New York City Charter Center (Charter Center) will be coordinating scoring services for the 2023 NYS ELA and Math tests from grades 3 through 8 in partnership with Strategic Measurement and Evaluation, Inc. (SME). SME provides digital scoring of constructed responses on the NYS ELA and Math exams for grades 3-8. Schools will continue to be responsible for the scanning of multiple choice answer sheets. 

As part of the planning process, we ask Scoring Consortium members to read and sign the following form.  It outlines the scope of the project and the responsibilities of all parties including SME, the Charter Center, and consortium members.

We look forward to your school’s continued participation.

Responsibilities of SME: 

Pre-Collection Processes:

• SME will provide each school with the student barcode labels for paper-based test booklets.

• SME will provide each school with shipping labels and other materials to support the packing and return process of completed test packets

• SME will provide schools with instructions for the packing and return of all paper-based test booklets, including the delivery of web-based and in-person training to support the return process

Collection and Inventory Processes

• SME will oversee the point-to-point shipment and collection of completed test booklets from each school and/or collection site to the SME scanning center via private courier service.

• SME will develop an inventory of returned test booklets prior to the processing of those documents to the SME scanning site. Any discrepancies noted between School and SME inventories will be immediately shared with designated school contacts and Charter Center contact for resolution.

• SME will provide each school with a summary of the test booklet counts from each grade within 10 days from the date of school pick-ups.

Scoring System and Processes

• SME will recruit, hire, and train qualified scoring staff following NYSED established guidelines and using NYSED training materials

• SME will electronically score student responses to all constructed-response items included on each test form.

Test Score Delivery Processes

• Paper-Based Testing Schools Only: SME will deliver a final data file containing raw scores for student responses to all constructed-response items appearing on either an ELA or Math assessment and related student identification information via secure file transfer protocol (sFTP) to the NYCDOE by the deadline. This will ensure that charter schools will receive the preliminary reports as district schools, including the June Instructional Report. Flash drives will be provided to schools by June 30, 2023. 

• Paper-Based Testing Schools Only: SME will provide a summary school-level roster report that identifies individual student scores on each open-ended item and the percentage of the total possible open-ended points earned by each student. These will be delivered to each participating Charter School before June 30, 2023 along with test booklet images and searchable image files.

• Computer-Based Testing Schools Only: Schools registering for the 2023 Test Scoring Consortium will need to select SME as the scoring vendor. SME will confirm with state assessment vendor (Questar) the CBT- participating schools using a report Questar provides SME in February. SME will coordinate with NYSED and the state assessment vendor (Questar) to ensure that all tests from CBT-participating schools are routed to Scorepoint for SME’s scoring process. 

Storage Processes

• Paper-Based Testing Schools Only: The secure storage and recycling of all processed booklets in a manner consistent with NYSED guidelines.

• Paper-Based Testing Schools Only: Secure destruction of prior year testing materials for all NYC participating charter schools in the 2023 Testing Consortium program.

Responsibilities of the Charter Center: 

• The Charter Center will work with the processing vendor (SME) to develop the timetable and protocols with the NYCDOE to ensure all exam scores are reported within the deadline set by the NYCDOE for city-based reports as well as required submission to NYSED.

• The Charter Center will work with SME to provide participating schools with packing and shipping information prior to each test administration cycle.  This information will identify standardized return procedures designed to facilitate the collection of completed test booklets and to expedite the scanning process. 

• The Charter Center will work with SME to identify the schools selected for audit by the designated state audit vendor and will coordinate the delivery of information required by the audit vendor from those schools.

Responsibilities of the Charter School:

• Charter Schools will be responsible for administering all test forms 

• Charter Schools must follow the SME-supplied packing instructions to pack completed booklets for pickup and then ship packages to the SME collection site. 

• Charter Schools should compare the number of tests they packaged and shipped to an initial count of the number of tests SME received using a receiving report that SME provides the Charter Schools 10 days after SME receives the packaged tests. 

• Charter Schools should confirm there are no missing test scores by running a report on ATS and comparing the data against SME’s score report, which lists all the scores for each student whose tests were shipped to SME.  

Pricing: 

The fee for collecting, inventorying, and scanning the completed test booklets; working to recruit, hire, and train scorers set by SME; managing the scoring of the constructed-response items and reporting student data related to the New York State ELA and Math assessments by SME, and providing images on flash drives to each school via SME will be $12.83 per paper-based test scored and $10.44 for each computer-based test scored. 

Invoicing: 

The School shall transmit payment in full to the Charter Center within forty-five (45) days of signing this Agreement.  The Charter Center reserves the right to suspend the services offered under this Agreement without notice or penalty if the School's payment is not submitted within forty-five (45) days of signing this Agreement.

Non-Refundable Payment Agreement: 

By registering for the Testing Consortium you agree to a non-refundable payment agreement between the Charter Center and the School for each test scored.  Any fees for unscored tests will be returned during reconciliation.

This document constitutes the entire agreement between the School and Charter Center. Changes and/or waivers are not binding unless put in writing, either electronically or by hand, by both parties. The parties below agree to the terms and conditions outlined above.