Earth and Space Science PLDs by exam
From NY Science Standards Wiki
Which PLD a question best matches is a judgment call by the wiki's editors. NYSED does not publish official mappings of exam questions to performance levels.
This page shows the performance level of every question on each released Earth and Space Science Regents exam, organized by standard. Each number in the table is the PLD level (1–5) assigned to one question; click a number to open that question. Levels are listed from lowest to highest within each cell. The full PLD text and question stems are on Earth and Space Science questions by performance level.
Performance levels by standard and exam
| Standard | Topic | June 2025 | August 2025 | January 2026 | June 2026 | August 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HS-ESS1-1 | The Sun and Its Energy | 1, 1, 1, 3 | 1, 1, 2, 3 | — | 1, 2, 3 | 3 |
| HS-ESS1-2 | Big Bang Theory | 2, 2 | 2, 2, 3 | 1, 2, 2 | 1, 2 | 1, 1 |
| HS-ESS1-3 | Stellar Nucleosynthesis | 2 | 1 | 2, 3 | 2, 2, 2 | 1 |
| HS-ESS1-4 | Orbital Motion and Gravity | 1, 1, 1 | 1, 2, 3, 4 | 1, 1, 2, 3, 3 | 1, 1, 4 | 1, 1, 3, 4 |
| HS-ESS1-5 | Plate Tectonics and Crustal Ages | 1, 3 | — | — | 1, 2 | — |
| HS-ESS1-6 | Formation and Early History of Earth | 1, 3 | 1, 1, 1, 2, 2 | 1, 1, 1, 1 | — | 1, 2, 2 |
| HS-ESS1-7 | Cycles of the Sun, Earth, and Moon | 3 | 2, 3 | 1, 3 | 1, 2 | 1, 2, 2, 3 |
| HS-ESS2-1 | Earth's Surface Processes | 1, 2, 2, 3 | 1, 2, 2, 2 | 1, 2 | 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2 | 1, 2, 2, 3 |
| HS-ESS2-2 | Feedbacks in Earth’s Systems | 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3 | 3, 4, 4 | 1, 2, 2, 3, 4 | 1, 3 | 1, 1, 1, 2 |
| HS-ESS2-3 | Thermal Convection in Earth | — | 1, 3 | 1 | 1, 2, 2, 3, 4 | 2, 2 |
| HS-ESS2-4 | Energy Flow and Climate Change | 2, 2 | 3 | 2 | — | 2, 2, 2 |
| HS-ESS2-5 | Water and Earth’s Surface Processes | 2 | 1, 2, 3 | 1, 2 | 1, 2 | 1, 1, 2 |
| HS-ESS2-6 | Carbon Cycling | 2 | — | 2 | 2, 3 | 1 |
| HS-ESS2-7 | Coevolution of Earth and Life | 4 | 2, 4 | 1, 1, 2, 4 | — | 4 |
| HS-ESS2-8 | Air Masses and Weather | — | 2, 2, 2, 3, 3 | 1, 2 | 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4 | 1, 1, 2 |
| HS-ESS3-1 | Natural Resources, Hazards, and Human Activity | 2, 2, 3 | 2, 3 | 1, 2, 2, 3 | 1, 1, 1, 2 | 2, 2, 2, 3 |
| HS-ESS3-2 | Resource Use and Conservation | 2 | 1, 1 | 1, 3, 3 | 3 | 2 |
| HS-ESS3-3 | Resource Management and Sustainability | 1, 1, 1, 2 | — | 2 | 1 | 2, 3 |
| HS-ESS3-4 | Reducing Human Impact on Natural Systems | 3, 4 | 1, 2 | 2, 2 | 4, 4 | 2 |
| HS-ESS3-5 | Climate Change Forecasting | 1, 1, 2, 3 | — | 1, 2, 2 | — | 3 |
| HS-ESS3-6 | Human Impact on Earth Systems | 1 | 1, 2, 2, 3 | 3 | 2, 3 | 2, 3, 3 |
| HS-ETS1-1 | Analyzing Global Challenges | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| HS-ETS1-2 | Breaking Down Complex Problems | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| HS-ETS1-3 | Evaluating Solutions and Trade-offs | 3 | — | 1 | 1, 3 | 3, 4 |
| HS-ETS1-4 | Modeling Solutions with Simulations | — | — | 1 | — | — |
| Totals (L1 / L2 / L3 / L4 / L5) | 17 / 19 / 12 / 2 / 0 | 14 / 20 / 12 / 4 / 0 | 20 / 19 / 9 / 2 / 0 | 17 / 20 / 8 / 5 / 0 | 16 / 21 / 10 / 3 / 0 | |
Distribution by level
| Level | June 2025 | August 2025 | January 2026 | June 2026 | August 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | 17 (34%) | 14 (28%) | 20 (40%) | 17 (34%) | 16 (32%) |
| Level 2 | 19 (38%) | 20 (40%) | 19 (38%) | 20 (40%) | 21 (42%) |
| Level 3 | 12 (24%) | 12 (24%) | 9 (18%) | 8 (16%) | 10 (20%) |
| Level 4 | 2 (4%) | 4 (8%) | 2 (4%) | 5 (10%) | 3 (6%) |
| Level 5 | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) |
| Questions | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Mean level | 1.98 | 2.12 | 1.86 | 2.02 | 2.00 |
Page contributors: Conrad Richman