastery of and growth in the Colorado Academic Standards and evaluating the performance of districts and schools. Third- through eighth-grade students are to be assessed in English language arts and math, as well as science and social studies. Federal law requires 95% of students overall, and in each demographic category, take the required assessments. However, the assessment participation requirements are applied differently for the state accountability system (e.g., School and District Performance Frameworks) and for identification of schools for support and improvement under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act or ESSA.

For identification under ESSA, Colorado must count all non-participants, including parent excusals, over 5% as non-proficient records.

Under state accountability, if a school or district fails to meet the 95% participation rate requirement in two or more content areas for reasons such as students refusing to take the test without a parent's excuse, then the school or district's plan type will be lowered one level.

The Colorado State Board of Education passed a motion in February 2015 that says districts will not be held liable under the state system when parents excuse their children from testing. This means that parent excusals are not counted in the required 95% accountability participation rate on the performance frameworks.

There is no fiscal impact on a district or teacher, at the state level, for parents excusing students from state assessments.

Individual student scores for CMAS tests completed in April will be provided to all school districts and parents by June.

Parents view reports through the Family Portal – they need their student's state identifier to access the results. Districts and schools can provide state identifiers to parents, and they are also printed on previous years' CMAS reports.

Districts and schools view individual student results and additional school- and district-level results through PearsonAccess^next.

The CMAS score reports are designed to provide educators, families and students with better information about students' mastery of grade-level academic standards. Score reports offer an overall measurement of performance in a particular subject, as well as how a student compares to other students in the school, district and throughout Colorado.

The test scores do not impact grade point average, class ranking or college acceptance.

For human-scored questions, qualified scorers are recruited and must have a bachelor's degree or higher in mathematics, English, education or a related field. Scorers for the mathematics assessments hold at least a four-year degree in a related field and have demonstrated the knowledge needed to effectively score responses to math questions. Scorers for the English language arts assessments hold at least a four-year degree in English, education, history, psychology, journalism or a related field, and/or teacher certification or other work experience that will enable them to effectively score the literary analysis, research simulation, or narrative writing tasks found in the assessments. Not all scorers are teachers, but as many as three-quarters have previous teaching experience. Half of all scorers are current K-12 teachers.

All scorers receive extensive training to evaluate student performance on a select and specific group of questions across multiple exams. To ensure that scoring is fair and unbiased, scorers are trained on specific questions instead of a student's full assessment. Each scorer receives extensive training at a regional scoring center on his or her specific question or group of questions and must pass two evaluations before they are deemed eligible to score an assessment.

There is a regimented and defined process to score every student exam that ensures accuracy and security of the assessments and students' information. First, all students are assigned an identification number to protect their privacy. Student answers are then separated and sorted question-by-question and sent to the scorers who have been trained and qualified to score that question. This maintains student anonymity and allows scorers to become experts in scoring one question at a time. Scorers assign points to each answer. Depending on the question, up to six points could be available. Each scorer has a binder for each question with the scoring rubric and examples of pre-scored answers that they can use to compare their scoring against the guide prepared by educators. To ensure scorers are maintaining accuracy standards throughout the scoring process, they will routinely be given pre-scored answers along with un-scored answers. A scorer's evaluations must match the “true” scores at least 70% of the time. When a scorer's accuracy declines, they receive additional training on the test question. If a scorer cannot maintain consistency and accuracy, their previous scores are all put back into the system for re-scoring.

Score reports demonstrate students' understanding of grade-level subject standards at the end of the school year. Families can use the scores to begin a discussion with their child's teachers and school officials about the child's academic strengths and areas for improvement; together everyone can decide how best to support the student's needs.

Teachers can use the scores to support students' needs, identify strengths and weaknesses, and enhance learning for all students. Because the scores reflect high expectations for what students should know and be able to do, aligning with the demands of today's global economy, teachers can use them to plan instruction and enrichment for students in the coming year that prepare students for life beyond high school.

Colorado law requires 50% of an educator's evaluation to be based on student academic growth as demonstrated by various assessments or “measures of student learning,” including but not limited to state assessments.

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the law was changed this year. For the 2022-23 school year, the use of student growth from the Colorado Growth Model or district/school performance frameworks may not be used as a part of licensed personnel's Measure of Student Learning/Outcome. All other aspects of the system will remain the same. All licensed personnel are required to be evaluated annually, which includes generating a final effectiveness rating consisting of 50% Measures of Student Learning/Outcomes and 50% Professional Practices (Quality Standards).

Accountability

A large part of Colorado's educational accountability system is based on the results of state assessments. School ratings are based on average scores on state assessments as well as growth students show from year to year on assessments.

Preliminary school and district ratings are typically released in August with final ratings approved by December. View more information about Colorado's school and district accountability system. Score reports comprise only one part of how district and school accreditation ratings are determined.

State and federal law require all students to be held to the same standards and participate in the state assessment program. There are three ways that students with disabilities can participate in the state assessments:

1. Take the general assessment without accommodations.
2. Take the general assessment with accommodations.
3. Take the alternate assessment for students with significant cognitive disabilities.

Accommodations are changes in how the test is given without changing what is being assessed. Students with an Individual Education Plan (IEP), 504 plan or Multilingual Learner (ML) plan, can use specific accommodations allowing the student better access to the test as long as there's alignment between the accommodation and the student's educational plan. That plan may also indicate the student is eligible to participate in Colorado's alternate tests. Accommodations can be divided into four categories:

1. Presentation accommodations – changes in the way test items are presented to a student (e.g., standard print, large print, braille, Spanish, oral presentation, translated oral presentation).
2. Response accommodations - changes in the way a student responds to test items (e.g., uses scribe, responds in Spanish, uses assistive technology device).
3. Setting accommodations - changes in the test environment's setting (e.g., small group or individual administration).
4. Timing accommodations – changes in the scheduling of the assessment (e.g., allowing multiple breaks, providing extra time, testing at specific times of the day).

A small number of students, approximately 1% of the student population, take the Colorado Alternate (CoAlt) assessment. These are students who have significant cognitive disabilities. Special accommodations are built into the CoAlt specifically for these students.

Colorado's education accountability system is based on the belief that every student should receive an excellent education and graduate ready to succeed in careers or in college. Successful schools and districts are recognized and serve as models, while those whose students struggle are identified for support.

Specifically, schools are identified for support and improvement under various state and federal laws that look at performance on several indicators.

Schools, districts and educators are expected to use the results to reflect upon the education program and progress of individual students to improve attainment for students. Part of this work is done through the Unified Improvement Plan.

Funding is never withheld from schools or districts based on low test scores. Instead, increased funding is available to support school and district improvement in places where students are struggling.

Schools' overall performance is evaluated by looking at scores on assessments, measuring how well students are growing academically year to year and seeing how well they are preparing students for success after high school. Under this measure, districts and schools are given performance ratings. Those that need additional support (e.g., grants, specialized programming) for improvement are also identified.

If a school or district has been consistently underperforming on multiple measures (e.g., achievement on state assessments, growth, graduation rates, dropout rates, matriculation rates) for five years or more, the State Board of Education must direct the local board of education to take a more drastic measure to improve performance for students.

Additionally, schools with lower graduation rates on the four-year and seven-year cycle may be identified for additional support. Schools are also examined for how well they are serving students from specific groups on academic achievement and academic growth, how well they are being prepared for life after high school, and whether they are chronically absent. These specific groups of students include English learners, students with disabilities, those who are economically disadvantaged and students with individual race and ethnicities.

State assessment results may be used as part of an educator's evaluation, as a measure of student growth in the current school year only if results are received two weeks prior to the end of school. If results are not received at least two weeks before the end of school, the assessments may be used as prior-year data for the following year.

The 2009 Accountability Act requires CDE to issue annual school and district ratings, called “performance frameworks,” that let communities know how their schools and districts are doing. The ratings are based on performance and growth on state tests, as well as postsecondary measures, to help identify schools and districts that are struggling, so they can receive additional support. Schools that are succeeding are recognized so others can learn from them.

Keep in mind that the state's rating system is just one measure of how we're doing. So much more goes into the effectiveness of a school, including culture, the commitment of staff and the involvement of parents and community members.

Typically, elementary and middle school ratings are based on state assessments in English language arts and math – both the average scores students received in spring as well as the average growth they showed over the last three years. High schools and districts are also rated on graduation and dropout rates, college matriculation numbers and SAT scores. There is also information on specific groups of students, based on race, gender, free and reduced lunch eligibility, those in special education and who are English language learners.

The state releases preliminary school and district ratings through the School Performance Frameworks (SPF) and District Performance Frameworks (DPF) in August. Reports are finalized in December.

In addition to state ratings, the federal Every Student Succeeds Act also requires that states hold schools accountable for the performance of all students, the performance of specific student groups, and the graduation rates of all students.

The state provides additional resources for schools and districts in the most need of support whether identified through the state or federal accountability systems.