Quick data guide

For each test, the following information is available for each student:

• The number of questions attempted.
• The Standard Age Score (SAS).
• The National Percentile Rank (NPR).
• The Group Rank (GR).
• English Skills Stanine (ST).
• Reading Comprehension Stanine (ST), reported separately in PTE 7 and above.
• Progress Category.

The SAS is based on the student’s raw score which has been adjusted for age and placed on a scale that makes a comparison with a nationally representative sample of students of the same age across the UK. The average score is 100. The SAS is key to benchmarking and tracking progress and is the fairest way to compare the performance of different students within a year group or across year groups.

The NPR relates to the SAS and indicates the percentage of students obtaining any particular score. NPR of 50 is average. NPR of 5 means that the student’s score is within the lowest 5% of the national sample, and 95 means that the student’s score is within the highest 5% of the national sample.

This shows how each student has performed in comparison to those in the defined group. The symbol = represents joint ranking with one or more other students.

This is a standardised score scale divided into bands to give an overview of performance. The student’s score is placed on a scale of 1 (low) to 9 (high). Stanines are particularly useful when reporting test results to students and parents as they are relatively easy to understand and interpret.

This is measured between administrations of PTE, and is expressed as much higher than expected, higher than expected, expected, lower than expected and much lower than expected.

For more information, please see the Progress Test Series Sample Report Guide.