SBA Test Score Reports

SBA stands for the Smarter Balanced Assessment.  The SBA is the state assessment for English Language Arts and Math.  The SBA is used as one way to know whether a student is meeting grade level expectations.  Students take the SBA in 3rd through 8th grade, then again in 10th grade.  Students may take it again in 11th or 12th grade if they are using the SBA as part of their graduation pathway (see your high school counselor for more information).  Some students take the WA-AIM, an alternative to the SBA, which is determined by their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team.

For both English Language Arts and Math, students receive a Scale Score.  Scale scores are used to determine the Level at which the student performed.

Level 4 means the student's score exceeded grade level expectation.

Level 3 means the student's score met grade level expectation.

Level 2 means the student's score nearly met grade level expectation.

Level 1 means the student's score did not meet grade level expectation. 

Below is an example of the graphic in the SBA Test Score Report.  Your student's score will be listed on the left side of the graphic.  Notice that the bar will change color based on the student's level. Level 1 will be Red, Level 2 will be Yellow, Level 3 will be Green, and Level 4 will be Blue.  Inside the graphic are  scores that indicate the score required to reach each level. 

In the example below, the student scored 2486 on this test, which was above the score of 2432, the score required to meet grade level expectations.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my student's SBA score not match my student's report card grade, or i-Ready score and level?

Sometimes all tests and grades for a student are similar.  Sometimes they are different.  The SBA and i-Ready tell how a student performed on a single test on a limited sampling of standards.  SBA and i-Ready test achievement in different ways.  Though often they produced similar results, sometimes a student does better on one test than another.  A student's grade is a summary of how a student performed on the work completed for a class.  Grades reflect a student's achievement over time of a broad range of standards.  Both the SBA and report card grades are measures of progress toward meeting standard.

More State Testing Frequently Asked Questions 

More Resources

Helping your student at home (Elementary)