Interim Assessment Administration Resources

The Smarter Balanced Interim Assessments are currently available to be administered remotely, using either the secure browser or the web-based Student Testing Interface , in a Chrome, Firefox, or Edge web browser. If the interim assessments are being administered in person, students must use the secure browser.

These resources support the Smarter Balanced Interim Assessments

Interim Assessment
Viewing System
Select this button to access the interim assessments for professional development and/or training purposes.

Test Operations Management System (TOMS)
Select this button to assign user roles for Tools for Teachers and the California Educator Reporting System, and to view student test settings, including accommodations, before interim testing begins.

Test Administrator Interface for All Online Tests
Select this button to access the Test Administrator Interface that is used to access all CAASPP online assessments including the summative, interim, and alternate assessments.

Completion Status
Select this button to access the system that will allow you to see the completion status for students taking the interim assessments.

Hand Scoring Training Guides
and Exemplars
Select this button to access the interim assessment hand scoring training guides and exemplars. Upon selecting this button, select the [Resources] tab at the top.

Interim Assessment
Hand Scoring System
Select this button to access the system that will allow you to score student responses to interim assessment items that require hand scoring.

California Educator
Reporting System (CERS)
Select this button to access interim assessment results or, for group administrators only, create/manage student groups.

CERS Sandbox
Training Tool
Select this button to access the CERS Sandbox training tool. Username and password are not required.

User Guides

Instructions

Creating an Answer Key Using the Interim Assessment Item Portal (IAIP) (July 2021)
Quick Reference Guide—How to Start a Test Session (January 2021)
Smarter Balanced Guidelines for Read Aloud, Test Reader
Scribing Protocol for Smarter Balanced Assessments
Data Dictionary for the California Educator Reporting System (Posted 09/15/21)

Training Videos

California Department of Education Smarter Balanced Interim Assessment Video Series web page (November 2019)
CAASPP in Action Series
Creating Groups in the California Educator Reporting System (Video; 06:50) (Posted 12/23/20)
Using Smarter Balanced Interim Connections Playlists (Video; 06:52) (Posted 07/06/21)
Using the Interim Assessment Item Portal (Video; 06:27) (Posted 10/05/22)

Asynchronous Hand Scoring Learning Modules

These asynchronous learning modules guide educators on how to hand score the Smarter Balanced Interim Assessment performance tasks for English Language Arts/Literacy (ELA) and mathematics. The asynchronous learning modules can be accessed on the following web pages:

Flyers

Smarter Balanced Interim Assessments Fact Sheet (July 2021)
Tools for Teachers Interim Connections Playlists Flyer (Posted 08/18/20)
Interim Assessment Item Portal Flyer (Posted 08/18/20)
California Educator Reporting System (CERS) Sandbox Flyer (Posted 12/06/19)

Additional Resources

Link	Description
Smarter Balanced Training Tests, Practice Tests, and Interim Assessments At-a-Glance	This document provides a side-by-side comparison of training tests, practice tests, and interim assessments to help teachers decide which tool best fits their needs.
2022–23 Interim Assessments At-a-Glance	This document lists all IABs available by grade level ELA and mathematics.
2022–23 Interim Assessments by Grade (August 2022)	This document is intended to assist LEA staff in planning for the administration and local hand scoring of the Interim Comprehensive Assessments (ICAs) and the Interim Assessment Blocks (IABs). The table provides key information, including the claims, targets, the total number of items, and the number of items that require local hand scoring by grade level.
2022–23 Interim Assessment Overview (Updated 07/27/22)	This document provides a description of the interim assessments that include the types, features, and usage. For both English language arts/literacy (ELA) and mathematics, and by each grade, it provides an at-a-glance summary of the interim assessments that includes the focused Interim Assessment Blocks (IABs).
Smarter Balanced Remote Teaching and Learning web page	This site provides suggestions regarding how teachers may use Smarter Balanced resources while students are learning outside of the traditional classroom but may also be used for in-person instruction.
California Department of Education (CDE) Interim Assessments web page	Additional resources for the interim assessments are available on the CDE website.

Last Reviewed: August 2, 2022