Performance Assessment of Competency Education (PACE)

Program Description:  

New Hampshire’s Performance Assessment of Competency Education (PACE) is an assessment and accountability system based on a competency-based educational approach. The Performance Assessment is meant to ensure that students are achieving critical knowledge and skills while engaging in meaningful opportunities for learning. The PACE system works within a community structure, using a combination of local, common, and state level assessments. The system is meant not only to help support students with deeper learning but also to support their teachers and districts.  

The PACE system is based on a multitude of common complex performance tasks, referred to as PACE Common Tasks, which are collaboratively developed and administered by school districts for each grade and subject. The PACE common tasks serve as calibration tools for districts, providing evidence about student achievement across New Hampshire PACE schools and districts while ensuring compatibility (if a student succeeds in one district, the student should also succeed in another district within the state).  

Impact:  

The primary goal of PACE is to improve student outcomes and success by transforming instruction and assessment in classrooms across New Hampshire. The hope is that the skills tested within the PACE system are those learned within the classroom that can then be transferred into postsecondary opportunities such as further education and the workforce. 

Population Served:  

While the PACE system serves the entire school district and the broader community, the performance assessments are given to students in grade 3 English Language Arts, grade 4 math, grade 8 English Language Arts and math, and grade 11 English Language Arts, math, and science. This timeline allows for meaningful interventions by districts when needed, before students graduate.  

Learn more here.

Page last updated in August 2026