State of New Jersey Department of Education

Assessment in the Standards Movement: Middle School Samples


Sample Items for Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment (GEPA): Science

Sample Open-ended Item


Answer: The student draws the front off the coast as a cold front. The temperature is between 25°F and 35°F. The student explains that the cold front is moving West to East and that the cold front lowers the temperature as it passes.

Explanation: “Make inferences from observations and from collected data that a system is composed of interacting parts. A weather map can be used to predict temperature and precipitation for several days for a given area.”