Connecticut State Department of Education

Teacher of the Year Ceremony
Due to inclement weather, the Teacher of the Year Ceremony has been postponed to December 16, 2025 from 5-7pm. Doors will open at 4pm. The Ceremony will take place at the Bushnell Theater in Hartford, and the order of events will remain the same.

Connecticut Sensible Assessment System logo

Student Assessment News

Connecticut State Department of Education
Performance Office

Contents

Welcome to the 2025–26 School Year

The Performance Office extends a warm welcome to our new and returning school administrators and educators, including those who will support the statewide testing program! We hope you had a restful and enjoyable summer and wish you a safe, productive, and fulfilling school year ahead. We are here to answer any questions you have and provide the resources you need throughout the school year. Please reach out to our staff anytime by phone or email. A full list of staff and contact information are available on our website.

CT SAT School Day

Please visit the Bluebook New Tech Requirements page for information pertaining to fall 2025 changes to Bluebook.

District Contacts

Please verify that your district contacts are correct for the 2025–26 school year in EdSight. Your Contacts Manager Writer should be notified if changes are required.

K–3 Literacy Universal Screening Assessment

Visit the K–3 Literacy Assessment page to learn more about these assessments and upcoming trainings.

Smarter Balanced Tools for Teachers

Tools for Teachers has been upgraded! The significant enhancements are the direct result of valuable input from educators across the Consortium. Smarter Balanced is confident that these improvements will strengthen instructional impact, save teachers’ time, and make it easier to meet individual learner needs.

What’s enhanced:

  • Clear, easy-to-find claims, targets, and standards at the top of the page
  • Approximate lesson times added to many lessons
  • Embedded support for language learners
  • Additional options for differentiated instruction
  • Streamlined lesson steps, without losing any

Open Resources

These showcases perfectly demonstrate the update.

CT-SEDS and TIDE

The CSDE will preload K–12 student data from the Public School Information System (PSIS) into TIDE the week of September 22, 2025. This will allow districts to document designated supports in TIDE for students in the general education population who will participate in optional interim assessments this fall and summative assessments in spring 2026.

The CSDE will also preload IDEA and Section 504 Plan demographic fields in TIDE for:

  • Those identified in the June 2025 PSIS Collection as IDEA
  • Those identified in PSIS Registration testing demographics for Spring 2025 as Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

This is a temporary solution utilized early in the school year (prior to district sign-off of Freeze Zero student demographic data in PSIS in October 2025) that enables designated supports and accommodations planned for the student’s current grade of enrollment in an implemented and finalized plan to sync with TIDE for use on the optional interim assessments. More information on the Freeze Zero PSIS load will follow later this fall. If accommodations weren’t planned for the current grade of enrollment, and the student is expected to participate on interim assessments this fall, the team should amend or reconvene to determine appropriate accessibility supports for the 2025-26 school year. If you find a discrepancy with a student’s accommodations or designated supports, contact the student’s Case Manager. All edits must be made through the amendment or reconvening process in the Connecticut Special Education Data System (CT-SEDS). Supports for students with documented plans should never be manually entered (or batch uploaded) into TIDE. Please follow the guidance in the Documenting Designated Supports and Accommodations in TIDE brochure for more details about documenting accessibility supports prior to interim testing. Additional information is included in the CT-SEDS to TIDE Designated Supports and Accommodations FAQ.

Updated Documents for 2025–26

While there are no new designated supports or accommodations this year, many resources have been updated. Some of the most referenced documents available on the portal and CSDE webpage that will help Planning and Placement Teams (PPTs), Section 504 Teams, test coordinators, and educators plan for the year ahead and prepare for interim testing, if applicable.

  • Connecticut Summative Assessment System Policy Overview (PDF). This resource outlines the general policies of the Connecticut State Department of Education for all state summative assessments that are administered to Connecticut public school students.
  • CSDE Assessment Guidelines (PDF). This document is intended to provide guidance for Connecticut school district personnel who must make decisions about testing special student populations for Smarter Balanced, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Assessment, Connecticut Alternate Assessment (CTAA) in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics, the Connecticut Alternate Science (CTAS) Assessment, the CT CAAELP, and the CT SAT School Day.
  • Assessment Resources for PPT and Section 504 Teams Quick Guide (PDF). This resource provides PPTs and Section 504 Teams with information on accessibility features available on the State Summative Assessments for students with an IEP or Section 504 Plan. 
  • Embedded and Non-Embedded Designated Supports for English Learners (PDF). Students who are English learners/multilingual learners (ELs/MLs) may benefit from using designated supports when participating on the Connecticut statewide assessments. These designated supports are intended as a language support for students who have limited English language skills, whether or not they are identified as EL/ML or EL/ML with a disability.

2025–26 Secure Browser

The updated 2025-2026 Secure Browser and installation materials will be available for download on the Connecticut Comprehensive Assessment Program Portal during the week of September 22, 2025. Please work with your technology coordinators to ensure that testing devices are updated (and assistive technology is compatible with the Test Delivery Interface, if applicable) prior to administering the optional interim assessments. Refer to the Technology Guide for additional guidance on setting up test administrator and student devices and configuring networks. Note: The Secure Browser version used last school year will be retired is now inoperable.

English Learner/Multilingual Learner Resources

The following webpages may be accessed to support students identified as English learners/multilingual learners (ELs/MLs) in Grades K-12:

LAS Links

English Language Proficiency Assessment-LAS Links and the Connecticut DRC LAS Links Website

Important Dates for LAS Links

  • LAS Links Testing Window: Jan 6 – Mar 6, 2026
  • ELAC Training: Nov 4 (9:00–12:00), Nov 5 (12:00–3:00), Nov 6 (9:00–12:00)
  • IT Coordinator Training: Oct 30 @ 1:00 pm, Nov 20 @ 1:00 pm
  • Accommodated Paper Materials Order Window: Nov 7, 2025 – Feb 6, 2026
  • Domain Exemption Window: Nov 7 – Dec 19, 2025

ELACs must submit the Exemption Form during the Domain Exemption Window.

Connecticut Alternate Assessment of English Language Proficiency (CAAELP)

The Connecticut Alternate Assessment of English Language Proficiency (CAAELP) is administered to students in Grades K-12 who are identified in PSIS as ELs/MLs with an IEP who meet the eligibility criteria to participate in Connecticut’s Alternate Assessment System. Part of the Planning and Placement Team (PPT) process will include in the review, determination, completion, and verification of the Connecticut Alternate Assessment System Eligibility Form in CT-SEDS.  Only students with the completed and verified Connecticut Alternate Assessment System Eligibility Form in a finalized and implemented IEP in CT-SEDS will be rostered for CAAELP.

ELACs should work closely with PPTs to ensure students are correctly identified for either the standard English language proficiency assessment (LAS Links) with accommodations or if eligible, the CAAELP within their finalized and implemented plans by the dates listed in the table below. This is to ensure correct rostering and placement within each assessment.

Important Dates for CAAELP

  • CAAELP Testing Window: Jan 12 – Mar 6, 2026
  • Eligibility Form Finalized: Dec 22, 2025
  • Early Stopping Rule Submission: Dec 1, 2025 – Jan 5, 2026
  • ESR Submission Window: Dec 1, 2025 – Jan 12, 2026
  • Domain Exemption Window: Dec 1, 2025 – Feb 27, 2026

Please note, District Administrators (DAs in TIDE) must submit the SRC, ESR, and Domain Exemption Form.

Information and communications related to CAAELP can be obtained by going to the Connecticut Comprehensive Assessment Program Portal CAAELP Resource page and the CSDE CAAELP page.

2025–26 State Assessment Calendar

Content Area Assessment Grade(s) Testing Window
English Language Proficiency LAS Links K–12 Jan 5 – Mar 6, 2026
English Language Proficiency CAAELP K–12 Jan 12 – Mar 6, 2026
ELA & Math Smarter Balanced 3–8 Mar 23 – May 29, 2026
ELA & Math CT SAT School Day 11 Mar 2 – Apr 30, 2026*
ELA & Math CTAA 3–8, 11 Mar 23 – May 29, 2026
Literacy Screening K–3 Literacy Universal Screening K–3 Sep 8 – Oct 17, 2025; Dec 8 – Feb 6, 2026; Apr 20 – Jun 5, 2026
Science NGSS Assessment 5, 8, 11 Feb 2 – May 29, 2026 (Gr 11); Mar 23 – May 29, 2026 (Gr 5, 8)
Science CTAS 5, 8, 11 Mar 23 – May 29, 2026 (upload dates). CTAS may be administered all year.
Physical Fitness CT Physical Fitness Assessment 4, 6, 8, HS Sep 2, 2025 – May 29, 2026
Kindergarten Kindergarten Entrance Inventory K Snapshot: Oct 15, 2025; Submission Due: Dec 5, 2025

Register for Email Updates

To automatically receive Student Assessment News and other announcements, register for email updates on the CT Comprehensive Assessment Program Portal.