New York City Private Schools Admissions Tests

PRIVATE SCHOOL ADMISSIONS

Which test will my child be asked to take?

The test that your child will be asked to take depends on the school and your child’s grade. See the list below for the tests that she might be asked to take. A description of each test follows the first section.

Pre-Kindergarden, Kindergarten and First Grade

• ERB-AABL (ERB- Admission Assessment for Beginning Learners)
• ERB-ECCA (ERB-Early Childhood Admission Assessment) or ERB-WPPSI-IV (ERB- Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence IV)

Second Grade

• ERB-CTP-4 (Comprehensive Testing Program- fourth edition)
• ERB- ECCA (The Early Childhood Admission Assessment) or ERB-WISC- IV (Wechsler Intelligence Scale- fourth edition) or THE ECAA

Third Grade

• ERB-CTP-4 (Comprehensive Testing Program- fourth edition)
• ERB- ECCA (The Early Childhood Admission Assessment) or ERB- WISC- IV (Wechsler Intelligence Scale- fourth edition) or THE ECAA

Fourth and Fifth Grades

• The Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE)
• ERB-CTP-4 (Comprehensive Testing Program- fourth edition)

Middle School (6th, 7th and 8th grades)

• ERB-CTP-4 (Comprehensive Testing Program- fourth edition)
• The Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE)

Description of Exams

ERB-AABL (ERB- Admission Assessment for Beginning Learners)

The ERB-AABL is an online test that is administered to children on an iPad. It measures children’s math skills, quantitative reasoning (the application of math skills to solve problems), and verbal and literacy skills.

ERB-ECCA (ERB-Early Childhood Admission Assessment) or ERB-WPPSI-IV (ERB- Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence IV)

The ERB-ECCA or ERB-WPPSI-IV is a modified versions of the Wechsler Preschool and Primary IQ test that tests nonverbal and verbal intelligence. It includes eight of the subtests of the Wechsler. The tests includes two main sections, verbal and non-verbal, and four subtests within each of those two sections. The four verbal sub-tests are vocabulary, similarities, information and comprehension. The four non-verbal subtests are block design, matrix reasoning, bug search and picture concepts. The test is administered one-on-one and usually takes about 45 minutes. It is very important to note that the ERB-ECCA can be taken only once in an admissions cycle. Children are compared to other children in their three month age band. As three months is a considerable amount of time in the development of a four or five year old child, it is best to have your child take the exam when she is at the end of a three month age band.

ERB-CTP-4 (Comprehensive Testing Program- fourth edition)

The ERB-CTP-4 is an assessment for grades 1-11 that measures student achievement in English and mathematics. In grades 3-11 the test includes quantitative reasoning and verbal sections. The CTP online exam includes a science section for grades three through eleven.

ERB- ECCA (The Early Childhood Admission Assessment) or ERB-WISC- IV (Wechsler Intelligence Scale- fourth edition) or THE ECAA

The ERB-ECCA is a modified version of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- fourth edition (WISC-IV). It is an i.q. test that measures verbal and non-verbal skills, working memory and processing speeds. It includes ten of the fifteen subtests found on the WISC-IV.  The verbal subtests are vocabulary, similarities, arithmetic, comprehension and information. The non-verbal subtests are picture concepts, block design, matrix reasoning, coding and picture completion. The test is administered one-on-one and takes from 60 to 90 minutes.

The Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE)

The lower level ISEE for candidates to fifth and sixth grades includes four sections and an essay. The exam measures verbal and quantitative reasoning, reading comprehension, mathematics achievement and writing skills. The test takes about two hours and twenty minutes.

The middle and upper level ISEE include four sections and an essay. The exams measure verbal and quantitative reasoning, reading comprehension, mathematics achievement and writing skills. The tests take about two hours and forty minutes.

Resources

• The ERB’s Pre-K to Grade 4 Testing Guide 
• The Upper Level ISEE Guide 

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