WIDA ACCESS English Proficiency Tests

WIDA ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS tests measure students' progress toward English language proficiency. 

Overview

WIDA ACCESS tests students in four areas.

• Listening
• Speaking
• Reading
• Writing

Students with an IEP who meet the eligibility requirements take the Alternate ACCESS test in the same areas.

The purpose of the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS tests are to:

• Measure student progress toward English proficiency described by the WIDA English Language Development Standards. 
• Plan programming and determine when students exit support services. 
• Meet federal accountability requirements in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

How it works

• All K-12 students who participate in multilingual learner (ML) services take this test every year, until they no longer need ML services.
• Students take the assessments in varying formats:
  • Kindergarten - on paper with a teacher one-to-one
  • Grades 1-5 - online using an iPad and on paper
  • Grades 6-12 - online using an iPad
  • Some parts of the assessment require a keyboard and a headset with a microphone.
• Approximate testing times of each section for Grades 1-12 are listed below.
  • Listening - 65 minutes
  • Reading - 60 minutes
  • Speaking - 50 minutes
  • Writing - 80 minutes 
• WIDA ACCESS for Kindergarten take approximately 45 minutes. 
• WIDA Alternate ACCESS takes approximately 2 hours total, but is given over multiple days. 

Test results

The state sends Individual Student Reports (ISRs) to the school district in the fall after testing. These reports are uploaded to Skyward Family Access. 

Find test results in Skyward Family Access