The Stanford Achievement Test Series, the most recent version of which is usually referred to simply as the "Stanford 10", is a set of standardized achievement tests used by school districts in the United States and in American schools abroad for assessing children from kindergarten through high school. First published in 1926, the test is now in its tenth version. Although in many states it is being replaced by state-created tests (mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001), it is not equivalent to most of these tests in that the Stanford series are more comprehensive in scope than the newer assessments. The test is available in 13 levels that roughly correspond to the year in school. Each level of the test is broken into subtests or strands covering various subjects such as reading comprehension, mathematics problem-solving, language, spelling, listening comprehension, science, and social science.
The Stanford Achievement Test Series is used to measure academic knowledge of elementary and secondary school students. The reports include narrative summaries, process and cluster summaries, and graphic displays to clarify the student's performance and guide planning and analysis. Administrators obtain critical data to document and monitor the progress of all children and to disaggregate results according to federal mandates. Teachers receive specific information to support instructional planning for individual students and the class as well as to improve their teaching. Parents better understand their child's achievement level and get direction for home involvement.
The Stanford 10 is one of the few tests in the United States which continues to use stanines to report scores.
The Stanford Achievement Test is not to be confused with the SAT college admission test published by the College Board in the United States.