CTP 5 Test (Comprehensive Testing Program) from ERB

What is the CTP^® 5 Test?

The ERB-CTP^® 5 is a test for high-achieving students and is given at private and public schools nationwide. It is used to collect basic information about student achievement and ability in the areas of the English language (reading comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills) and mathematics. Students in Grades 1 through 11 take the CTP 5 (Comprehensive Testing Program) assessment.

It is not one test, but a battery of subtests consisting of a series of multiple-choice and optional constructed-response questions. It is administered in either fall or spring. It can be given online or pencil to paper.

Grade Level When Given in Fall. During the fall window, the school will usually test at one grade level below the grade the child is in as they are testing for mastery of content knowledge from the previous year. For example, a child in Grade 4 will most likely test at Level 3 during the fall window.

Grade Level When Given in Spring. During the spring window, the school will most likely test at the same level as the grade the child is in as the school is testing for content knowledge of the current year. For example, a child in Grade 6 will test at Level 6 during the spring window.

The CTP Online Test. This is an adaptive test. It is computer-based and contains ELA, math, and science subtest sections (science for grades 3-9 only). Each CTP Online test consists of two parts: Stage 1 and Stage 2. For a specific content area, all students are given the same Stage 1 questions. How well a student performs in Stage 1 will determine what level of questions he/she will be given during Stage 2. Students who can handle harder questions are routed to more difficult questions during Stage 2. Students who can’t handle harder questions are routed to less rigorous questions in Stage 2.

Within each section (e.g. ELA, math), the Content Mastery Score takes into account whether a student answers the question correctly and difficulty level of the items they answered. The CTP Online test differs from the CTP 5 test in that it is adaptive, and students will not receive the exact same questions. The adaptive testing available online provides a more precise measurement of a student’s abilities. The computer-based version of the CTP test is automatically timed online.

The CTP 5 Paper-Based Test. This version was developed in 2018. The main difference between this test and its predecessors is that it assesses not only content-based curriculum performance but also has questions with increased complexity and critical thinking skills. CTP 5 consists of ELA and math subtest sections. It is presented in a multiple-choice format with an optional open-ended question format. Students in early grades take the test under untimed conditions and mark their answers in the test booklet. Students in the middle and upper grades take CTP 5 under timed conditions and mark their answers on a separate answer sheet. The time limits are generous, and all but a few students are able to complete the test in the time allowed. There is also an option for schools to include open-ended reading comprehension and mathematics questions in the test that provides full, partial, or no credit.

There is no wrong answer penalty on the CTP 5 or CTP Online test. Students are encouraged to answer every question.

For both the CTP 5 and CTP Online test, each question is assigned its own DOK (Depth of Knowledge) level. In short, this is a measure of the difficulty level of the question.

English Language Arts:

DOK 1 – requires student to recite facts or use simple skills and abilities.

DOK 2 – requires student to both comprehend and process text. Analysis and inference are required for this level of question. Questions at this level may include these words: collect, compare, classify, display, infer, interpret, organize, and summarize.

DOK 3 – requires the student to have depth of knowledge. Questions require the student to show understanding of ideas in text and also be able to explain, generalize, or connect ideas.

Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning:

DOK 1 – requires student to recite math facts, know basic math language, and classify objects.

DOK 2 – requires the student to exhibit basic application of math skills and concepts. Questions require the student to interpret the material to formulate an answer. They will need to decipher the information and use their conceptual knowledge to choose the appropriate procedure to formulate an answer. This could require two or more steps in the decision-making process. Questions at this level may include these words: compare, collect and display data, estimate, and organize.

DOK 3 – requires strategic thinking. Questions will require reasoning, planning, deciphering, creating a plan or sequence of steps to approach and solve the problem.

Karen Quinn, the Testing Mom, breaks it down for you below. What is the CTP Test?

Tell us about your experiences

33 Responses

sangitalalgupta@gmail.com

Hello! My daughters will be taking the NYC ERB, CTP test for 4th and 5th grade this fall. Where can I find some sample tests? Thank you so much.

Inessa

My son will be taking CTP4 testing for 5th grade. Where do I find some samples of the test?

TestingMom.com

Yes! We have practice questions for CTP4 practice! After you sign-up, email us and we’ll give you specifics. XOXO

Jane

Are the 100 free questions for ERB or CoGAT ?

sonet

What’s the difference between CTP and CTP-4R? What’s 4R? What is that level

GERI

Do you have the CPT 5 test? That is what the new school we are attending says they will be testing with this year. Thank you for your time.

Mariella

Hi, I would also like to know if you have CTP 5 tests. Thank you.

TestingMom.com

Mariella,
We do not currently have a page dedicated to the CTP-5, but it is on our To Do list and we do have some similar materials we can recommend from our site. If you are a member, please email help@testingmom.com to receive these recommendations. This is not a good forum for information sharing as it does not allow graphics.
Thank you,
Team TestingMom

kondubnoel@gmail.com

Do you have sample questions/tests for ERB/CTP for level 2?
Thanks!!

TestingMom.com

Thank you for reaching out to us! Our ERB materials range from Kindergarten – 6th grade.

All the best,

Marcus

Andrew von Mayrhauser

My son is currently in grade five. He is a sharp kid who does well in school but regularly bombs ERBs. We would like to give him some guided ERB or ERB-type test practice at home. Do you have any resources for this?
Thanks
Andrew

TestingMom.com

Hi Andrew –

With a paid subscription, we have sample questions for both the CTP and the ISEE, both are published by ERB.

All the best,

Marcus

jamiekeeling@verizon.net

Are there practice questions for 8th grade?

Kathleen

Looking for practice tests!

TestingMom.com

Hi Kathleen,

We do have practice prep for the CTP test on our website. Have you purchased a membership to Testingmom.com?

Thank you,
Ryan

Ingrid Clark

Hello, my twin sons will take CTP 5 in a few months. Where can I find sample tests and preparation materials? Many thanks.

Abbie

Hi!
I am looking for some sample ERB questions for my 4th and 5th grade math students. Would you mind emailing me some or telling me where to find some?
Thank you,
Abbie

TestingMom.com

Hi Abbie,

Thank you for reaching out to us. ERB publishes two different tests that we support on the website, the ISEE and the CTP. We do provide printable practice questions for both of these tests with a paid membership.

All the best,

Marcus

wenleung@msn.com

Hi, i signed up as member and was looking for CTP ERB test for my 7th grader but your sample questions portion only shows up to 6th grade. Where can i find the 7th grade sample tests?

Elizabeth O’Malley

Hello!

My 4th grade son will be taking the ERB, CTP tests in February. I was wondering if sample questions are available. 🙂

Thank you!
Elizabeth

TestingMom.com

Hi Elizabeth –

Thank you for reaching out to us!

We do have a section specifically for the CTP with a paid subscription to TestingMom.com.

All the best,

Marcus

Angela

I am interested in CTP 5. How can I get this from you?

Thank you,
Angela

TestingMom.com

Hi Angela –

With a paid membership to our website, we offer test preparation for many tests. The CTP 5 is a new test that we do not have a section setup for yet. But we do have recommendation for materials to prepare for this challenging test. Once you purchase a membership, you can email help@testingmom.com and we can provide you with this guidance.

All the best,

Marcus

kds32256@gmail.com

I paid and have never gotten to log on it’s been a year now and membership is expired, very disappointing

TestingMom.com

Hi Kavitha –

Thank you for reaching out to us. I am not showing that there has ever been a paid account associated with this email address. If you will reach out to us at help@testingmom.com, we can help locate the account. If you’re not sure which email you used when signing up, you can provide us with the last 4 digits of your credit card, the type of card and the amount you paid.

All the best,

Marcus

Rama

Would like some proactive test for my students.
Thanks

arti123@gmail.com

Could I please get a CTP 4 test for ERB practice

sonal7731@gmail.com

Hello,

My son needs to prepare for CTP 4th grade. Where can I get the sample practice questions.

Thank you,
Sonal

TestingMom.com

Hi Sonal,

Please email us at help@testingmom.com and we can help you find all the resources available for CTP 4th grade.

wjmprods100@gmail.com

you need to provide the solutions so someone can learn the thought process

TestingMom.com

Hi,

Thank you for this great feedback! We will be looking into offering more solutions on our example question pages in the future. Email us at help@testingmom.com so we can help you with the solutions to those questions for the CTP Test and many more!

Steven

Are CTP ERB online adaptive questions included if I purchase the Black Friday special?

TestingMom.com

Hi Steven,

We are working on interactive questions for the CTP. Currently, we have over 6,000 printable questions for the test covering Kindergarten – 8th grade.

All the best,

Marcus

See if TestingMom.com supports your child’s test by your school district. If you don't see your child's school district listed, check with us! We have practice for other tests as well.