• Elementary Grades 1- 5 Credit by Exam for Acceleration 

  • Qualifications for Testing

    Acceleration testing is for students in grades Kindergarten through Fourth who wish to skip a grade is addressed in Board Policy EHDC (Legal), under the heading of Credit by Examination for Advancement.

    A request for Credit by Exam for acceleration may be submitted at any time during the school year. However, the following restrictions apply:

    • Placement to a new grade will only occur at the start of a school year, regardless of when a CBE acceleration is taken.
    • Students may attempt acceleration two times, one attempt per testing window for the same grade/subject.  

    About the Grades 1-5 Acceleration Test

    Students seeking grade-level acceleration/advancement must achieve 80% or higher on each of the criterion-referenced tests in the following subjects for the grade level they want to skip: 

    • Science
    • Social Studies
    • Mathematics
    • Language Arts

    Grades 1-5 Acceleration/Advancement tests are administered through the University of Texas High School (UTHS) over multiple days pending the results of each subject test.    

    • Assessments are ordered one at a time, and the subsequent assessment will only be ordered after results are received that the student passes with a score of 80% or higher.
    • Assessments are given following the order listed above, and the time limit is 3 continuous hours per assessment.
    • If a student is successful with a score of 80% or higher, the next test in the sequence will be ordered.  
    • If the student is not successful, the grade acceleration process ends. The student is not eligible to accelerate.
    • To accelerate to the next grade level, the student is required to successfully pass all four assessments.

    NOTE - Students who qualify for or are currently enrolled in Math Rocks may still attempt grade-level acceleration. However, successful completion of grade-level acceleration may remove eligibility for Math Rocks. 

    Accelerate Out of
    First Grade
    • Beginning-of-year First grade student or end-of-year Kindergarten student with a desired outcome of Second grade

    Accelerate Out of
    Second Grade
    • Beginning-of-year Second grade student or end-of-year First grade student with a desired outcome of Third grade

    Accelerate Out of 
    Third Grade
    • Beginning-of-year Third grade student or end-of-year Second grade student with a desired outcome of Fourth grade

    Accelerate Out of
    Fourth Grade 
    • Beginning-of-year Fourth grade student or end-of-year Third grade student with a desired outcome of Fifth grade

    Accelerate Out of
    Fifth Grade 
    • Beginning-of-year Fifth grade student or end-of-year Fourth grade student with a desired outcome of Sixth grade

    Study Guides  

    The University of Texas - Credit By Exam Study Guides Webpage provides Study Guides for all subject tests. 

    Results and Acceleration

    *NOTE → Students may only change grade levels at the beginning of a school year.

    Results will be sent to the school Principal and Counselor where the student is registered. The principal or counselor will contact the parent/guardian directly regarding the student’s test scores. The Credit by Exam office will not give out any information to parents regarding the results of Grades 1-5 Acceleration/Advancement testing.

    Deadline and Parent Information  

    Parents/ guardians must contact their elementary school counselor for information on the Grade 1-5 Acceleration process. The deadlines are listed in the calendar below. 

    • All requests must be received by 4:00 p.m. on the deadline date.
    • The counselor will notify the parent/guardian of the testing dates and times. All tests will be administered at the student's home campus.   

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    Contact
    Assessment, Research and Program Evaluation
    If you have any additional questions, please email the Credit by Exam office at CBE@pisd.edu.