Virginia SOL Assessment Program
News and Announcements
SETTING NEW EXPECTATIONS FOR VIRGINIA STUDENTS:
Background on Mastery Level/Standard Setting
Virginia students deserve an excellent public education system that prepares them for success for life after high school graduation. Providing a best-in-class education system for every Virginia student requires an increase in rigor, accountability, and support. Over the past three years, the Virginia Board of Education has prioritized raising expectations for Virginia students through the adoption of more rigorous Standards of Learning, and VDOE has re-designed summative assessments to more fully measure the rigor of the new academic content standards. As a result of the re-designed assessments and more rigorous standards, the Virginia Board of Education must adopt new performance cuts to be implemented in the 2025-2026 school year.
The Virginia Department of Education is committed to keeping all stakeholders informed of the process as we continue to deliver on the promise of ensuring all Virginia students can achieve at the state and national level. The Virginia Education Update Newsletter for April 17, 2025, announced the application process for community members and expert educators to support this work through participation on the Mastery Level/Standard Setting Committees. Please visit the Assessment Committees web page for specific information on the Mastery Level/Standard Setting Committees.
Virginia Standards of Learning
The Standards of Learning (SOL) for Virginia Public Schools establish minimum expectations for what students should know and be able to do at the end of each grade or course in English, Mathematics, Science, History, Social Science, and other subjects.
SOL tests measure students' success in meeting the Board of Education’s expectations for learning and achievement. All items on SOL tests are reviewed by Virginia classroom teachers for accuracy and fairness, and teachers also assist the Virginia Board of Education in setting proficiency standards for the tests.
Assessments Provided by the Virginia Assessment Program
The tests provided by the Virginia Assessment Program are available for school divisions to administer throughout the school year. Please visit the SOL Test Administration and Development web page for details regarding test administration, Virginia Assessment Program Testing Calendars, and other helpful resources.
Virginia Growth Assessments
- Grades 3-8 Reading
- Grades 3-8 Mathematics
SOL Writing Assessments
- End-of-Course (EOC) Writing
SOL Non-Writing Assessments
- Grades 3-8 Reading
- Grades 3-8 Mathematics
- Grade 5 Science
- Grade 8 Science
- Virginia Studies
- Civics and Economics
- EOC Reading
- EOC Algebra 1
- EOC Geometry
- EOC Algebra 2
- EOC Biology
- EOC Chemistry
- EOC Earth Science
- EOC World Geography
- EOC World History and Geography: to 1500 A.D. (C.E.) (World History 1)
- EOC World History and Geography: 1500 A.D. (C.E.) to the Present (World History 2)
- EOC Virginia and United States History
Integrated Reading and Writing Components
These components are part of the Grade 5, 8, and EOC Reading SOL assessments.
- Grade 5 Integrated Reading and Writing Component
- Grade 8 Integrated Reading and Writing Component
- EOC Integrated Reading and Writing Component
Virginia Alternate Assessment Program (VAAP)
- Grades 3-8 Reading
- Grades 3-8 Mathematics
- Grade 5 Science
- Grade 8 Science
- High School Reading
- High School Mathematics
- High School Science
Improving the Assessment Experience
The Virginia Department of Education is a national leader in the use of technology to develop and administer the Standards of Learning (SOL) tests. Virginia’s school divisions have been administering online tests to students for over a decade. Innovations include a new test delivery system, a computer adaptive format for most mathematics and reading tests, and the use of various technology-enhanced items. Virginia has also added an online calculator from Desmos to improve the testing experience of students while taking online mathematics tests.
Online Test Delivery Software
The SOL tests are completed by students in Virginia’s public schools using the online testing application, TestNav™. This application allows for secure administration of SOL tests to students on a wide variety of devices, including desktop computers, laptop computers, and tablets.
As a resource to school divisions and families, the VDOE provides Practice Items in TestNav. The Practice Items serve as an introduction to online test navigation, online tools, item formatting, and overall functionality and appearance of SOL tests within TestNav.
Computer Adaptive Testing
A computer adaptive test (CAT) is an assessment that is customized for every student based on how the student responds to the test questions. Students who take online grades 3-8 Mathematics and Reading tests will be given a computer adaptive version of the Standards of Learning tests.