The North Carolina End-of-Course (EOC) Tests are important assessments that are designed to measure student mastery upon completion of key courses in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (NCSOS). Each EOC exam question is written and reviewed by North Carolina educators and designed to assess student proficiency in terms of a particular NCSOS domain and standard.

The four courses that conclude with required EOC tests are:

  • English II, typically taken in 10th grade
  • Math 1, typically taken in 8th or 9th grade
  • Math 3, typically taken in 10th or 11th grade
  • Biology, typically taken in 9th or 10th grade

North Carolina public schools generally administer EOC exams during the last 10 days of the academic year, and they are taken online via North Carolina’s NCTest platform (but students are provided with scratch paper, as well). Students are allotted a maximum of 4 hours to complete the English and Math EOC tests, and 3 hours to complete the Biology EOC test, but most students finish within 3 hours for English and Math and 2 hours for Biology.

Piqosity is excited to announce the release of two NC EOC Math 1 practice tests and two NC EOC English II practice tests, which are currently available for free in our Algebra I course and our ELA 10 course, respectively.

What is tested on the NC EOC Math 1 Test?

North Carolina Math 1 is mostly equivalent to a traditional Algebra 1 course, except that it also incorporates elements of Geometry and Statistics. The EOC Math 1 test covers concepts from four domains:

  • Number and Quantity and Algebra: 36-40%
  • Functions: 32-36%
  • Geometry: 8-12%
  • Statistics and Probability: 18-20%

At least two thirds of the EOC Math 1 test deals with concepts typically covered in Algebra, while the rest of the exam deals with topics in Geometry,  Statistics, and Probability.

The most frequently assessed skills on recently released Math 1 practice tests include:

  • writing and using equations and inequalities to represent linear, exponential, and quadratic relationships
  • finding and interpreting the solutions to a system of linear equations
  • interpreting and evaluating functions using function notation
  • determining whether two lines are parallel or perpendicular and writing their equations

The NCMath 1 test consists of 60 questions; here’s what you should know about them:

  • Only 50 questions count. Each NC Math 1 test includes 10 “field test” questions that are used to develop future exams; these do not count toward a student’s score.
  • A calculator is allowed for most of the test. Of the 50 non-field test questions on the exam, 35 allow the use of a calculator. For questions that allow a calculator, students can utilize a Desmos-based graphing and scientific calculator within the online NCTest application, but they are also permitted to use a handheld calculator.
  • Questions are presented in 5 different formats. In addition to traditional multiple choice and gridded or numeric response questions, the Math 1 test includes “technology-enhanced” problems that ask students to drag and drop answer choices into the correct blank, select one or more correct answers from a list, or build a simple equation from a set of predetermined numbers and operators.

What is tested on the NC EOC English II Test?

While the NCSOS for English Language Arts includes standards for Reading, Language, Writing, and Speaking and Listening, EOC English II is primarily a Reading test. It consists of 7 reading comprehension passages, which include literary and informational texts as well as a poetry selection.

The questions on the EOC English II test primarily assess reading skills and are distributed as follows:

  • Reading for Literature: 35-39%
  • Reading for Informational Text: 42-46%
  • Language: 9-13%

The most frequently assessed reading skills on recently released English II practice tests include:

  • citing textual evidence to support claims and inferences about a text
  • analyzing how characters and themes develop over the course of a text
  • understanding how an author organizes and develops ideas over the course of an informational text
  • analyzing the role played by particular sentences or paragraphs in a text as a whole

Just two language standards are assessed on the exam:

  • determining the meaning of particular words and phrases
  • interpreting and analyzing figures of speech in context

Most of the questions on the EOC English II test come in the form of traditional reading comprehension questions about main ideas, supporting ideas, organization, point of view, figurative language, and vocabulary.

The test consists of 60 questions; here’s what you should know about them:

  • Questions are presented in 3 different formats. Most of the EOC English II test is made up of multiple choice questions about a particular reading selection. Some questions are “technology-enhanced” and require students to drag-and-drop their response or select it from a list. Finally, each test includes 4 constructed response questions that require a written response.
  • Constructed responses are worth more points. Whereas each correct response to a multiple choice or technology-enhanced question on the EOC English II test earns a student 1 point, constructed responses are worth 2 points. These are not full-fledged essays (a typical response is 1 paragraph) but they inherently require more time and effort than the other questions on the test.
  • Only 51/60 questions are scored. Of the 7 passages found on the EOC English II test, one of them is a “field test” passage whose questions do not count toward a student’s score. In turn, only 6 passages – comprising 48 multiple choice or technology-enhanced questions and 3 of the 4 constructed responses – are actually scored.

Do NC EOC Math 1 and English II test scores matter?

Strictly speaking, passing any given EOC exam is not required to graduate from a North Carolina school. However, the state requires schools to count EOC exams as a significant grade—no less than 20% of the final grade for the course. As such, the Math 1 and English II tests generally function as the final exam for their respective courses.

Beyond the importance of EOC testing on the individual student level, student performance is also used as a metric for school accountability. Each student’s Individual Student Report will include their Achievement Level, which assesses their performance relative to grade-level expectations. The four possible Achievement Levels include:

  • Not Proficient
  • Level 3
  • Level 4
  • Level 5

An Achievement Level of 3 or above is considered on-grade level. Levels 4 and 5 are both considered on-track for college and career readiness, but only Level 5 indicates a comprehensive understanding of on-level content and preparedness for advanced content.

How can students prepare for the NC EOC tests?

Because the NC EOC tests are designed to assess specific skills and knowledge that students gain through the NC Standard Course of Study, the best way to prepare is by working diligently throughout the school year in each course that ends with an EOC exam. That means engaging meaningfully in class activities and discussions, completing homework assignments thoroughly and thoughtfully, preparing adequately for quizzes and tests, and seeking extra help proactively when it is needed.

With that being said, all students can benefit from extra practice, which can help them build confidence and know what to expect on test day. Piqosity’s NC EOC Math 1 and English II tests are designed to emulate the structure and content of the official test. Your student can use these full-length practice tests on Piqosity in conjunction with powerful features like the all-new Piqosity Virtual Tutor (PVT) 2 with Intelligent Remediation to excel in their Math and English courses and put their best foot forward on test day at the end of the school year!

More North Carolina Test Prep Resources from Piqosity: