Vermont Homeschool Standardized Testing: CAT, Iowa Assessments, and What's Accepted

Vermont homeschool families who choose standardized testing for their annual end-of-year assessment have more flexibility than they might realize — and one significant limitation they often miss. You are not required to take Vermont's state assessments. You can use a wide range of nationally normed tests, and many of them can be administered at home. But a test score alone does not document your full Minimum Course of Study. Here is exactly how it works.

Vermont's Legal Standard for Standardized Testing

Under 16 V.S.A. §166b, the standardized testing option requires a student to take a nationally normed standardized achievement test. The test can be administered by the local school district, a private testing service, or at home in a manner explicitly approved by the testing company.

Vermont homeschoolers are not required to take the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) or the Vermont Science Assessment — those are the state's public school assessments. You may request access to those tests through your local district if you want to use them, but most families use norm-referenced tests ordered privately. These are the two most common choices.

The California Achievement Test (CAT)

The California Achievement Test is a nationally normed, standardized achievement test covering reading, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. It is one of the most widely used tests among homeschool families nationally, and several versions are specifically designed for parent administration at home.

Where to order: Seton Testing Services and BJU Press Testing both offer parent-administered CAT versions. The CAT-E (Complete Battery) is the most comprehensive. Prices typically run $25 to $45 depending on the grade level and whether you purchase just the test or scoring as well.

How it works: The test comes with a proctor manual. For parent-proctored versions, you follow the administration instructions at home. There are time limits per section, and the testing typically takes two to three sessions across a day or spread over several days for younger students.

Scoring: Seton and BJU Press return scored results with percentile rankings and grade equivalencies. These printable reports become your EOYA documentation.

The CAT has been a standard choice for Vermont homeschoolers for decades. Many families who prefer structured accountability and a concrete numerical result find this approach satisfying.

Iowa Assessments (Iowa Test of Basic Skills / ITBS)

The Iowa Assessments — previously known as the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) — are another well-established option covering vocabulary, reading, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. They are norm-referenced, meaning your child's score is compared to a national sample of students at the same grade level.

Where to order: The Iowa Assessments are available through Riverside Insights (the publisher) and various homeschool testing services. Some testing centers in Vermont administer these in a supervised group or individual setting rather than at home. Costs run $35 to $75 depending on the grade level and testing format.

Administration: Some versions of the Iowa Assessments require proctoring by someone other than the student's parent. If ordering for home administration, confirm the specific version allows parent proctoring. For center-based testing, you schedule an appointment and the proctor administers it.

Results: Iowa Assessment results include percentile ranks, stanines, and standard scores. The printable report is your EOYA documentation.

What State-Approved Looks Like

The AOE does not maintain a rigid pre-approved list of specific tests in the way some states do. The statutory requirement is "a nationally normed standardized achievement test." Both the CAT and Iowa Assessments clearly meet this standard. Other nationally normed tests — like the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT-10) or the Woodcock-Johnson — also qualify, though they are less commonly used in the Vermont homeschool community.

If you have any doubt about whether a specific test qualifies, contact the AOE Home Study Team directly before testing. Their role since Act 66 has shifted to administrative processing, but they will still answer procedural questions.

The Gap Standardized Tests Do Not Fill

This is the piece that trips up a lot of Vermont families: a standardized test score is not a complete EOYA record on its own.

Vermont's MCOS requires documentation of instruction across multiple subjects. For students under age 13, that includes fine arts, physical education, and health — in addition to the core academics. Standardized tests cover reading, math, and some science and social studies. They do not touch fine arts, PE, or health.

If you choose standardized testing as your assessment method and your student is under 13, you need supplemental documentation for the subjects the test does not cover. That might be:

• A photo log and parent narrative documenting physical activity and PE instruction
• Samples of art projects with a brief description of what art concepts were covered
• A health instruction log covering the required topics (effects of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs, as Vermont statute specifically names)

For students 13 and older, the core academic subjects are all that are statutorily required, so a comprehensive standardized test score with a good subject range is a cleaner fit for the full EOYA.

Retaining Your Test Records

Under Act 66, you no longer submit test scores to the AOE. You retain them in your own files for a minimum of two years. Keep both the student's answer booklet (if paper-based) and the printed score report. Digital backup is strongly recommended.

If your student re-enrolls in public school, the district may request assessment records to determine appropriate grade placement. If your student applies to Vermont Dual Enrollment or Early College programs, a history of annual assessments — including standardized test scores — demonstrates academic progress in a format college admissions staff recognize.

For families using standardized testing as part of a broader documentation system, the Vermont Portfolio & Assessment Templates include supplemental tracking forms for the MCOS subjects that tests do not cover — particularly useful for families with children under 13 who need to document fine arts, PE, and health alongside their test scores.

A Practical Note on Test Scheduling

The EOYA needs to reflect the end of your instructional year, not a random point in the middle. Most Vermont homeschool families who use standardized testing administer it in April or May, after their 175 instructional days are substantially complete. Ordering tests three to four weeks before you plan to administer them leaves enough buffer for shipping and scheduling.

Some testing services offer rush shipping and expedited scoring if you are running close to your end-of-year deadline. Build in that margin rather than scrambling at the last minute — and remember that under Vermont law, you are attesting to retaining the completed assessment record, so the test actually needs to be done and scored before your next Notice of Intent is filed.

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