Georgia law (O.C.G.A., Section 20-2-281) mandates that each local school system may elect to administer, with state funding, nationally norm-referenced instruments in reading, mathematics, science, or social studies in grade three, four, or five and in grade six, seven, or eight, subject to available appropriations, with assistance to such school systems by the State Board of Education with regard to administration guidance, scoring, and reporting of such assessments. The purpose of the norm-referenced test (NRT) is to obtain information about how the performance of Georgia's students compare with that of students in a national sample, an external reference group. The results of an NRT are used for evaluation, decision-making, and instructional improvement.

The Department of Education has contracted with Riverside Publishing Company to provide the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, Form A (ITBS/A) for students in one grade within grade bands 3-5 and one grade within grade bands 6-8 at no cost to local systems. Each local system may administer the ITBS/A at some time during the school year. Test materials may be ordered directly from Riverside Publishing Company by calling 1-800-323-9540 X-7091. Local systems should place an order at least 30 days before the materials are needed.

There is no statewide administration window. Riverside Publishing Company interpolates norms to the week of testing, thereby eliminating the need to specify testing windows for fall and spring administrations. Local systems may administer the tests during whichever week, in fall or spring that best suits the systems circumstances.

Local systems may choose to administer a norm-reference test other than the ITBS/A at its own expense. Local systems may also choose to administer other grades at the system’s own expense.

Types of Score Reports

Score reports to local systems will include the following:

• individual student performance report for parents;
• self-adhesive, individual permanent record labels which present normative scores for each student;
• an alphabetical list report by classroom teacher, which list students in a class alphabetically and provides normative scores for each subtest and the total battery;
• school-level and system-level grade summary reports, which provide normative data for each subtest and a composite score for the battery for all students in a particular grade level;
• a classroom summary report, which includes class average scores for each subtest and the total battery;
• school summary reports, which provide normative data for each subtest and a composite score for the battery for each school.
• score reports to the local systems and to GDOE will include the following:
• school, system, and state demographic summaries, which provide normative data for all students and disaggregated by groups specified in state and federal law for score reporting, and standard and non-standard administrations;
• software for test data management for each system and school, with accompanying data on CD-ROM(s) or diskettes in an ASCII format.