What are the five performance levels, what is the competency score that counts toward graduation, and what happens if you do not reach it?
Performance levels and graduation on the Ohio English II test: the five performance levels (Limited, Basic, Proficient, Accelerated, Advanced), the competency score of 684 that counts toward graduation for the classes of 2023 and beyond, how it relates to the Proficient level, and the support, retake, and approved alternatives for students who do not reach it.
How the Ohio English II test reports results and counts toward graduation: the five performance levels (Limited, Basic, Proficient, Accelerated, Advanced), the competency score of 684 for the classes of 2023 and beyond, how it relates to the Proficient level, and the support, retake, and approved alternatives if a student falls short.
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What this skill is asking
Understanding how Ohio's State Test for English Language Arts II is scored and what it counts for is part of being ready for it. Results are reported in five performance levels, and the test also carries a competency score that counts toward graduation. For the classes of 2023 and beyond, Ohio asks students to demonstrate competency in English II and Algebra I, and the English II competency score is a scaled score of 684. Knowing this takes the mystery out of the stakes: you learn what the levels mean, what 684 represents, and, importantly, what happens if you do not reach it on the first try, because there is support, a retake, and a set of approved alternatives. This page covers the five levels, the competency score and how it relates to the Proficient level, and the path for students who fall short. It is reassurance grounded in how the system actually works.
The five performance levels
Your result is reported as one of five levels, which describe how well you met the standards.
The five-level scale is a description of performance, not the graduation rule by itself. It tells a student and their school how well they did, from Limited at the bottom to Advanced at the top, with Proficient as the central benchmark for meeting the standards. The competency score that counts toward graduation is a specific point on the scaled-score range, which the next section explains.
The competency score and graduation
Graduation depends on a competency score, which is distinct from the performance levels.
It helps to keep the two ideas separate. The five levels grade your command of the standards; the competency score (684) is the specific bar Ohio set for graduation. A student scoring at or above 684 has met the English II competency requirement for graduation, even if their performance level is Basic rather than Proficient. This is the same competency framework the hub describes, and it is why the extended response and the reading items matter, they together produce the scaled score that decides both.
If you do not reach competency
Falling short of 684 is not the end; Ohio builds in support and alternatives.
Try this
Q1. Name the five performance levels in order and the English II competency score for graduation. [Recall]
- Cue. Limited, Basic, Proficient, Accelerated, Advanced (lowest to highest). The competency score is a scaled score of 684, which falls in the Basic level for the classes of 2023 and beyond.
Q2. A student scores just below 684 on the first attempt. Explain the path to still meeting the graduation requirement. [Short explanation]
- Cue. The student receives support and retakes the test at least once. If competency is still not met, they may demonstrate it through an approved alternative such as College Credit Plus, remediation-free ACT or SAT scores, a career-experience and technical-skill pathway, or military enlistment. A single low score does not block graduation.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of ODEW exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Ohio English II EOC (style)1 marksHow many performance levels does the English II test report, and what are they? (1) Three: Pass, Fail, Honors. (2) Five: Limited, Basic, Proficient, Accelerated, Advanced. (3) Four: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum. (4) Two: Below, Above.Show worked answer →
Answer: (2). Ohio reports English II results in five performance levels: Limited, Basic, Proficient, Accelerated, and Advanced. They run from lowest (Limited) to highest (Advanced).
Options (1), (3), and (4) are invented. The five-level scale is how the state communicates how well a student met the standards, and it is separate from the competency score that counts toward graduation.
Ohio English II EOC (style)1 marksWhat is the English II competency score for graduation for the classes of 2023 and beyond, and what happens if a student does not reach it on the first try?Show worked answer →
Competency in English II is a scaled score of 684. For the classes of 2023 and beyond, Ohio asks students to demonstrate competency in English II and Algebra I, and 684 is the English II competency score.
A student who does not reach 684 receives support and must retake the test at least once. After that, the student may demonstrate competency through an approved alternative, such as College Credit Plus, remediation-free ACT or SAT scores, a career-experience and technical-skill pathway, or military enlistment. So a single low score is not the end of the road.
Related dot points
- The two-part structure of the Ohio English II test: how the test is delivered in two parts on computer, what each part contains (reading passages with machine-scored items and at least one hand-scored extended response), how the reporting categories of Reading Literary Text, Reading Informational Text, and Writing map onto it, and how knowing the structure helps you plan.
How the Ohio English II test is organized: two parts delivered on computer, each with unseen reading passages and machine-scored items, plus at least one hand-scored extended response. How the reporting categories of Reading Literary Text, Reading Informational Text, and Writing map onto it, and how the structure shapes your plan.
- Technology-enhanced item types on the Ohio English II test: multiple-choice, multi-select, and the technology-enhanced formats, drag-and-drop, drop-down menus, hot-text selection, and evidence-based selected-response two-part items where a second part asks for the supporting line, and how to read and answer each format accurately.
The item types on the Ohio English II test: multiple-choice, multi-select, and technology-enhanced formats, drag-and-drop, drop-down menus, hot-text selection, and evidence-based two-part items where Part B asks for the supporting line. How to read and answer each format accurately.
- Pacing the Ohio English II test: budgeting time across the two parts so the machine-scored reading items and the hand-scored extended response both get enough time, reserving sustained time for planning and writing the essay, using a flag-and-return strategy for hard items, and reading passages efficiently without rushing comprehension.
How to pace the Ohio English II test: budgeting time across the two parts, reserving sustained time for the extended response, flagging and returning to hard reading items, and reading passages efficiently. Pacing protects both the reading items and the essay so neither runs out of time.
- Reading the prompt and the rubric on the Ohio English II test: using the extended-response prompt and Ohio's grades 6-12 writing rubric together as a strategy, reading the prompt to fix the mode and task and writing deliberately toward the three rubric domains, Purpose Focus and Organization, Evidence and Elaboration, and Conventions, so the essay earns marks in each.
How to use the extended-response prompt and Ohio's grades 6-12 writing rubric together as a strategy on the Ohio English II test: read the prompt to fix the mode and task, then write toward the three rubric domains on purpose. Knowing both the prompt and the rubric is the surest way to earn writing marks.
- Ohio's writing rubric and scoring for the English II extended response: the three domains of the grades 6-12 writing rubric, Purpose, Focus, and Organization (0 to 4), Evidence and Elaboration (0 to 4), and Conventions of Standard English (0 to 2), the two rubric versions for argumentation and informative or explanatory writing, how trained readers apply them, and what earns a 0.
How Ohio's grades 6-12 writing rubric scores the English II extended response: three domains, Purpose Focus and Organization (0 to 4), Evidence and Elaboration (0 to 4), and Conventions of Standard English (0 to 2), for a maximum of 10 points. The two rubric versions, how readers apply them, and what scores a 0.
Sources & how we know this
- Demonstrating Competency — ODEW (2025)
- ELA II course resources — ODEW (2025)