The Connecticut Mastery Test, or CMT, is a test administered to students in grades 3 through 8. The CMT tests students in mathematics, reading, writing, and science (science was administered for the first time in March 2008). The test used to be administered only in grades 4, 6, and 8, but the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, which requires testing every year, has forced Connecticut to administer the test in grades 3, 5, and 7 as well. The other major standardized test administered to schoolchildren in Connecticut is the Connecticut Academic Performance Test, or CAPT, which is given in grade 10.
The CMT is graded on a scale from 1 to 5 in each area tested (mathematics, reading, science (for only fifth grade and eighth grade) and writing). On this scale, 5 is considered "advanced," 4 is considered "goal," 3 is considered "proficient," 2 is considered "basic," and 1 is considered "below basic."
Until the 2005-2006 school year the CMT was administered in the fall; now it is given in the spring.