When the SHSAT moved to a fully digital format in Fall 2025, the NYC Department of Education didn't just move the test from paper to screen. They introduced a category of question type that had never appeared on the Specialized High School Admissions Test before — and that virtually no prep resource has caught up to.
They're called Technology-Enhanced Items, or TEIs. And if your child has been preparing using any traditional prep book, they have never seen them.
If you're not yet familiar with how the SHSAT is scored under the new format, read our scoring guide first — the adaptive model changes what early mistakes cost.
What Are SHSAT TEI Question Types?
Technology-Enhanced Items are questions that use the digital interface to test knowledge in ways that paper cannot. Instead of circling an answer or filling a bubble, students interact with the question — clicking, dragging, typing, drawing.
The SHSAT now includes the following TEI formats across the math and ELA sections:
1. Inline Dropdown (ELA and Math)
A sentence or problem is displayed with one or more blank fields replaced by dropdown menus. The student clicks the dropdown and selects the correct word, phrase, or value. This tests grammar and word choice in ELA and expression evaluation in math — but in a format that requires clicking, not circling.
2. Multi-Select (ELA and Math)
Instead of one correct answer, the question states "select all that apply" and the student must identify every correct option. Getting 3 out of 4 correct options selected and missing one counts as wrong — there's no partial credit. This format trips up students who have only practiced single-answer multiple choice.
3. Drag-and-Drop Ordering (ELA)
A set of sentences or events is displayed in scrambled order. The student drags them into the correct logical sequence. This tests the same skills as traditional sequence questions but requires physical interaction with the screen — and a different strategy for approaching the problem.
4. Hot-Spot Clicking (Math)
A diagram, graph, or number line is displayed and the student must click a specific point, region, or element to answer the question. Common in geometry and coordinate plane math questions.
5. Graphing Tools (Math)
The student is given a coordinate plane and must plot points, draw a line, or graph a function using digital drawing tools. This tests the same skills as paper graphing questions — but a student who has never used digital graphing tools before will spend 30 seconds figuring out the mechanics before they can even attempt the math.
6. Multipart Questions (Math and ELA)
A single question has two or three sub-parts that must all be answered. Earlier parts sometimes feed into later parts. Missing the first part can cascade into wrong answers on parts that the student would otherwise have gotten right.
Why These Question Types Cost Students Real Points
The content being tested hasn't changed. Inline dropdown tests the same grammar rules as traditional multiple choice. Drag-and-drop tests the same sequencing logic. Graphing tests the same coordinate plane math.
The problem is interface surprise.
A student who encounters an inline dropdown question for the first time during the actual Specialized High School Admissions Test spends 10–15 seconds figuring out how to interact with it before they can start answering it. On a test where 75 seconds per question is the target pacing, 15 seconds of interface confusion is 20% of the allotted time — gone before any thinking has happened.
Multiply that across 6–8 TEI questions in a section and you've lost nearly 2 full minutes to pure interface unfamiliarity. That's the equivalent of getting 2 additional questions wrong that your child would have answered correctly.
The NYC DOE confirms this directly — their official student readiness materials specifically direct families to use the NYC SHSAT Portal and the Student Readiness Tool before test day, so students can practice navigating the digital interface, the item types, and the tools. That guidance exists because the DOE recognizes that interface familiarity affects performance. Students who encounter the digital format for the first time during the actual exam are at a disadvantage that has nothing to do with content knowledge.
What Most Prep Resources Are Missing
As of early 2026, here is the state of TEI practice availability for NYC SHSAT students:
- Paper prep books (Kaplan, Barron's, ArgoPrep, Learning Express): Zero TEI practice. Cannot be done on paper.
- Khan Academy: No SHSAT-specific content. No TEI practice relevant to the SHSAT format.
- The Tutorverse (2025 digital edition): Has digital practice tests. TEI simulation in development but not yet complete for all question types.
- Scord.ai / PrepTide: Has the most complete TEI simulation available — drag-and-drop, sorting, graphing. B2C student platform.
- The DOE's official practice tests: Two tests available. Neither fully reflects the Fall 2026 adaptive CAT format.
The honest conclusion: there is almost no TEI practice material available for NYC families preparing for the 2026 Specialized High School Admissions Test. The students who encounter these question types for the first time on test day are at a structural disadvantage that has nothing to do with how smart or prepared they are.
How to Practice TEI Question Types at Home
You cannot practice TEI question types on paper. But you can build the relevant skills and reduce interface friction in the following ways:
For inline dropdown: Practice grammar revision questions on any digital platform where answer choices are embedded in the sentence, not listed below it. The key skill is the same — the key is building the habit of reading the full sentence with each option before selecting.
For multi-select: Practice identifying all correct answers in a set, not just one. After any multiple-choice question, ask: "Are any of the other options also correct?" This builds the mental habit that multi-select requires.
For drag-and-drop ordering: Practice sequencing questions verbally before using any digital tool. The underlying logic of "which sentence comes first, second, third" is the same — build that skill, then transfer to the digital interface.
For graphing and hot-spot: Use any digital graphing tool (Desmos is free) to practice plotting points and drawing lines on a coordinate plane. The math is the same as paper. The tool just needs to feel familiar.
For multipart questions: When practicing any math problem, always check whether you've answered the full question — not just the first step. The habit of asking "is this the final answer or an intermediate step?" is the same skill multipart questions test.
The Bottom Line for NYC Parents Preparing for Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Tech, and Bronx Science
The Specialized High School Admissions Test in 2026 is a fundamentally different test than it was in 2024. The interface is different. The question types are different. The adaptive scoring is different.
For families targeting Stuyvesant High School, Brooklyn Technical High School, Bronx High School of Science, or any of the eight NYC specialized high schools, the margins are tight. A handful of points separates one school from another. Students who lose 2 minutes per section to interface unfamiliarity — students who would have answered those questions correctly on paper — are giving away points they earned.
Your child's strongest competitive advantage going into this test is simple: be one of the students who has seen these question types before. Because most students won't have.
The content knowledge matters. The practice volume matters. But in the 2026 digital SHSAT, interface fluency is the hidden variable that separates students who perform at their potential from students who leave points on the table they had every right to keep.