About the The Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program (ACTAAP)

State Testing Information for Arkansas
Portions of the following material were taken from the Arkansas Department of Education website. Please see our links and source sections at the bottom of the page for more details and references.

Common Core Initiative

The Common Core State Standards initiative is a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). The standards were developed in collaboration with teachers, school administrators and other experts to provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare our students for college and the workforce.

These standards define the knowledge and skills students should have within their K-12 education so they will graduate high school able to succeed in entry-level, credit- bearing academic college courses and in the workforce. They are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world. The new learning standards stress conceptual understanding and application. They are internationally benchmarked to guarantee our students are competitive in the emerging global marketplace.

The Arkansas State Board of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards in July 2010. With our students fully prepared for the future, our state will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.

General Description of the Tests
The Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program (ACTAAP) is a comprehensive system that includes high academic standards, professional development, student assessment, and accountability for schools.

There are two types of student assessment.

• Criterion-Referenced Tests (CRTs)

– Focus on measuring student performance on items that align with the Arkansas Mathematics and English Language Arts Curriculum Frameworks
– Developed by Arkansas teachers and the Arkansas Department of Education


• Norm-Referenced Tests (NRTs)

– The Stanford Achievement Test, Tenth Edition (SAT-10)
– Focus on rank-ordering student performance based on national norms
– Contain items in the subsections of reading comprehension, math problem solving, and language
– Administered in grades K-2 and grade 9

Our curriculum is focused around actual material that a student is likely to see on the upcoming The Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program (ACTAAP) test. Nationally known for delivering high quality and affordable materials that help students improve their scores, we provide you both paper-based instruction and easy to use online test preparation.