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NCEO State Surveys: 2009 Survey of States - Accomplishments and New Issues at the End of a Decade of ChangeA 2009 report providing a snapshot of the new initiatives, trends, accomplishments, and emerging issues during this important period of standards-based education reform as states document the academic achievement of students with disabilities. It summarizes the 12th survey of states by the Institute's National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO). Results are presented for all 50 states and 8 of the 11 federally-funded entities (unique states).
Published: June 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Earning a High School Diploma through Alternative Routes (#76)A report based on a study examining the alternative routes to passing the high school exit exam that were available during the school year 2008-09 to students to earn a standard high school diploma. It examines alternative routes in the 26 states with active or soon-to-be active exit exams, and documents the alternative routes available for all students and those specifically for students with disabilities. Earning a standard diploma has increased in importance during the past several years. Not only is it a document that improves postschool outcomes, but it also has become a part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) accountability system at the high school level--with the required graduation rate including only those students who have earned a regular/standard high school diploma or higher. Complicating matters in several states is the addition of an exit exam requirement to the traditional coursework requirements. The addition of a testing requirement to other requirements for earning a standard diploma is a challenge for students who do not perform well on assessments. Many, but not all, of these students have disabilities.
Published: June 2010- What Have We Learned About Student Characteristics, Accommodations, and AA-MAS?Formats: PDF
The National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) and a consortium of five states joined together to form the Multi-state GSEG Toward a Defensible Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS). This paper reports the results of one study conducted by this GSEG project. The purpose of this study was to learn more about the extent to which low performing students used accommodations.
Published: April 2010 
NCEO Technical Reports: A Summary of the Research on the Effects of Test Accommodations: 2007-2008 (#56)The use of accommodations for both instruction and assessment continues to be of great importance for students with disabilities. Numerous efforts are underway to ensure that students with disabilities participate meaningfully in more inclusive classrooms and large-scale assessments. Still, there is a need for greater understanding of the ways in which accommodations are selected and implemented during classroom instruction and assessments. The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the state of the research on testing accommodations, as well as to identify promising areas of research likely to contribute to understanding of current and emerging issues.
Published: May 2010
PARA Accessible Reading Assessment Reports: Cognitive and Achievement Differences Between Students with Divergent Reading and Oral Comprehension Skills: Implications for Accessible Reading Assessment ResearchA study examining the question, "Are there any analysis of the Woodcock-Johnson III Battery (WJ III) data that might shed light on learner characteristics that differentiate students whose measured reading performance is below what might be considered their optimal/predicted reading performance?" The WJ III norm sample spans preschool through late adulthood and includes a diverse array of individually administered cognitive and achievement tests. Although the data set is not ideally designed for studying LAMR and MAMR (Less and More Accurately Measured Readers) effects, the results of an analysis of the WJ III data are potentially informative for research and development efforts focused on large-scale accessible reading assessment programs.
Published: May 2010- Hearing on ESEA Reauthorization: Standards and AssessmentsFormats: PDF
This testimony was presented at a Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) United States Senate Hearing.
Published: 2010-04-28 
Rethinking Assumptions about Alternate Assessment Based on Alternate Achievement StandardsFormats: PDFA report seeking to facilitate the process of rethinking assumptions about alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). It presents common misperceptions, followed by the assumptions underlying them and a research response to those assumptions.
Published: 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Accommodations Policies for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2008-2009 (#74)A report presenting the results of an analysis of states' accommodations policies for the Alternate Assessment based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS), and compares these policies with the states' regular assessment accommodations policies. This is the first time that the Institute's National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) has published a report that is specifically focused on AA-MAS accommodations policies.
Published: March 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Participation Guidelines for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2009 (#75)A report updating information in previous National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) reports that, since 2007, have annually compiled, analyzed, and summarized states' participation guidelines for the Alternate Assessments based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS). As of October 2009, 14 states had publicly-available participation guidelines for an assessment they considered to be an AA-MAS. Results from this study suggest that states are continuing to develop or update their participation guidelines.
Published: March 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Common Misperceptions and Research-Based Recommendations for Alternate Assessment Based on Alternate Achievement Standards (#73)A report exploring misperceptions about assessments and the students who are assessed using Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS). The misperceptions have been encountered by the National Alternate Assessment Center (NAAC) and National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) in their collaborative work with states and educators on the AA-AAS. AA-AAS are designed so that students with the most significant cognitive disabilities can be included in large-scale accountability testing, and promote their access to the same interesting and challenging curriculum as their peers. This report explores common misperceptions related to three major themes: (a) the characteristics of students who participate in AA-AAS; (b) the content that should be taught and assessed by teachers; and (c) issues regarding the purpose and the validity of AA-AAS outcomes. For each misperception, it proposes research-based recommendations to address them, and refers to the recent literature on assessment, curriculum, and instruction for students with the most significant disabilities to support its analysis and recommendations.
Published: February 2010
NCEO Technical Reports: States Challenged to Meet Special Education Targets for Assessment Indicator (#55)All states are required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to submit Annual Performance Reports (APRs) to the federal government. The purpose of this report is to reflect the progress made, according to state APRs submitted in 2008, toward meeting targets for components of APR Indicator 3 on assessments administered in school year 2006-2007. An additional purpose is to present an analysis of improvement activities used by states to facilitate progress in their assessment systems.
Published: February 2010
PARA Accessible Reading Assessment Reports: Examination of a Reading Pen as a Partial Auditory Accommodation for Reading AssessmentA report evaluating the effectiveness of a reading pen as a Partial Auditory Accommodation for large scale reading assessments when the pen is used only to pronounce words on demand. Four research questions were addressed:
- To what extent does use of the reading pen on a standardized test of reading affect scores?
- To what extent is there a different effect for students with disabilities and students without disabilities?
- Regardless of disability status, to what extent does use of the reading pen affect the scores of students with adequate fluency?
- What are students' perceptions of the helpfulness of the reading pen?
Published: February 2010- AA-AAAS BibliographyFormats: Online
This searchable bibliographic database presents information related to alternates based on alternate academic achievement standards. Users may search by publication type, research type, keyword, or specific journals.
Published: 2010 
NCEO Policy Directions: Using Growth for Accountability - Considerations for Students with Disabilities (#21)Formats: PDFA report providing considerations and recommendations on growth models for students with disabilities. The academic progress of students is an important indicator of educational success. For school accountability systems, using a growth model to report on a student's academic growth can be viewed as an addition to or a replacement for a status model. Status models compare the performance of a cohort of students in a grade one year with the performance of another cohort of students in the same grade the preceding year. Growth models typically track the achievement of individual students from year to year.
Published: January 2010
The Characteristics of Low Performing Students on Large-Scale Assessments (NCEO Brief)Formats: PDFA brief reporting the findings of a longitudinal analysis of three years of student-level demographic and performance data for four states: the 2004-05, 2005-06, and 2006-07 school years. Data sets were compiled for each state for students who were in grades 5 and 8 during the 2006-07 school year, and included student performance data on the regular Reading/English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics assessment. The goal of this analysis was to learn more about the characteristics of low performing students.
Published: 2010
NARAP Reports: Accessibility Principles for Reading AssessmentsFormats: PDFA report presenting evidence-based principles for making large scale assessments of reading proficiency more accessible for students who have disabilities that affect reading, while maintaining a high level of validity for all students taking the assessments. The National Accessible Reading Assessment Projects (NARAP), of which the Institute's Partnership for Accessible Reading Assessment is a member, have been conducting research to identify ways to increase the accessibility of reading assessments. This document is the culmination of one of NARAP's goals: to develop evidence-based principles for making large scale assessments of reading proficiency more accessible for students who have disabilities that affect reading, while maintaining a high level of validity for all students taking the assessments. Some of the principles clarify and underscore the importance of well-accepted and widely used practices in designing reading assessments. Other principles have been developed from theory to respond to the needs of specific groups of students. The principles are to be viewed as a whole, representing a coherent and integrated approach to accessibility. They provide a vision of accessible reading assessments. This document was written primarily for personnel in state assessment offices and for test developers of regular large scale reading assessments used for accountability purposes. Other audiences also may find the document to be of interest and useful for other types of assessments.
Published: September 2009
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Characteristics of States' Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards in 2008 (#72)A report describing an assessment option permitted by federal regulations that give states the flexibility to offer an alternate assessment based on modified academic achievement standards (AA-MAS). This assessment option is for a small group of students with disabilities who can make significant progress but may not reach grade-level proficiency within the time period covered by their Individualized Education Program. Students who participate in an AA-MAS must have access to grade-level content. States are not required to offer this option. This report compiles, analyzes, and summarizes states' participation guidelines for the AA-MAS.
Published: September 2009
Minnesota Manual of Accommodations for Students with Disabilities in Instruction and Assessment: A Guide to Selecting, Administering, and Evaluating the Use of AccommodationsFormats: PDFThis manual presents a five-step process for Individualized Educational Program (IEP) teams, 504 Plan committees, general and special education teachers, administrators, and district level assessment staff to use in selecting, administering, and evaluating the effectiveness of the use of instructional and assessment accommodations by students with disabilities.
Published: August 2009
TARA Reports: Field-based Perspectives on Technology Assisted Reading Assessments: Results of an Interview Study with Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVIs)Formats: PDFThe purpose of this study was to gather information to inform the design and development of a technology-assisted reading assessment for students with visual impairments or blindness.
Published: August 2009- TARA Reports: Students with Visual Impairments and Assistive Technology: Results from a Cognitive Interview Study in Five StatesFormats: PDF
The purpose of this study was to better understand use of assistive technology in instruction and assessment by students with visual impairments. The aim was to gather information that would be relevant to the creation of a new large-scale assessment that addressed reading as an activity that involved the use of a variety of technologies. In order to adequately determine assistive technology (AT) use, students themselves were interviewed and observed.
Published: August 2009