OSSLT practice test online: a full-length test, marked as you finish

A full-length OSSLT practice test you take online

The OSSLT is written online, so the most useful practice is online too. Litguide's free online practice test is a full-length practice run: two sessions, 37 questions, and a mark for every part of it when you finish, including the two written answers.

It is original Litguide material written in the style of the OSSLT. These are not EQAO questions, and Litguide is an independent practice platform that is not affiliated with EQAO. The mix of reading selections, question counts and writing tasks follows the blueprint EQAO publishes in its OSSLT Framework, so the practice covers the same skills in the same proportions.

There is no sign-up. Open the page, start Session A, and your answers are saved on your device as you go, so you can stop after the first session and come back for the second.

What is in the test

The test has the same parts as the operational OSSLT.

• Four reading selections: an information paragraph, a news report, a dialogue and a real-life narrative, with 23 selected-response questions between them.

• One short written answer about the news report, where you explain your thinking with details from the text.

• 12 writing questions about organizing ideas and using language conventions: sentence structure, punctuation, word choice, paragraph order and the rest.

• One opinion essay, written as a series of paragraphs.

It is split into two sessions, like the real test. EQAO designs Session A to take about 65 minutes and Session B about 75, and the practice test is built to the same timing. Turn the timer on if you want to practise pacing; leave it off if you would rather work through it slowly the first time.

How it is marked

Every selected-response question is marked the moment you submit, and the results show the right answer with a short explanation of why it is right. The explanation is the useful part: it tells you which reading or writing skill the question was testing, so you know what to review.

The two written answers are marked by the same OSSLT engine that runs Litguide's free essay grader, in a few seconds.

• The short written answer gets a code on EQAO's open-response reading rubric, from a response that misreads the selection up to one that gives accurate, specific and relevant details from it, with a sentence on what to add.

• The opinion essay gets two codes, the way an OSSLT marker scores it: one for topic development (how clear your opinion is and how well your details support it) and one for conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation). Each paragraph gets its own feedback, and you get two or three next steps for your next draft.

Your result for each section and overall is shown on Litguide's four levels, the same levels students see in the Litguide app. Each level lines up with the writing codes in EQAO's framework.

• Level 1, not ready yet: limited effectiveness. Start with the skill-building lessons before more practice tests.

• Level 2, getting ready: some effectiveness. Ideas are there but details are thin, or errors distract.

• Level 3, almost ready: considerable effectiveness. Enough detail, with only some of it specific.

• Level 4, very ready: a high degree of effectiveness. Specific, well-chosen details and control of conventions.

A practice mark is a guide to where you are, not a prediction of your OSSLT result. Use it to choose what to work on next.

The tools you can use

The test gives you the tools students use most in the Litguide app.

• A highlighter for the reading selections, so you can mark the sentence that answers a question.

• Notes, for jotting down your reasons before you write.

• A flag on any question you want to come back to, and a review screen that shows every unanswered or flagged question before you submit a session.

• Larger text, if you need it.

The real OSSLT platform also has text-to-speech, a zoom tool, a line reader and a high-contrast view, and some of its questions use drag and drop or drop-down menus. The Litguide practice test uses single and multiple selection. Take EQAO's own practice test once as well, to get used to its tools and question types before test day.

How to take it like test day

The practice is most useful when it feels like the real sitting.

• Do each session in one go, at a desk, with pencil and rough paper and nothing else.

• Turn the timer on for your second attempt, once you know the layout.

• Answer every selected-response question. A skipped question scores zero, so a careful guess is always better than a blank.

• Give the opinion essay about 30 minutes: plan for five, write for twenty, check spelling and punctuation for five.

How long is the OSSLT? has a fuller pacing plan, and OSSLT reading questions walks through every question type with examples.

What to do with your result

Look at the section with the lowest level first. Reading questions answered incorrectly usually come down to one of three things: not going back to the text, missing what a word means in context, or not being sure what the question was asking. The explanations in your results say which one it was.

For the written parts, the codes tell you where the marks went. A low topic development code means the opinion was unclear or the details were too general; a low conventions code means errors are getting in the way. How to write the OSSLT opinion essay has a paragraph plan and an annotated sample, and OSSLT scoring explains how the codes add up.

Then take the test again once you have worked on your weakest section. You will see the same questions, so treat the second run as a check that the skills you reviewed have stuck, and use the essay grader to practise new opinion prompts in between.

For teachers: give it to your class

The online practice test works as a free practice sitting for a whole class, on Chromebooks or any laptop.

Request a class link with your board email address and you get two links: one to share with students, and a private one for you to see their results. Students enter only a first name and a last initial, with no email address and no account. When each student finishes, their marks, levels and written answers appear on your results page, ready to read or download. Results are kept for 120 days and you can delete any of them at any time.

If you want this kind of marking all term rather than once, with lessons released one at a time and every attempt tracked, that is what Litguide does for schools. Request a classroom and we set it up within one school day.

More free OSSLT practice

• The free practice test with answers explained: shorter, with an explanation for every option.

• The printable practice pack: the same style of practice as a PDF, with an answer key.

• The free essay grader: practise the opinion essay on new prompts and get both codes in seconds.