The WV homeschooling law, 18-8-1 (c)(2) requires that each home educated child of compulsory age be assessed annually. Parents must maintain copies of each student’s Academic Assessment for three years. The assessment results for students in 3rd, 5th, 8th and 11th grades must be submitted to the county by June 30.  

The annual assessment can be one of the following:

A nationally normed standardized achievement test

For those families who choose the first assessment option above, CHEWV offers the Iowa Assessments™ each year as a service to our members and friends. Other testing options are also available.  Follow the testing tab for more information.

The testing program currently in use in the WV public schools and administered in a public school

This second option means going to the public school to take the annual standardized tests as adopted by the state BOE.  Currently, it appears that only grades 3-8 and grade 11 are tested in public schools, so parents should not assume this is a viable assessment choice for all grades. To use this option, parents need to contact the local school well in advance of spring testing so that a test can be reserved.  The county is not responsible to pursue testing options for homeschoolers, although many counties send out a questionnaire or notice about public school testing reservations.  Scores go directly to the county and determination of “acceptable progress” is based on current guidelines of the state testing program. (Note: this information about public school assessment options is current to our knowledge, but please confirm with your public school.)

A written narrative prepared by a certified teacher (commonly called the “portfolio review”)

This third option, a written narrative following a portfolio review, is the other primary assessment option besides standardized testing.  Follow our portfolio tab for more information.

An alternative assessment agreed to by the county superintendent.

The fourth option is the only one that requires pre-approval from the county board of education.  This option allows for other assessment options not outlined above.  An example would be an alternative assessment for a special needs child when standardized procedure is not appropriate. It would also include using college entrance exam scores such as SAT or ACT scores.  If the test is not a nationally normed test that provides scores in the five required subjects, it must come under the fourth option and must be approved.

For additional information about both the testing and portfolio options, use the drop-down menu at the top of this page under “Assessments.”