TABE and CASAS Updates

Welcome to the 2025-26 school year! It’s time to review and update your student assessment policies. There are changes taking place in the assessment world that may require your program to make some changes as well.

TABE 13&14, NRS-approved through June 20, 2027, and approved for use by Minnesota since early this spring, is fully available for purchase and use, both as TABE Online and as a paper test. Additionally, approval for TABE 11&12 was extended through June 30, 2026, to allow for transition. There are several things about TABE 13&14 that will make these tests very familiar to proctors and testers:

• TABE 13&14 continues to be offered in 3 subjects:
  • Reading – includes multiple-choice and evidence-based item types
  • Math – includes multiple-choice and gridded-response item types
  • Language – includes multiple-choice item types only
• There continue to be 5 levels of tests, with 2 forms per level, and having item types that are similar to TABE 11&12:
  • L – Literacy
  • E – Easy
  • M – Medium
  • D – Difficult
  • A – Advanced

There are several updates to TABE 13&14 that should be noted, as they are designed to make the tests more accessible to students.

• The test is shorter, reducing the overall reading load for students, and ensuring that they will finish the test faster.
• The Reading subtest contains shorter passages to provide a quicker testing process for students.
• For those using TABE Online, the online presentation uses scrolling instead of page-turning, making it easier to search passages for information.
• Additionally, the Math subtest uses the DESMOS calculator which is a freely available online-based calculator that is widely used in classrooms.

TABE 13&14 has also made some updates to make it easier for test administrators.

• For those using paper tests, there is a universal answer document for all levels E, M, D, and A.
• Also, the test administration time is consistent across levels, simplifying test delivery and making it easier to plan testing schedules.

One major change for those programs that use paper testing is that there is no answer key for hand scoring. There are two options for paper testing that allow programs to have paper tests scored:

• Programs can purchase official TABE 13&14 answer sheets. After the student has completed the test, these answer sheets can be scanned using the TABE scoring portal. Results will be able to be accessed through the DRC Insight/TABE portal.
• The second option for scoring paper tests is to use Scoreze answer sheets, which can be purchased from TABE. These answer sheets are test form specific, and a separate purchase for each test that your program might be administering must be made.

CASAS Reading GOALS 2 has been NRS-approved for seven years through June 30, 2032, and has also been approved for reporting by Minnesota ABE. NRS approval for the original Reading GOALS has been extended through June 30, 2026 to allow programs time for transition. Programs may begin using the new tests as they are ready.

For programs using Chromebooks for eTesting, CASAS sent the following notice last week. Due to Google removing support for the kiosk mode on Chromebooks, it will be necessary to download the new CASAS eTests app directly from the Google Play Store. Follow the link to CASAS eTests – App on Google Play.

If your program uses Chromebooks for eTesting, or you have students who use a Chromebook for remote testing, CASAS is recommending the above action.