PSSA

Please click on the appropriate tab below to access elementary or middle school PSSA information.


Parents who wish to opt-out their child from PSSA testing for religious reasons must do the following:
• Send a request for religious exemption to the building principal and the Superintendent no later than April 14, 2025.
• Contact your child’s principal to review the test (reviews will be scheduled once tests arrive at the buildings)
• The principal will schedule an appointment with you
• Review of the test must be in the presence of an administrator or designee 
• You may not take photos or record the test in any way 
• You must sign the security certificate 

Additional Documentation
Electronic Devices

In an era of cell phones, smartphones and other electronic devices which can easily photograph and instantly share photographs, confidential and secure test materials can be easily compromised. Not only is it expensive to replace 
a compromised test item, the material contained in the PSSA and Keystone Exams is copyrighted property of the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Copying or duplicating the material from the assessment, including the taking of 
a photograph of secure assessment material, is a violation of the federal Copyright Act. Penalties for violations of 
the Copyright Act may include the cost of replacing the compromised test item(s) or fines of no less than $750 up to 
$30,000 for a single violation (17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq.).

In order to ensure reliable test results and to avoid the cost of replacing test items, the Department of Education 
requires schools to set rules and take certain steps to protect test materials. Electronic devices such as but not 
limited to cell phones, smartphones, smartwatches, E-readers, Nooks, Kindles, iPods, tablets, camera-ready devices, 
and any other electronic device which can be used to photograph or duplicate test materials, access the internet 
and/or communicate with others during the administration of the PSSA or Keystone Exams are not permitted in any 
testing site. Please speak with your child and let your child know that the possession and/or use of a cell phone or 
other electronic device during the administration of the PSSA or Keystone Exams will result in consequences.

You will be contacted by the school if your child is discovered using and/or having a cell phone or other unapproved 
electronic device during the administration of the PSSA or Keystone Exams. Students who ignore this directive will 
be subject to the school’s discipline policy and the Department of Education’s requirement that the student’s test 
will not be scored and the student will be required to retake the entire exam. The electronic device will be held by 
school staff, and the device’s stored photographs and other functions will be examined with your permission. You 
may request to be present when the electronic device is examined. If a photograph of the PSSA or Keystone Exam 
is discovered or if permission to search other functions of the electronic device is refused, the device will be held by 
the school staff. The Pennsylvania Department of Education holds the copyright to all material contained within the 
PSSA and Keystone Exams. The Pennsylvania Department of Education will be contacted and further action may be 
taken.

If, after testing is complete and test materials have been returned, it is discovered that a student used and/or had a 
cell phone or other unapproved electronic device during the administration of the test, the school’s discipline policy 
will be followed and the student’s test will not be scored

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