1.1 What CASAS Measures

CASAS is a competency-based measurement system

The Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) is the assessment most widely used by federally funded adult education programs in the United States. It is built around adult life and workplace competencies: reading a workplace notice, using a bus schedule, interpreting a medicine label, completing a form, and applying math to a paycheck or a grocery bill. CASAS is not a licensing exam. It is a placement and progress tool that programs use to enroll learners at the right level, target instruction, and report outcomes to the federal government.

Under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), programs must use an approved test to measure learner gain. CASAS is approved for this purpose, which is why a CASAS score is almost always tied to a program goal rather than a personal certificate. There is no "diploma" issued by CASAS itself.

The current test series: GOALS 2 and STEPS

CASAS replaced its older Life and Work reading series with newer series aligned to the College and Career Readiness (CCR) Standards for adult education. The two families you will most often see are GOALS 2 and STEPS.

STEPS stands for Student Test of English Progress and Success and is aligned to the English Language Proficiency (ELP) Standards for adult education. The series name matters on test day: a Reading GOALS 2 score and a Listening STEPS score are not interchangeable, because they measure different skills for different populations.

Scale scores, not raw percent

CASAS does not report a simple percent correct. It reports a vertical scale score placed on a common scale across forms and levels, so a learner's pretest and post-test can be compared even if the forms differ. Programs then map that scale score to a National Reporting System (NRS) Educational Functioning Level (EFL).

The ranges are exact and published. For example:

• Reading GOALS 2: Beginning ABE Literacy is a scale score of 203 and below.
• Math GOALS 2: Beginning ABE Literacy is 192 and below; Beginning Basic ABE is 193 to 203; Low Intermediate ABE is 204 to 213; Middle Intermediate ABE is 214 to 224.

Note that Reading and Math use different cut scores for the same NRS level, so you cannot assume a math number means the same thing as a reading number.

The standard testing flow

1. Locator or appraisal - a short screening that selects the right pretest level so the form is neither far too easy nor far too hard. An off-level form produces a less accurate scale score.
2. Pretest - records the learner's starting scale score and NRS level.
3. Instruction - targets the competencies flagged on the score report.
4. Post-test - measures growth; a jump to the next NRS level is a "measurable skill gain" for federal reporting.
5. Next decision - guides the next class, goal, or test level.

How the test adapts on screen

Most CASAS testing is now delivered through CASAS eTests on a computer, and the GOALS 2 forms are designed to estimate skill efficiently. A practical detail: on Levels B, C, D, and E the system does not produce a usable scale score until the learner has answered at least the first ten items, because too few responses cannot pin a reliable estimate on the vertical scale. The takeaway for a test-taker is simple - the early items count, and rushing or guessing through the opening block weakens the whole score estimate.

Form timing also differs by series and level. As a rough guide, Reading GOALS forms run about 75 minutes (with Level A shorter at roughly 60 minutes), and Math GOALS forms run about 60 to 75 minutes depending on level. Programs administer the matching pretest and post-test from the same series so the scores sit on the same scale and a gain can be reported.

NRS levels you will see referenced

No universal pass score

Avoid asking "What score passes CASAS?" Because Reading and Math GOALS 2 are NRS-approved by OCTAE through June 2032 for federal reporting, a result's meaning always depends on the series, the level, and the program goal - enrollment, class placement, a measurable skill gain, or workforce eligibility. A learner might "pass" by simply advancing one NRS level between pretest and post-test, which is what programs report as a measurable skill gain.

For test prep, the practical aim is to understand how the system works: read the document, find exact evidence, solve only the task asked, take the early items seriously, and use the score report to see which competency area needs work.