Study guide
1.4 Performance Exam Format and Grading
ACI Concrete Field Testing Technician Grade I Study Guide Exam
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1 Orientation: Certification Requirements, Written Exam, Performance Exam, and Study Sources
1.1 Credential Purpose and Official Definition 1.2 Eligibility and the Two-Part Certification Path 1.3 Written Exam Format and Dual Passing Rule 1.4 Performance Exam Format and Grading 1.5 Current Study Sources and CP-1 41st Edition 1.6 Validity, Recertification, and Myth Control
2 JTA, Performance Checklists, Common Fail Points, and Field Mindset
2.1 JTA as the Exam Blueprint 2.2 Written Knowledge Versus Performance Skill 2.3 Performance Checklists and the Six Demonstrations 2.4 Timing, Sequence, and Verbal Description Discipline 2.5 Common Fail Points and Result Recording 2.6 Field Mindset, Exam Habits, and Second Trials
3 ASTM C172: Sampling Fresh Concrete and Field Sample Control
3.1 Representative Sampling Purpose and Exam Role 3.2 Sampling Locations and Middle-Discharge Control 3.3 Composite Sample Timing, Remixing, and Protection 3.4 Sample Size, Large Aggregate, and Wet Sieving 3.5 Sequence With Slump, Temperature, Air, Density, and Specimens 3.6 Performance Exam Verbal Description and Field Habits
4 ASTM C1064 Temperature and ASTM C143 Slump
4.1 ASTM C1064 Purpose, Equipment, and Timing 4.2 Sensor Placement, Stabilization, and Reporting 4.3 Temperature Field Errors and Performance Habits 4.4 ASTM C143 Scope, Equipment, and Setup 4.5 Filling, Rodding, Lifting, and Measuring Slump 4.6 Invalid Slump Results, Reporting, and Integrated Habits
5 ASTM C138: Density, Unit Weight, Yield, and Gravimetric Air
5.1 Purpose, Equipment, and the Calibrated Measure 5.2 Sampling, Filling, and Consolidation Choice 5.3 Strike-Off, Cleaning, Mass, and Density 5.4 Yield, Relative Yield, and Batch Comparison 5.5 Gravimetric Air and Theoretical Density 5.6 Reporting, Validity, and Calculation Traps
6 ASTM C231: Pressure Air Method, Type B Meter, and Aggregate Correction
6.1 Scope, Principle, and When Pressure Air Fits 6.2 Type B Meter Equipment, Calibration, and Setup 6.3 Sampling, Bowl Filling, Consolidation, and Strike-Off 6.4 Type B Sequence: Water, Petcocks, Pressure, and Reading 6.5 Aggregate Correction Factor and Final Air Content 6.6 Reporting, Validity, and Invalid-Result Traps
7 ASTM C173: Volumetric Air Method, Rollameter, Alcohol Correction, and Validity
7.1 Scope, Equipment, and When the Volumetric Method Fits 7.2 Sample, Bowl Filling, Consolidation, and Strike-Off 7.3 Water, Alcohol, Initial Liquid Level, and Sealing 7.4 Inversion, Shaking, Rolling, and Air Release 7.5 Reading Agreement, Out-of-Range Steps, and Invalid Results 7.6 Alcohol Correction, Calculation, Reporting, and Performance Habits
8 ASTM C31: Making and Curing Cylinders and Beams, Initial Curing, and Transport
8.1 Purpose, Sample, Equipment, and Specimen Plan 8.2 Cylinder Molding, Consolidation, Finishing, and Identification 8.3 Beam Molding, Flexural Specimens, and Finishing 8.4 Initial Curing, Protection, Temperature, and Moisture 8.5 Standard Curing, Field Curing, Final Curing, and Interpretation 8.6 Transport, Lab Handoff, Reporting, and Common Failures
9 Integrated Field Workflow: Test Order, Documentation, and Quality Control
9.1 Field Sample to Report Workflow 9.2 Test Order and Parallel Timing 9.3 Documentation and Report Accuracy 9.4 Invalid Results and Retest Decisions 9.5 QA/QC Communication and Acceptance Context 9.6 Contamination, Delays, and Handoff Control
10 Written Exam Strategy: Numerical Values, Calculations, and Category Scoring
10.1 One-Hour Written Exam Pacing 10.2 Category Scoring and the No-Compensation Rule 10.3 High-Yield Numerical Values and Units 10.4 Density, Yield, and Gravimetric Air Calculations 10.5 Air Content Corrections and Validity Checks 10.6 Method-by-Method Practice Plan
11 Performance Exam Strategy: Equipment Setup, Examiner Communication, and Remediation
11.1 Performance Exam Map and Mindset 11.2 Equipment Setup, Station Control, and Safety 11.3 Examiner Communication and Speaking the Work 11.4 One-Step Errors, Timing, and Method Control 11.5 C172 Verbal Description Under Pressure 11.6 Remediation, Retest Planning, and Field Confidence
12 Final Review: Recertification, Career Paths, and Next ACI Credentials
12.1 Two-to-Six Week Final Review Plan 12.2 Final Week and Test-Day Checklist 12.3 CP-1, JTA, and Source Control 12.4 Recertification, Five-Year Cycle, and Re-Exam Requirement 12.5 Career Paths After Field Testing Grade I 12.6 Next ACI Credentials and Growth Map
1.4 Performance Exam Format and Grading
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
The performance examination is closed book and observed by an ACI examiner against a checklist.
It requires actual demonstration of six of the required test methods and practices plus a verbal description of C172/C172M sampling.
The examinee is judged on correctly performing, or describing where allowed, all required steps for each procedure.
Grading is checklist-based and pass/fail for each required standard, not a numeric percentage like the written exam.
Missing a single required step in a procedure can fail that procedure, which is why step-by-step verbalization is encouraged.
Last updated: June 2026
What Happens on the Performance Side
The performance examination is also closed book . ACI's program description states that it requires the actual demonstration of six of the required test methods and practices plus a verbal description of Practice C172/C172M (sampling) . The candidate is judged on the ability to correctly perform, or describe where allowed, all of the required steps for each procedure.
This is a hands-on station test. An ACI examiner watches the candidate work through each procedure with real or simulated equipment and marks a checklist. Unlike the written exam, the performance exam does not produce a percentage score. Each procedure is graded pass or fail based on whether the candidate completed the required steps.
The Six Demonstrations Plus One Verbal Description
The seven standards are not all demonstrated the same way. Sampling (C172/C172M) is verbally described rather than physically demonstrated, because sampling a moving truck during an exam is impractical. The other procedures are performed for the examiner.
- Standard How It Is Assessed on the Performance Exam
- C172/C172M Sampling Verbal description of the procedure
- C1064/C1064M Temperature Demonstration
- C143/C143M Slump Demonstration
- C138/C138M Density/Yield Demonstration
- C231/C231M or C173/C173M Air Demonstration of the assigned air method
- C31/C31M Making specimens Demonstration
The "six demonstrations" cover the physical procedures, and the verbal description covers sampling. The candidate must be ready to speak the sampling steps clearly — locations, timing, compositing, and protection — exactly as if performing them.
Checklist Grading and Why Every Step Counts
The examiner uses a standardized checklist derived from each ASTM procedure. A typical checklist item is a single required action: select the correct rod, rod each layer the specified number of strokes, tap the mold the required number of times, strike off level, and so on. The candidate either does each step or does not.
Because grading is step-based and pass/fail, omitting one required step can fail an entire procedure . There is no partial credit that lets a near-complete demonstration pass. This is why experienced instructors tell candidates to narrate each step aloud while performing it — verbalizing forces the candidate to confirm the step happened and signals to the examiner that the required action was deliberate, not accidental.
How the Two Exams Combine
The written exam is scored numerically with the 60%/70% dual rule.
The performance exam is checklist-based and pass/fail per procedure.
Certification requires passing both , and there is no averaging between them.
Preparing for the Format
The performance format rewards repetition under observation . Practicing each procedure until the step order is automatic, then having a peer or instructor run the checklist on you, mirrors exam conditions. Candidates who only watched demonstrations, but never performed them while talking through the steps, are the ones who freeze and skip a step at the table.
Which Air Method You Demonstrate
The two air methods, C231 (pressure) and C173 (volumetric) , both measure air content, so the performance exam does not always require both. A candidate may be asked to demonstrate the air method appropriate to the equipment and concrete on hand, while still being responsible for knowing both on the written exam. Do not assume one is safe to skip in study: the written side can test either, and a session may call for either demonstration. The safest preparation is to be able to perform both meters cleanly.
Equipment and Setup Count
Many performance failures happen before the test even begins, during setup. Selecting the wrong rod, an unverified air meter, or a measure that has not been checked can cost checklist items. Treat equipment selection and setup as graded steps, because on most checklists they are.
The Verbal Description Trap
The C172 sampling verbal description is where candidates most often stumble, because describing is harder than doing. A complete description must cover the sampling locations within the discharge, the timing limits , the compositing of portions into one sample, remixing before testing, and protecting the sample from sun, wind, and evaporation. Candidates who can sample on a jobsite but have never spoken the procedure out loud tend to leave gaps. Rehearse the sampling description aloud, in order, until it is as automatic as the physical tests — the examiner is checking for each required element, not a general summary.
What the Examiner Is Looking For
The examiner is not trying to trick the candidate; they are confirming that each required action from the standard actually occurred, in an order that produces a valid result. That means small things matter: striking off level rather than mounded, tapping the mold the specified number of times to release entrapped air, selecting the correct rod for the specimen size, and reading a meter at eye level. A candidate who performs the broad strokes correctly but skips a consolidation tap or fails to clean the flange before sealing an air meter can lose the checklist item tied to that step.
There is also a difference between a step that is simply forgotten and one that is performed in the wrong order. Several procedures depend on sequence — for example, consolidating a layer before adding the next, or sealing and pressurizing an air meter before reading it. Doing the right actions in the wrong order can still invalidate the demonstration, so the candidate should rehearse not just the list of steps but the sequence of steps.
Because there is no partial credit, the difference between a confident pass and a failed procedure is often a single overlooked or out-of-order action that a few extra supervised rehearsals would have caught.