Like all measures on easyCBM®, alternate forms of each math test were designed to be of equivalent difficulty, so teachers can progress monitor students from the initial screening assessments, through their progress monitoring tests every month throughout the year, comparing progress to subsequent screening assessments (winter and spring).

Basic Math

The Basic Math benchmark measures are 45-item tests covering all three NCTM focal point standards for the specific grade level for which the measure was written.  During the screening test window, students take sub-tests covering all three focal point standards from their grade level.  In between the benchmark testing windows, teachers can select a single focal point standard to use for monitoring progress or can draw from across the different focal points at that grade level.  The math tests from a given focal point should be used no more than once every 3 weeks for monitoring progress.  If teachers want to monitor progress weekly, they need to cycle through the different focal points, so each one gets tested every 3 weeks.

Items on the math progress monitoring measures increase in difficulty from Item 1 through Item 16, with one exception. On every test, Item #5 is actually the most difficult item (based on our pilot studies of the items). Item #16 is actually the fifth-easiest item. We made the Item 5/Item 16 substitution on each form to provide teachers with additional information. If students get Item 6, 7, and 8 correct but miss Item 16, it is likely that they simply stopped trying by the end of the test, because the last item should be easier than the items that come before it.

The first number of a measure indicates the grade. The second number is an arbitrary number and indicates nothing more than a way to distinguish one measure from another. The numbering of the assessments does not represent the order in which to administer them or their degree of difficulty; it’s just a way to keep track of the tests.

For students in Kindergarten and First Grade, the math items that have words in the question itself come with a ‘read aloud’ option. Students can click on a speaker icon and have the math item read aloud to them. For this reason, it is important that Kindergarten and First Grade students have headphones available in the computer lab when testing.

Proficient Math

The Proficient Math benchmark measures are 30-item tests in kindergarten, 35-item tests in grades 1 and 2, 40-item tests in grades 3–5, and 45-item tests in grades 6–8. The tests cover the Common Core math standards for the specific grade level for which the measure was written.  In addition, the Proficient Math tests embed some items from both prior and subsequent grade-level standards. These items are included to allow for vertical and horizontal linking and the computation of math scale scores in the future. Percentile rank norms for the Proficient Math Benchmark measures include these off-grade items to ensure appropriate interpretation of student performance.