What does grade-equivalent assessment indicate?

Grade-equivalent assessment provides insights into a student's performance relative to their peers in different grades. This type of assessment is designed to indicate how a student's skills compare to the average performance of other students at a specific grade level. For example, if a third grader receives a grade-equivalent score of 4.2, it suggests that the student is performing at a level comparable to the average student in the fourth grade, second month of school. This allows educators to understand not only where the student stands in relation to their current grade but also how they measure against expected benchmarks in higher or lower grades.

This form of assessment is useful for guiding instruction, informing parents, and developing targeted interventions as it provides a broad overview of where students are positioned academically compared to their age-mates across different educational stages.