OSAS English Language Arts Test - Grade 4 ELA Claims, Targets, and Standards Alignment

Oct 1, 2026

OSAS Grade 4 English Language Arts (ELA) summative assessment is aligned to Oregon’s ELA and Literacy Standards, mapping what students should know and do at this enrolled grade. The test structure organizes multiple ELA domains—approximately Reading, Writing, Listening, and Research—into assessment claims supported by grade-level assessment targets. The document defines content claims, explains how targets reflect standards, learning progressions, and Depth of Knowledge (DOK) levels, and outlines how claims and results support local assessment design and interpretation of district/school target reports.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

OSAS ELA Grade 4 Alignment Overview

Assessment domains and claims

Use of claims and targets for instruction

Claims and Targets

Content claims definition

Assessment targets and standards alignment

Depth of Knowledge (DOK)

DOK levels 1-4

OSAS Blueprint: Target Sampling ELA/Literacy Grades 3–8 and HS

Computer Adaptive (CAT): Reading claims and targets

Writing claims and performance tasks

Listening and Research claims

OSAS English Language Arts Test Grade 4 English Language Arts (ELA) Claims, Targets, and Standards Alignment This document aligns the OSAS ELA summative test with the Oregon English Language Arts (ELA) and Literacy Standards. Oregon’s ELA summative tests are built around what students should know and be able to do within their enrolled grade. The OSAS ELA summative test includes multiple ELA domains (Approximately Reading 40%, Writing 40%, Listening 10%, and Research 10%) which are referenced as assessment “Claims”. Each claim is accompanied by grade-level assessment targets which correlate to the specific concepts associated with standards and their full depth of critical thinking. These claims and targets can be used to design local assessments or develop classroom lessons with task-rich activities. In addition, the document serves as a guide in understanding the OSAS ELA test results and interpreting district/school target reports. CLAIMS AND TARGETS: Content claims are summary statements about the knowledge and skills students are expected to demonstrate on the assessment related to a particular aspect of the standards. Within each claim area, assessment targets were developed to ensure the inclusion of standards, learning progressions, and the Depth of Knowledge levels. DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE: The DOK level assigned should reflect the level of work students are most commonly required to perform for the response to be deemed acceptable. The DOK level should reflect the complexity of the cognitive processes demanded by the task, rather than its difficulty. Ultimately the DOK level describes the kind of thinking required by a task, not whether or not the task is “difficult”. • Level 1 requires students to receive or recite facts or to use simple skills or abilities. • Level 2 includes the engagement of some mental processing beyond recalling or reproducing a response. Includes conceptual understanding generally refers to the integration and application of concepts and other ideas within a content area. Procedural understanding denotes knowledge about skills and sequence of steps, when and how these should be used appropriately, and their efficient and accurate applications. • Level 3 requires strategic thinking. Students must be able to support their thinking. Includes, non-routine problem solving like reading and determining the author’s purpose. • Level 4 requires extended thinking. Usually requires work over a period of time. They may also be asked to develop hypotheses and perform complex analyses of the connections among texts. | OSAS Blueprint: Target Sampling ELA/Literacy Grades 3 – 8 and HS | | | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Component | Claim | Content Category | Targets | Items | Total Items | OSAS Blueprint Descriptors | | Computer Adaptive (CAT) | 1: Reading | Literary | 2: Central Ideas | 0-1 | 4 | Reading: Approximately 33% of text-related assessment evidence will come from reading literary texts and may include stories, poems, plays, myths, or legends. | | | | | 4: Reasoning and Evaluation | 1 | | | | | | | 1: Key Details | 2 – 3 | | | | | | | 3: Word Meanings | | | | | | | | 5: Analysis with/across Texts | | | | | | | | 6: Text Structures and Features | | | | | | | | 7: Language Use | | | | | | | Informational | 9: Central Ideas | 1 – 2 | 7-8 | Reading: Approximately 66% of text-related assessment evidence will come from reading informational texts and may include science, social studies, and technical texts/topics. | | | | | 11: Reasoning and Evaluation | 1 – 2 | | | | | | | 8: Key Details | 5-6 | | | | | | | 10: Word Meanings | | | | | | | | 12: Analysis with/across Texts | | | | | | | | 13: Text Structures and Features | | | | | | | | 14: Language Use | | | | | | 2: Writing | Organization/Purpose | 1b/3b/6b: Revise Brief Texts | 2 | 6 | Evidence will come from revising, and/or editing the var

FAQs

What are assessment “claims” in the OSAS Grade 4 ELA test framework?

Claims are summary statements of the knowledge and skills students are expected to demonstrate on the assessment for a particular aspect of the standards. Each claim is paired with grade-level assessment targets.

How do assessment targets relate to the Oregon ELA and Literacy Standards?

Within each claim area, assessment targets are developed to ensure inclusion of standards, learning progressions, and Depth of Knowledge levels, aligning assessment tasks to the required conceptual depth.

What does Depth of Knowledge (DOK) level indicate for ELA tasks?

DOK reflects the complexity of the cognitive processes needed for an acceptable response, describing the type of thinking required by a task rather than the task’s difficulty.

Oct 1, 2026

Uploaded by Taylor Morgan