Understanding and
Preparing for the CRCT
Strategies and Tips to
Improve Student
Performance
Tonight’s Presenters
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Kelli Jones, School Psychologist
Kendra Berry, Advanced Learning Programs
Lucille Carlisle, Professional School Counselor
Dana Gillian, Professional School Counselor
Cindy Dorsey, Professional School Counselor
Maria Chu, ESOL Teacher and Interpreter
What is the CRCT?
• The CRCT Test
• The Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) is
administered to students in the Georgia school system.
Read this article to learn about the specifics of this
state-wide assessment test.
• Georgia's Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests are
used to determine how students are learning and
performing in the Georgia school environment. Georgia
law requires all first to eighth grade students to take the
CRCT in the subjects of reading, language arts, and
mathematics. Third to eighth graders also test in science
and social studies.
What Makes the CRCT
Different from Other NormReferenced Tests?
• The CRCT is different from norm-referenced tests
(NRTs). The CRCT is designed to see how well a student
acquires, learns, and uses the specific skills and goals
outlined in an instructional unit or year-long curriculum.
The Georgia CRCT is designed specifically to test the
state's educational content standards. NRTs are designed
for use throughout the entire nation and test to national
standards. They compare students along an achievement
spectrum. With the results of these tests, parents and
teachers are able to see how individual students compare
with other students in their class, school district, state
and nation. These tests help educators and
administration determine the effectiveness of their
school's education.
CRCT Content Weights
Reading
2008-2009
• Third Grade Reading
• Literacy Comprehension
60%
• Reading for Information
20%
• Reading Skills and Vocabulary Acquisition 20%
• Fifth Grade Reading
• Literacy Comprehension
40%
• Reading for Information
40%
• Reading Skills and Vocabulary Acquisition 20%
CRCT Content Weights
Math
2008-2009
• Third Grade
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Numbers and Operations
Measurement
Geometry
Algebra
Data Analysis
50%
18%
12%
10%
10%
• Fifth Grade
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Numbers and Operations
Measurement
Geometry
Algebra
Data Analysis
50%
18%
12%
10%
10%
Scale Score and Performance
Levels
• The scale score reported for each content area is
derived by converting the number of correct
responses on the test (the raw score) to the
CRCT scale. Since the scale scores are equivalent
across test forms within the same content area
and grade, students obtaining the same score
have demonstrated the same level of
performance with respect to the GPS.
• Scores at or above 850 indicate a level
of performance that Exceeds the
Standard set for the test.
• Scores from 800–849 indicate a level
of performance that Meets the
Standard set for the test.
• Scores below 800 indicate a level of
performance that Does Not Meet the
Standard set for the test
Testing Mechanics
How Can I Help My Child Be
More Prepared For a Test
Pop Quiz
Which of the following is true about
multiple-choice tests:
a. Everybody takes them
b. They're not always fun
c. You can improve your test-taking skills
d. All of the above Pencils down!
The correct choice is answer d.
While multiple-choice tests are
among the most popular testing
forms, they're also among the easiest
at which to improve using provided
strategy.
The Process of Elimination
• Go through each answer to a question and
eliminate as many of the answer choices as
possible. By eliminating two answer choices, you
can vastly improve your chances of getting the
item correct. It is recommended that you
attempt to answer each question, since your
score is calculated based on how many questions
you get right, and unanswered or incorrectly
answered questions receive no credit.
Example
How old was Martin Luther King
when he died?
• A. 85 years old (too old)
• B. 39 years old
• C. 57 years old
• D. 13 years old (a young boy)
Another Example
Use Number Sense or Estimation to rule out
wrong choices.
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Students at Bullard Elementary collected labels from
cans. The third grade class collected 247 labels, and the
fourth grade collected 236 labels. How many labels did
they collect in all?
A. 13
B. 411
C. 483
D. 583
• We can rule out the answer choice 13
because we are adding and 13 is less
than either of the addends.
• We can also estimate to rule out other
answer choices.
• Round 247 to the nearest 10, 250
• Round 236 to the nearest 10, 240
• Then add, 490
• 411 is to low
• 583 is to high
The Process of Elimination is
Valuable
• If you eliminate one choice you have a 25%
chance of having the correct answer
• Eliminate two a 33% chance
• Eliminate three 50%
Read and Re-Read
Teach your child to read the test
question or statement carefully at least
twice. Be sure they are reading all of
the answer choices, not jumping to
conclusions before they have read all
the choices.
A Steady Pace Wins the Race
• Keep a steady pace and do not let more
difficult questions affect your attitude and
steal your valuable time. Students often
cloud their minds by lingering over
difficult questions. Moving on and finding
success with other questions is a better
method. When you finish, go back to those
left blank.
Supporting Ideas or Details
• Supporting Ideas or Details: These test questions
are about the little details in a story. For
example: “What color was Timothy’s skateboard
in the story?” Go back to the story and find
the answer. These questions force you to figure
out something in the passage. There will be clues
in the passage. The question may have the
phrase “most likely” in it.
Read to Understand
Not to Remember
• On the CRCT Reading, the passages are fiction or
nonfiction and the answers are multiple choice. There
are four types of reading questions: Main Idea, Word
Meaning, Supporting Details and Inferences.
• · Read to understand –not to remember. Think of this
test as an open book test. Look back in the passage for
detail questions.
• · Don't look for the answer in the passage if the question
is inference-based. A careful reader needs to make
educated guesses based on facts the author provides.
Main Idea or Summarization
Questions
These questions are usually written something
like, “What is this story mostly about?” or
“What’s the main idea?” or “Which
sentence best tells about this story?”
The answer is not stated exactly in the story, so
this is a “think about it” type
Word Meanings
• Some test questions will focus on the meaning of a
word. The words chosen for these items are supposed to
be new words, so it shouldn’t bother you if you’ve never
heard of the word.
• Look back in the passage and find the word in the
sentence. The words in that sentence (or the sentence
before or after) should give clues about the word
meaning. Try replacing the word with one of the choices
from the test.
Word Meaning Example
In the story, Alexander enjoyed staying at expensive hotels
and eating at the best restaurants. His friends thought
that he led an extravagant life.
Extravagant means
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A. cheap
B. hard
C. spending carelessly
D. sad
Inferences
• Inference is a conclusion reached through
reasoning. Inference is used to reach
conclusions when information is implied
but not stated as a certainty. You make
inferences about story elements based in
details in a story.
Example of Inference Question
When the Smith children got home from summer
camp, they noticed that the TV and VCR were
not in the family room. What most likely
happened while they were away?
• A. Grandmother came for a visit.
• B. The dog ate them.
• C. There was a flood.
• D. Their parents moved them to another room.
Understand What's Being
Asked
One of the biggest challenges with multiple choices is to
not misinterpret what's being asked: some choices will be
related to the subject but won't answer the question. For
instance,
• Why do some birds fly south for the winter?
1. Because they have feathers
2. Because they migrate to warmer climates
3. Because they eat birdseed
4. Because they fly in patterns
• All of the choices are true about birds, but only one
choice — answer b — answers the question asked.
Vocabulary
• Prefixes
• If you’re having trouble with a word in the question or answer
choices, try
• dissecting it. Take advantage of every clue that the word might
include. Prefixes
• and suffixes can be a huge help. Usually they allow you to
determine a basic
• meaning. Pre- means before, post- means after, pro - is positive, deis negative.
• From these prefixes and suffixes, you can get an idea of the general
meaning of the
• word and try to put it into context. Beware though of any traps. Just
because con is
• the opposite of pro, doesn’t necessarily mean congress is the
opposite of progress!
CRCT Common Vocabulary
Terms
• Test development sometimes results in
terms being used on a test that may be
unique to the test. Listed below are terms
that may be used in Georgia’s CriterionReferenced Competency Tests. In many
instances, these terms may represent
concepts included in Georgia’s
Performance Standards. This is only a
sample list and is not meant to be
comprehensive.
Know The Vocabulary
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CRCT Common Vocabulary Terms
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CRCT Key Terms- Reading and English Language Arts
Grades 1-3
Action word (verbs)
Best order (sequence)
Combine sentences (conjunctions)
Complete sentence
Compound predicate
Compound subject
Describing words (adjectives)
Ending sounds (rhyming words)
Imperative sentences
Modifier (adjective)
Mostly about (main idea)
Naming word (noun)
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Opinion
Opposite (antonym)
Passage (story)
Root word (base word)
Simple predicate
Simple subject
Sounds like (homophones)
Transition
Types of sentence (telling, asking, command, excitement,
supporting)
• Word parts (syllables)
Grades 4-5 (Reading and
English Language Arts)
Conjunctions
Context clues
Draw conclusion
Fragment
Impose
Inference
Irrelevant
Main idea
Mainly
Means opposite of
Means the same as
Modifier
Math Grades 1-3
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Angles
Area
Best unit
Difference
Digit
Equal to
Equivalent
Estimate
Even and odd numbers
Factor
Fraction
Greater than
Less than
Lines of symmetry
Measurement (width, height, length)
Model
Money value
Number is closest (nearest to)
Number line
Number pattern
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Number sentence
Number sentence is same as
Older (more)
Operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division)
Ordinal number
Pie
Same as
Solve
Value equals
View as
Whole number
Younger (less)
Acknowledgement: Many of the words in this list are borrowed from the
work of selected
Gwinnett County Public School educators.
Grades 4-5 Math
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Algebraic
Balanced
Common denominator
Computation
Coordinates on a grid
Digit
Doubling
Estimate
Expanded notation
Geometric figures
In all (total)
Least likely/most likely
Model
Number sentence
Patterns
Perimeter
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Place value
Prime number
Probability
Problem solving strategy
Product
Properties
Remainder
Rename
Rounded to
Simplest forms
Sum
Symbol for does not equal
Wonderful Websites
• www.cobbk12.org/bullard/
• www.doe.k12.ga.us