Achievement District Test Coordinator Updates
March 30, 2023
Achievement District Test Coordinators (DTCs),

Testing is well underway now for AzSCI and ACT across the state. Next week, there will be four Achievement statewide testing windows open - AASA, AzSCI, ACT Aspire, and ACT. We have only a few team members responding to emails regarding these four assessments, so please assist us by following the guidance below when contacting us.
  • Include your district or charter name and the district or charter entity ID in your emails to us. This assists us with researching your questions more quickly.
  • State which assessment(s) your inquiry is about - AASA, AzSCI, ACT Aspire, or ACT.
  • Email only one of our inboxes (AASA, AzSCI, or Testing). Please do not copy the other inboxes on your email. This helps us track emails that have been completed vs. those that still require follow up.
  • Send questions about AASA to AASA@azed.gov, questions about AzSCI to AzSCI@azed.gov, and questions about ACT or ACT Aspire to Testing@azed.gov.
  • We are able to respond to emails more quickly than voicemails. Please send your inquiry via email if possible.
  • For issues that occur while students are testing, please include in the subject line, "Urgent - Students Testing."
  • Do not send student names via email as this would be a FERPA violation. Send only SSID numbers when contacting us about a particular student.
For Pearson or ACT Customer Support, please use the following contact information. Please retain your ticket number if you contact either Pearson or ACT for assistance.

Contact Pearson for AASA or AzSCI Customer Support:
AzSCI - 1-888-705-9421, Option 1 (For technical assistance, ask to speak with Level 2)
AASA - 1-888-705-9421, Option 3 (For technical assistance, ask to speak with Level 2)

ACT Aspire - Contact ACT at 1-855-730-0400
ACT - Contact ACT at 1-319-337-1567 (this is an Arizona-specific number)
  • General Questions: 1-800-553-6244, Ext. 2800
  • Accommodations Questions: 1-800-553-6244, Ext. 1788
Test Administration Directions Update - AzSCI and AASA

It has come to our attention that the scripted directions to begin the online AzSCI test do not align with some of the screens that students see when beginning the test. An update is being provided to correct this discrepancy. The update will be available electronically in PearsonAccessNext under Setup > Documentation, is currently posted on the AzSCI page of our website under "Spring 2022 Manuals and Checklists," and is available through this link: AzSCI Test Administration Directions Update - Available Tests Screen.

This discrepancy will also impact AASA online test administration. A similar Test Administration Directions update is now being finalized for the AASA Test Administration Directions and will be provided electronically very soon.
AASA and AzSCI - Contacting ADE

When emailing the AASA or AzSCI inboxes, please provide the following information. These are the details we will need when you reach out to ADE with issues during testing.

  • Your name and email address
  • District name and entity ID
  • School name
  • Test - AASA or AzSCI
  • Test session / Content area:
    • ELA (Reading, Writing, or Grade 3 Oral Reading Fluency)
    • Math
    • Science
  • Is the student currently testing? (Provide student SSID. Do not send student names via email.)
  • Has the student left the testing environment?
  • What is the issue?
  • Please specify: Reopen, Resume, Reset test.
  • Have you contacted Pearson? If yes, please provide Pearson ticket number.
  • Additional comments or questions describing what you need assistance with
General Testing Reminders

All remote monitoring software should be disabled for state testing, including Lightspeed, LANSchool, Apple Classroom, and others. This software causes test security concerns during state testing. For additional information, please see the email sent to District Test Coordinators on March 1, 2023.

All students who are enrolled and in attendance during the statewide test windows are expected to test. There are no provisions in Arizona state law for parents to opt their students out of testing nor medical exemptions for state testing. Please schedule makeup testing as needed during the test windows in order to test all students.

Students who have withdrawn from your school/district/charter do not need to be removed from PearsonAccessNext (PAN). PAN is not used for Accountability purposes, so these records can safely be left in PAN as is.

High school testing is by cohort rather than by grade level. The cohort is assigned when a student first enters 9th grade and stays with them throughout high school, regardless of actual grade level or courses completed.
Work Requests - AASA, AzSCI, and ACT Aspire

Please check each PearsonAccessNext site daily (AASA, AzSCI, and ACT Aspire) for work requests that may be waiting for approval. DTCs should look for the red bell at the top of the screen. The red bell indicates that a work request is pending approval to transfer a student. These transfers need to be completed in a timely manner so that students may be set up for testing after they have transferred to a new school.
Please use the following guidelines when approving work requests for AASA, AzSCI, and ACT Aspire.
  • If a student has not started testing, APPROVE the work request.
  • If a student has completed one or more test units, but has not completed the entire test, APPROVE the work request.
  • If a student has completed all test units of the assessment, REJECT the work request, and indicate in the Comments field, "Student has already completed testing."
Please do not make any adjustments to the student record prior to submitting a Work Request to transfer the student as this creates errors and delays the transfer of the record. The most common issue ADE is seeing regarding Work Requests is that when districts who are receiving a new student try to create a Work Request to move the student, they are receiving the following error.
Another indication of the error would be that you are unable to select any other school from the "Change Enrollment From" or "Change Enrollment To" dropdowns (with the exception of your own schools). When creating a Work Request to receive a student coming from another district, please be sure you are not adding your organization to the student record before creating the Work Request. Once the Work Request has been approved by the releasing school/district, the organization will update in the student's record automatically.
ACT Updates and Reminders
  • ACT test sessions may now be created for Test Window #2.
  • If ACT tests were administered in Test Window #1, please ensure all secure test materials and completed test administration forms have been returned at the end of Test Window #1. If you then administer makeup tests during Test Window #2, return Test Window #2 materials after testing in the second window is completed. Do not hold materials from Test Window #1 until the end of Test Window #2.
  • Paper test booklets from Test Window #1 may not be used in Test Window #2. To do so will result in test invalidation.
  • Students may complete MyACT prior to testing or up to two days after they finish testing. Students who set up a MyACT account will have the opportunity to send their ACT scores to up to 4 colleges or scholarship agencies for free and will receive their test results faster than waiting for paper score reports. MyACT resources are posted on the ACT website under Step 4: Preparation.
For questions about AASA, please contact us at AASA@azed.gov.
For questions about AzSCI, please contact us at AzSCI@azed.gov.
For questions about ACT Aspire and ACT, please contact us at Testing@azed.gov.
Audra Ahumada
Deputy Associate Superintendent of Assessment
Arizona Department of Education

Joseph M. Guzman, Ph.D.
Associate Superintendent of Standards, Assessment, Accountability and Research
Arizona Department of Education