Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS)
The alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS)was an assessment that some states used to evaluate the performance of a small group of students with disabilities whose progress in response to appropriate instruction made it unlikely that they would achieve grade-level proficiency within the school year covered by the Individualized Education Program (IEP).
This assessment option is no longer allowed. Final regulations that formally ended the use of the AA-MAS were issued in the Federal Register on August 21, 2015 
. The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in December 2015 confirmed that an AA-MAS could not be used as a Title I assessment, nor could it be used for Title I accountability.
For additional information about the AA-MAS see Policy History
Related Publications
NCEO APR Snapshot Briefs: 2011-2012 APR Snapshot #7: State Assessment Participation and Performance of Students Receiving Special Education Services (#7)
Formats: Online
Successfully Transitioning Away from the 2% Assessment: Frequently Asked Questions
Formats: PDF
NCEO Brief: Considerations for Consortia as States Transition Away from AA-MAS (#7)
NCEO Policy Directions: Successfully Transitioning from the AA-MAS to the General Assessment (#22)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Results of a Cognitive Interview Study of Immediate Feedback and Revision Opportunities for Students with Disabilities in Large Scale Assessments (#92)
NCEO APR Snapshot Briefs: 2010-2011 APR Snapshot #4: State Assessment Participation and Performance of Students Receiving Special Education Services (#4)
Formats: Online
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Flexibility Plans for Phasing Out the Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) by 2014-15 (#89)
Lessons Learned in Federally Funded Projects that Can Improve the Instruction and Assessment of Low Performing Students with Disabilities
Formats: PDF
NCEO Technical Reports: Characteristics of Low Performing Special Education and Non-Special Education Students on Large-Scale Assessments (#60)
NCEO APR Snapshot Briefs: 2008-2009 APR Snapshot #1: State Assessment Participation and Performance of Special Education Students (#1)
Formats: Online
NCEO Technical Reports: Tennessee Special Education Teacher Survey: Training, Large-scale Testing, and TCAP-MAAS Administration (#61)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Educating Struggling Learners: Reflections on Lessons Learned about Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment (#86)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Characteristics of States' Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards in 2010-2011 (#85)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Participation Guidelines for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2010 (#82)
NCEO Technical Reports: Participation and Performance Reporting for the Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) (#58)
NCEO Technical Reports: Public Reporting of 2007-2008 Assessment Information on Students with Disabilities: Progress on the Gap Front (#57)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Who Are the Students Who May Qualify for an Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS)? Focus Group Results (#79)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Characteristics of States' Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards in 2009-2010 (#80)
Developing and Improving Modified Achievement Level Descriptors: Rationale, Procedures, and Tools
Formats: PDF
NCEO State Surveys: 2009 Survey of States - Accomplishments and New Issues at the End of a Decade of Change
What Have We Learned About Student Characteristics, Accommodations, and AA-MAS?
Formats: PDF
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Accommodations Policies for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2008-2009 (#74)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Participation Guidelines for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2009 (#75)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Common Misperceptions and Research-Based Recommendations for Alternate Assessment Based on Alternate Achievement Standards (#73)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Characteristics of States' Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards in 2008 (#72)
NCEO Technical Reports: Achieving Transparency in the Public Reporting of 2006-2007 Assessment Results (#53)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Participation Guidelines for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2008 (#71)
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2007 (#67)
