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NCEO Classroom-Based Assessment Project: Using a Curriculum-Based Instructional Management System to Enhance Math Achievement in Urban SchoolsFormats: PDFA report from NCEO's Classroom-Based Assessment Project.
Published: December 2001- NCEO Classroom-Based Assessment Project: Effects of Using a Curriculum-Based Monitoring System on the Classroom Instructional Environment and Math AchievementFormats: PDF
A report from NCEO's Classroom-Based Assessment Project.
Published: March 2001 - NCEO Classroom-Based Assessment Project: Changes in Mathematics Achievement and Instructional Ecology Resulting from Implementation of a Learning Information SystemFormats: PDF
A report from NCEO's Classroom-Based Assessment Project.
Published: March 2000 - At a Crossroads: The Intersection of AT, AAC, and AI in the Education of Learners with Varied NeedsFormats: Online
This report summarizes the key discussions and findings from a forum held on June 25, 2025, in Denver, Colorado. Organized jointly by the Assessment, Standards, and Education for Students with Disabilities (ASES) Collaborative and the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO), the event brought together nearly 40 participants from State Education Agencies (SEAs), assessment vendors, and technology experts. The forum focused on the critical and rapidly accelerating intersection of Assistive Technology (AT), Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education. The main objective was to analyze the implications of these converging technologies on instructional quality and assessment validity for all learners, and to reach a full understanding of their combined impact on educational access.
Published: November 2025 - NCEO Reports: A Historical Review of Alternate Assessment and 1% Cap (#450)Formats: Online
The history of alternate assessments and the 1.0 percent participation cap on state-level participation rates is deeply rooted in federal education legislation. From 1994 to 2025, federal legislation, regulations, and Department of Education guidance to states aimed to ensure that all students, including those with the most significant cognitive disabilities, are included in state accountability systems while maintaining appropriate standards and oversight. This report traces this policy history and the ways in which states have responded through evolving practices, waivers, and compliance strategies. We provide a list of resources, many of which were developed by NCEO, that can help educators implement the federal requirements of the 1.0 percent cap rule.
Published: October 2025 
NCEO Reports: 2018-19 Participation Guidelines and Definitions for Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Academic Achievement Standards (#415)The purpose of this report is to provide an update on state participation criteria and guidelines for alternate assessments based on alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS). In this report, we analyze criteria for participation, factors identified by states not to use as the basis for decisions, formats of resources provided, and the existence of explicit definitions of students with “significant cognitive disabilities.” Also included are analyses of information covered in state documents about AA-AAAS participation: the type of information provided to parents, the extent to which English learners are addressed, and the inclusion of information about exemptions.
Published: October 2019
Forum on Speech-to-Text and Scribing: Getting a Handle on What This MeansFormats: PDFA report on a forum held on June 26, 2018 in San Diego, California that brought together staff from state departments of education, school districts, testing and testing-related companies, and other educational organizations to discuss speech-to-text and scribing, the differences in terminology, challenges associated with speech-to-text, and needed research. The forum was a pre-session to the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Student Assessment (NCSA), and was a collaboration of the Assessing Special Education Students (ASES), the State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards (SCASS), and the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO). This report summarizes both the introductory information provided to forum participants, and the facilitated forum discussions that followed.
Published: September 2018
NCEO Newsletter: February 2016 issueFormats: OnlineThe year 2016 arrived quickly, and a lot already is happening. In this issue new products and activities are highlighted. New products include a Brief developed in collaboration with the National Center for Systemic Improvement (see Lessons Learned...) and a White Paper developed in collaboration with the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21) consortium (see Alternate Assessment ...). Two new Enhanced Assessment Grant (EAG) projects are summarized - DIAMOND and ALTELLA (check below for the meaning of those acronyms). Finally, this issue highlights some presentations and meetings at the upcoming conferences in April (CEC and AERA).
Published: February 2016
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Flexibility Plans for Phasing Out the Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) by 2014-15 (#89)A report compiling, analyzing, and summarizing states' plans for phasing out the alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS) in their approved waiver applications. The U.S. Department of Education offered states the flexibility waiver from some of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) accountability requirements on condition that the states provide a plan to phase out the use of the AA-MAS for ESEA accountability by the 2014-15 school year.
Published: March 2013
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Computer-Based Testing: Practices and Considerations (#78)A report exploring the context of computer-based testing (CBT), current state computer-based tests, and considerations for students with disabilities, in part as follow-up to a similar exploration that occurred in the early 2000s when just a few states were beginning to develop and implement CBT for their state assessments. CBT has emerged as one of the recent "innovative" approaches to assessments most pursued by states. CBT is lauded as the answer to having cheaper and speedier test delivery for state and district-wide assessments. It is also seen by some as an avenue toward greater accessibility for students with disabilities. Nine considerations for states and districts are presented.
Published: September 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: 2007 State Policies on Assessment Participation and Accommodations for Students with Disabilities (#69)A 2008 report updating the National Center on Educational Outcomes' (NCEO) report from 2006 that tracked and analyzed state policies on assessment participation and accommodations since 1992. The purpose of the current analysis is to update information on these policies that was last reported by NCEO in 2006 (based on 2005 data). In this analysis, policies from all 50 states, plus 8 of the unique states, were reviewed. The current analysis of states' 2007 participation and accommodation policies found that state policies on participation and accommodation continue to evolve, and that they have become more detailed and specific than in previous years.
Published: December 2008
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Enhancing Communication: Desirable Characteristics for State and School District Educational Accountability Reports (#30)Formats: OnlineA report summarizing a 1997 meeting of members of a study group within the State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards, Assessing Special Education Students, which is made up of assessment and special education representatives, to develop a list of necessary, desirable, and succinct characteristics of good state and district educational accountability reports. A checklist of desirable characteristics for state and school district accountability reports is included.
Published: January 1998- NCEO Reports: The Development of Common Terminology (Updated Edition): Adding Accessibility Features to the Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) (#447)Formats: PDF
The National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) collaborated with the Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) initiative to standardize accessibility feature terms for assessments. Historically, terminology varied, so NCEO and the CEDS initiative worked with state education agencies, test vendors, and assessment consortia to create common definitions. This effort aimed to improve communication and ensure equitable assessment opportunities for students, particularly for students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities. Once finalized, the definitions were submitted to the CEDS initiative for inclusion in their data elements. This report presents the final list of standardized accessibility feature definitions.
Published: March 2025 
1% Toolkit: Data Analysis and Use Planning Tool for Examining AA-AAAS Participation: Addressing the Percentage of Students Participating in the Alternate Assessment (NCEO Tool #2)This Data Analysis and Use Planning Tool is designed to help states and districts develop a plan for analyzing and using their AA-AAAS data as part of their efforts to meet the 1.0% cap on state-level participation in the alternate assessment aligned to alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS). Developed during the NCEO’s Peer Learning Group 1 (PLG 1), it presents a four-step data analysis framework that is intended to serve as an example and a starting point for states and districts.
Published: September 2019
1% Toolkit: State-District Data Display Templates: Addressing the Percentage of Students Participating in the Alternate Assessment (NCEO Tool #3)This State-District Data Display Templates tool is designed to provide states and districts with templates to display their data, with the end goal being to support an examination of the displayed data to determine whether there are any unusual results that require further examination and discussion. This tool was developed through the work of NCEO’s Peer Learning Group 1, which focused on ways to dig into state and district data as part of the states’ efforts to meet the 1.0% cap on state-level participation in the alternate assessment aligned to alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS).
Published: September 2019
1% Toolkit: District Dialogue Guide: Addressing the Percentage of Students Participating in the Alternate Assessment (NCEO Tool #4)As part of its efforts to meet the 1.0% cap on state-level participation in the alternate assessment aligned to alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS), NCEO’s Peer Learning Group 1 (PLG 1) developed this dialogue guide. It is designed to help district, school staff, and stakeholders engage in thoughtful conversations, tailored to their unique contexts, about participation in the AA-AAAS. It encourages frank discussions that can help to identify ways in which to examine a variety of data sources, use varied analysis methods, and gather relevant information, all toward the goal of ensuring that appropriate decisions are made about participation in the AA-AAAS.
Published: Sun Sep 22 2019
Forum on Text Readers for Everyone on All Tests: Getting a Handle on What This MeansFormats: PDFA report on a forum held on June 27, 2017 in Austin, TX that brought together staff representing state departments of education, school districts, testing and testing-related companies, and other educational organizations Texas to discuss the availability of text readers for everyone on all tests, the differences in terminology for text readers, ways to develop common language around text readers, and challenges associated with text readers. The forum was a pre-session to the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Student Assessment (NCSA), and was a collaboration of the Assessing Special Education Students (ASES) State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards (SCASS), the English Learner (EL) SCASS, and the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO).
Published: August 2017
NCEO Technical Reports: 2010-11 Publicly Reported Assessment Results for Students with Disabilities and ELLs with Disabilities (#68)A report analyzing public reporting practices for assessment data for students with disabilities in K-12 schools in the United States. This report, which is the fourteenth of its kind by the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO), includes information about both the 50 regular states and the 11 unique states (American Samoa, Bureau of Indian Education, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, U.S. Department of Defense Education Activities, District of Columbia, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Palau, Puerto Rico, Republic of the Marshall Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands).
Published: September 2013
Moving Your Numbers: Moving Your Numbers: Five Districts Share How They Used Assessment and Accountability to Increase Performance for Students With Disabilities as Part of District-wide ImprovementFormats: PDFA report examining how school districts can increase the performance of students with disabilities and other at-risk learners as part of whole-district reform efforts. It includes case studies of featured districts that provide evidence that students with disabilities, like all other students, can learn at higher levels when adults focus their collective efforts on improving instructional practice, consistently implement core work across the district, and use assessment and accountability as a lever for ongoing system and student learning and improvement.
Published: 2011
NCEO Technical Reports: Achieving Transparency in the Public Reporting of 2006-2007 Assessment Results (#53)A report summarizing States' reports on the participation and performance of students with disabilities by (a) submitting annual performance reports (APRs) to the U.S. Department of Education, and (b) publicly reporting state assessment data via their Web sites and other communication avenues. Both APRs and public reports provide important information, although the two may be slightly different in how the data are presented. This report analyzes the public reporting of disaggregated data for students with disabilities. It is the eleventh such report by NCEO, and this analysis, for school year 2006-2007, also marks the fifth data cycle since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001.
Published: July 2009