NRS Assessment Administrator Trainings for Certification

All practitioners seeking to administer any of the NRS approved assessments in Massachusetts must obtain certification through the Center for Educational Assessment (CEA) at UMass Amherst.  The specific certification requirements for each test are described in detail below.

Initial Certification for MAPT-CCR Administration

The MAPT-CCR administration training is available as an online, self-paced module-based training and can be accessed through the above link (and is also posted on the SABES Calendar). 

Program staff who were previously trained through SABES or through a practitioner-led training do not have to complete the online MAPT-CCR administration training but are strongly encouraged to take the new online training as a refresher and the Assessment Basics webinar.  If you have any questions about your certification status, please contact the CEA at aclstesthelp@umass.edu.

Program staff who have never received the MAPT-CCR training and will be administering the MAPT-CCR must complete the online Assessment Basics webinar and the MAPT-CCR administration training first. The MAPT-CCR administrator training is designed to be completed within 1.5 hours. ACLS recommends that practitioners complete it in one sitting. No annual recertification is required.

Training Overview

The online MAPT-CCR administration training consists of seven self-paced modules followed by questions for practitioners to answer at the end of each module. The training is not timed, and practitioners are given the opportunity to answer the questions multiple times until a correct answer is provided for each question. Practitioners will not be able to move on to the next module until all the questions in the current module have been answered correctly.

Upon completion of the entire training and submission of the comprehension check questions, practitioners will receive an email confirmation that they have completed the training. Practitioners are encouraged to keep that email for their records and forward to their program director as needed. CEA and ACLS will receive notification of completion of the training automatically as well, so practitioners do not need to contact either CEA or ACLS. 

CEA will not provide paper copies of the MAPT-CCR Teacher and Test Administrator Manual. An electronic link to this manual is included in the online training and practitioners are strongly encouraged to save and/or print their own copy. The manual can also be accessed on the ACLS Assessment page.

Initial Certification for TABE 11/12 Level L Administration and Scoring

The TABE 11/12 Level L Administration and Scoring Training is available as an online self-paced module-based training (it is available through the link and also posted on the SABES Calendar). Any program staff who will begin administering the TABE 11/12 Level L (Literacy) must complete the Assessment Basics webinar pre-requisite and the online training provided by CEA.  

Staff who were previously trained through SABES or through a practitioner-led training do not have to complete the online training but are strongly encouraged to take it as a refresher and to watch the Assessment Basics webinar. If you have any questions about your certification status, please contact the CEA at aclstesthelp@umass.edu.

Training Overview

The online TABE 11/12 Level L training consists of four modules with questions at the end of each module. The training is not timed, and practitioners are given the opportunity to answer the questions multiple times, until a correct answer is provided. Practitioners will not be able to move on to the next module until all the answers in the current module have been answered correctly. At the end of the four modules, practitioners have to pass a final ten-question quiz.

Once all four modules have been completed, practitioners will receive an email confirmation that they have completed the training. Practitioners are encouraged to keep that email for their records and forward to their program director as needed. CEA and ACLS will receive notification of completion of the training automatically as well, so practitioners do not need to contact either CEA or ACLS. Certified staff may not train fellow staff members at their programs to administer the TABE 11/12 Level L.

Initial Certification for TABE 13/14 Administration and Scoring, Levels E through A

The TABE 13/14 Administration and Scoring Training (for Levels E, M, D, and A) is available as an online self-paced module-based training only (it is available through the link and also posted on the SABES Calendar). Any program staff who will begin administering the TABE 13/14 (Levels E through A) must complete the Assessment Basics webinar pre-requisite and the online training provided by CEA.  

Staff who were previously trained through SABES or through a practitioner-led training do not have to complete the online training but are strongly encouraged to take it as a refresher and to watch the Assessment Basics webinar. If you have any questions about your certification status, please contact the CEA at aclstesthelp@umass.edu.

Training Overview

The online TABE 13/14 training consists of six modules with questions at the end of each module. The training is not timed and practitioners are given the opportunity to answer the questions multiple times, until a correct answer is provided. Practitioners will not be able to move on to the next module until all the answers in the current module have been answered correctly. At the end of the six modules, practitioners have to pass a final ten-question quiz.

Once all six modules have been completed, practitioners will receive an email confirmation that they have completed the training. Practitioners are encouraged to keep that email for their records and forward to their program director as needed. CEA and ACLS will receive notification of completion of the training automatically as well, so practitioners do not need to contact either CEA or ACLS. Certified staff may not train fellow staff members at their programs to administer the TABE 13/14 Levels E through A.

Initial Certification for BEST Plus 3.0 Administration and Scoring

In order to receive competency status and be certified to administer the BEST Plus 3.0, practitioners must first complete the Assessment Basics webinar pre-requisite, attend two 3.25 hour BEST Plus 3.0 virtual (synchronous) training sessions, and participate in one virtual (synchronous) 1.5 hour practice administration session.  Directly following the three meetings, practitioners must be approved to continue the certification process by the BEST Plus 3.0 initial trainer and/or CEA.

To become comfortable with actual assessment administration, trainees must also perform 6 practice test administrations using the “practice” option of the BEST Plus 3.0 program (there is no cost to administer tests in practice mode).

The practice administrations may be done with colleagues, family, friends, or students who volunteer to help.  At least 3 of the 6 practice administrations must be done with adult non-native English speakers, but none of the practice tests should be administered to students who take the BEST Plus 3.0 to measure their NRS EFL gains.  Trainees must fill out the online Practice Administrations Form with the names of the 6 people tested, and submit the form on or before the established deadline. 

Trainees must then pass the test developer’s certification quizzes on Moodle and complete the final steps for registration in order to become fully certified.  The quizzes may be completed as many times as needed until they are passed. Trainees will not receive access to the Moodle quizzes until the 6 practice test administrations have been submitted.

Upon completing all certification requirements and registering as a certified BEST Plus 3.0 test administrator with CAL, the test developer, trainees must notify UMass CEA of their registration and certification by uploading their certification email to the provided link.

Initial Certification for CLAS-E Reading Administration and Scoring

Practitioners seeking initial certification in the administration and scoring of CLAS-E Reading must complete the Assessment Basics webinar pre-requisite and the online self-paced module-based CLAS-E Reading Administration and Scoring Training provided by. 

Training Overview

The online CLAS-E Reading training consists of five modules with questions for practitioners to answer at the end of each module. The training is not timed, and practitioners are given the opportunity to answer the questions multiple times until a correct answer is provided. Practitioners will not be able to move on to the next module until all the answers in the current module have been answered correctly. Practitioners have to take a ten-question quiz at the end of the five modules.

Once all five modules and final quiz have been completed, practitioners will receive an email confirmation that they have completed the training. Practitioners are encouraged to keep that email for their records and forward to their program director as needed. CEA and ACLS will receive notification of completion of the training automatically as well, so practitioners do not need to contact either CEA or ACLS. Certified staff may not train fellow staff members at their programs to administer and score the CLAS-E Reading.

Initial Certification for CLAS-E Writing Administration and Scoring

Practitioners seeking initial certification in the administration and scoring of CLAS-E Writing must first complete the Assessment Basics webinar pre-requisite and the online self-paced module-based CLAS-E Writing Administration Training provided by CEA, then attend a face-to-face training. 

Training Overview

The online CLAS-E Writing administration training consists of five modules with questions for practitioners to answer at the end of each module. The training is not timed, and practitioners are given the opportunity to answer the questions multiple times until a correct answer is provided. Practitioners will not be able to move on to the next module until all the answers in the current module have been answered correctly. Practitioners have to take a final ten question quiz at the end of the five modules.

Once all five modules and final quiz have been completed, practitioners will receive an email confirmation that they have completed the training. Practitioners are encouraged to keep that email for their records and forward to their program director as needed. CEA and ACLS will receive notification of completion of the training automatically as well, so practitioners do not need to contact either CEA or ACLS. Certified staff may not train fellow staff members at their programs to administer the CLAS-E Writing.

Following their online training in CLAS-E Writing administration, practitioners seeking certification in the scoring of the CLAS-E Writing folio section must attend an online facilitated training.  This training consists of two 3.5 hour sessions with CEA.

Practitioners will need to pass a test before they receive a CLAS-E scoring competency status and are approved to score. Note: no certificates will be given; program staff must retain their email notification.

The initial certification test consists of 20 items (writing samples that must be scored). Practitioners must have a minimum score of 70%, with six or fewer items incorrect, in order to pass the test.  If the score is between 60%-65%, with seven to eight items incorrect, practitioners must go through a phone remediation and the CEA will contact them to arrange for this remediation. These practitioners cannot score any CLAS-E tests until they have gone through the remediation process. Practitioners who score 55% or less, with nine or more items incorrect, must retake the training and cannot score any CLAS-E tests until they have completed the training again and passed the initial certification test.

Initial Assessment Administration Training Pre-Requisites

The table below describes the pre-requisite(s) required for each of the seven assessment administration trainings:

Standardized Assessment Trainings	Training format	Required Pre-Requisites
BEST Plus 3.0	Facilitated Online, 6.5 hours	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes
CLAS-E Reading Administration and Scoring	Online self-paced modules	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes
CLAS-E Writing Administration	Online self-paced modules	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes
CLAS-E Writing Scoring	Facilitated Online, 7 hours	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes CLAS-E Writing Administration online self-paced
MAPT-CCR	Online self-paced modules	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes
TABE 11/12-Level L (Literacy)	Online self-paced modules	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes
TABE 13/14, Levels E (Easy), M (Medium), D (Difficult), A (Advanced)	Online self-paced modules	Online recorded webinar on Assessment Basics, 35 minutes