Louisiana Homeschool Testing Requirements: What Families in the BESE Program Need to Know

Louisiana does not require home study students to take standardized tests. Testing is one of three options for annual BESE renewal — not a mandate. But for families who choose to test, understanding which exams count, how scores are evaluated, and how testing interacts with TOPS scholarship eligibility determines whether you are making strategic use of the requirement or simply checking a box.

Is Testing Required in Louisiana?

No. The BESE-Approved Home Study Program offers three pathways for demonstrating the annual "satisfactory evidence" of educational quality required by R.S. 17:236.1:

1. A curriculum packet (subject list plus work samples)
2. Standardized test scores
3. A statement from a Louisiana-certified teacher

Families who submit a curriculum packet or teacher statement never take a standardized test and remain fully compliant. Testing is a choice, not a legal requirement.

Families registered under the Nonpublic School Not Seeking State Approval pathway have no testing requirements whatsoever — and no annual submission requirement of any kind. The trade-off is that Nonpublic pathway students are ineligible for TOPS scholarships.

Which Standardized Tests Louisiana Accepts

For families using the testing route for BESE renewal, the LDOE accepts the following exams:

• ACT (high school)
• SAT (high school)
• Stanford Achievement Test (all grades)
• Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) (all grades, also known as Iowa Assessments)
• California Achievement Test (CAT) (all grades)
• Louisiana LEAP assessments (state-administered)

The key criterion is that the score must demonstrate the student is performing at or above grade level, or has shown at least one year's worth of academic growth from a prior test. The LDOE reviews submitted score reports and confirms whether the standard is met — it is an objective determination rather than a subjective review.

How Scores Are Evaluated for Renewal

The LDOE does not publish a specific percentile cutoff for renewal approval across all grades and all tests. The general standard applied is grade-level performance or demonstrated year's-worth-of-progress.

For nationally normed tests like the Stanford Achievement Test and ITBS, scores at or above the 50th percentile nationally correspond to grade-level performance and reliably satisfy the renewal standard. Many families set a conservative target of the 60th or 65th percentile to build in a clear margin.

For the ACT and SAT, grade-level performance is tied to the national benchmark scores published by the testing organizations, but the TOPS scholarship thresholds provide a practical reference point (ACT 20 for Opportunity, 23 for Performance, 27 for Honors, 31 for Excellence). A student who clears the ACT 20 benchmark for TOPS Opportunity has clearly demonstrated performance adequate for renewal.

If a student's score falls below the grade-level benchmark, the LDOE does not automatically revoke approval. The department follows up requesting additional evidence or clarification. Responding promptly with a curriculum packet or teacher statement for that renewal cycle resolves the issue.

Choosing a Test: Practical Considerations

For elementary-age students (grades 1–8): The Iowa Test of Basic Skills and Stanford Achievement Test are the most commonly used by Louisiana home study families. Both are nationally normed, widely administered by home study cooperatives and test centers, and familiar to LDOE reviewers. The ITBS is available through independent testing centers, some co-ops, and directly from testing service providers. The Stanford Achievement Test is available through similar channels.

Neither requires special registration with the state. Parents locate a testing provider, register, administer the test under the provider's protocols, and receive score reports that can be submitted with the renewal application.

For high school students: The ACT is the practical choice because it serves double duty. A single ACT sitting can simultaneously satisfy the BESE annual renewal requirement and generate the score needed for TOPS scholarship eligibility. The SAT is also accepted for both purposes, though Louisiana's college-bound culture is heavily ACT-oriented and most TOPS documentation references ACT benchmarks.

High school students planning to pursue TOPS must register for the ACT using home study school code 969999. This code flags the student's scores to the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance (LOSFA) as a home study applicant. Failing to use this code does not invalidate the score, but it creates additional documentation steps when applying for the scholarship.

For families who want testing flexibility: The California Achievement Test can be administered at home by parents under the official CAT protocol (the Seton Testing Services version, for example), which makes it logistically simpler than tests requiring in-person administration at a testing center. Check the LDOE's current acceptance status for home-administered CAT versions before relying on it — accepted formats can change between renewal cycles.

Testing as a Strategic Tool for TOPS Eligibility

For families with high school students, the interaction between BESE renewal testing and TOPS scholarship eligibility is the most important factor in test selection.

Under Louisiana's TOPS alternate eligibility criteria for home study students, scholarship awards are determined entirely by ACT composite scores:

These thresholds were updated under ACT 359 in 2025. Guides and forum posts from 2022 or 2023 reflect outdated score requirements — do not use them for planning purposes.

Because home study students do not generate a traditional GPA or state-audited course transcript, the ACT score is effectively the entire application for TOPS. This makes test preparation a higher-stakes activity for Louisiana home study families than for traditional public school students, who have GPA as a fallback.

Families planning for TOPS should note that LDOE now requires documentation of 9th and 10th-grade home study enrollment before processing 11th and 12th-grade TOPS eligibility. Maintaining complete BESE approval records for every high school year — and submitting them to LOSFA by January 15th following the year of graduation — is essential.

What Happens If a Student Doesn't Test Well

Testing anxiety, learning differences, and curriculum styles that emphasize depth over breadth of tested subjects can produce scores that do not reflect a student's actual learning. Louisiana's three-pathway renewal system exists precisely to accommodate families in this situation.

A student who struggles with standardized testing can satisfy renewal through the curriculum packet route instead. The curriculum packet is evaluated on the quality and coverage of the work samples submitted — not on test performance. Families switching from the testing route to the portfolio route in any given year do so by simply submitting a curriculum packet with their renewal application instead of score reports. There is no penalty for the switch.

The teacher statement option is a third route for families with access to a Louisiana-certified teacher. The teacher reviews the program and attests to its quality — no test required, no portfolio submission required.

If you are in the early stages of setting up your Louisiana home study program and want a clear map of how testing, renewals, and TOPS documentation connect — including the exact filing deadlines and LOSFA submission requirements — the Louisiana Legal Withdrawal Blueprint covers all of it in a single, step-by-step reference.

The Nonpublic School Pathway and Testing

Families registered as a Nonpublic School Not Seeking State Approval are not subject to any testing requirements. The annual registration for this pathway requires only basic demographic information about the school (name, address, parish, enrollment count) and must be filed within 30 days of the school session starting each year.

However, the absence of testing requirements comes with a significant trade-off: Nonpublic pathway students are completely ineligible for TOPS scholarships. They are also ineligible for Act 715 sports participation rights at public schools, which were granted specifically to BESE-Approved Home Study students in 2024.

For families who choose the Nonpublic pathway for its simplicity and privacy and later want to transition to BESE-Approved status, the transition is possible — but time in Nonpublic status cannot be retroactively counted toward TOPS eligibility. TOPS requires 11th and 12th grade to have been spent in the BESE-Approved program. Switching after 10th grade preserves TOPS eligibility; switching after the start of 11th grade does not.

Preparing for Annual Testing: A Realistic Timeline

For families using the testing route year after year, building a simple annual testing calendar prevents last-minute scrambles:

• January–February: Register for the testing window appropriate for your child's grade and the exam you are using
• March–May: Administer the test (specific windows vary by provider)
• June–July: Receive score reports; review against grade-level benchmarks
• August–September: Submit score reports with renewal application
• October 1: Renewal deadline for most families

ACT test dates for the academic year are announced by ACT the preceding fall. High school students should register for a spring ACT date (April or June sitting) so scores are available well before the October renewal deadline.

For families using the ITBS or Stanford Achievement Test, contact your testing provider or co-op coordinator in January to confirm available testing dates and registration deadlines. Test centers book up in spring, and late registration can force families to use the curriculum packet route for that year's renewal instead.

Summary: Louisiana Homeschool Testing at a Glance

• Standardized testing is optional for BESE families — one of three renewal pathways
• Accepted tests: ACT, SAT, Stanford Achievement Test, ITBS, CAT, LEAP
• Score standard: at or above grade level, or one year's demonstrated growth
• TOPS scholarship eligibility for home study students is based entirely on ACT scores (thresholds updated by ACT 359 in 2025)
• High school students pursuing TOPS must use ACT code 969999 at registration
• Nonpublic pathway families have no testing requirements but no TOPS access
• Switching between renewal methods (testing, portfolio, teacher statement) is allowed year to year

See more United States homeschool guides →