California’s Early Assessment Program (EAP) consists of three parts: college readiness testing in 11th grade, academic preparation in 12th grade, and teacher professional development. EAP’s standardized math and English assessments measure high school juniors’ readiness for college-level work at California State University (CSU) campuses. Based on these assessments, EAP classifies students into four levels: 1) standard not met, 2) standard nearly met, 3) standard met, and 4) standard exceeded. Students taking EAP assessments receive information about their college readiness. If they are deemed unprepared for college, they can enroll in remedial courses in 12th grade and participate in the Early Start preparation program in the summer before enrolling in CSU or participating community colleges. The EAP assessments are administered as part of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) tests in the spring semester of 11th grade.
Year developed: 2004.
Content
Administration Information
Access and Use
Free to all public school 11 grade students in California
California’s High School Innovations and Initiatives Office, HSIIO@cde.ca.gov, 916-319-0893
Howell, J. S., Kurlaender, M., & Grodsky, E. (2010). Postsecondary preparation and remediation: Examining the effect of the early assessment program at California State University. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 29(4), 726-748. https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.20526
Jackson, J., & Kurlaender, M. (2016). K–12 postsecondary alignment and school accountability: Investigating high school responses to California’s Early Assessment Program. American Journal of Education, 122(4), 477-503. https://doi.org/10.1086/687273
Kolluri, S., & Tierney, W. G. (2020). Understanding college readiness: The limitations of information and the possibilities of cultural integrity, The Educational Forum, 84(1), 80-93. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131725.2020.1672003
Kurlaender, M. (2014). Assessing the promise of California’s Early Assessment Program for community colleges. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 655(1), 36-55. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716214534609