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NCEO Synthesis Reports: A Report of a Standard Setting Method for Alternate Assessments for Students with Significant Disabilities (#47)This year 2002 report presents one state's use of the "body of work" approach toward standard setting to determine performance level cut scores for an alternate assessment developed for students with the most significant disabilities. It describes the rationale and design the state used in its portfolio assessment, followed by a detailed description of the standard setting process, including information on time and resource constraints, areas of potential contamination and bias in the approach, and the importance of range-finding and pin-pointing phases for this approach.
Published: October 2002
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Assessment Guidelines that Maximize the Participation of Students with Disabilities in Large-Scale Assessments: Characteristics and Considerations (#25)Formats: OnlineThis 1996 report provides: (1) An overview of immediate and past practice in participation, accommodation, and reporting of students with disabilities in state and national assessments; (2) Criteria for making decisions around participation, accommodation, and reporting of assessment results for students with disabilities. (3) Examples and nonexamples of criteria markers in existing state guidelines, (4) short list of assessment accommodations in four categories, and (5) A hands-on approach to examining and/or revising state and district guidelines about accountability, large-scale assessments, and students with disabilities.
Published: October 1996
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Neglected Numerators, Drifting Denominators, and Fractured Fractions: Determining Participation Rates for Students with Disabilities in Statewide Assessment Programs (#23)Formats: OnlineDeveloping accurate reporting procedures on the participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessment programs has proven to be difficult, due to a lack of data, differing definitions of eligible testing populations, and the misalignment of data collection efforts and data management responsibilities. This 1996 report provides specific recommendations for both policymakers and local practitioners and administrators to assist in improving our ability to accurately report the participation of students with disabilities in statewide assessment programs.
Published: October 1996
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Views on Inclusion and Testing Accommodations for Students with Disabilities (#7)Formats: PDFThis monograph represents the culmination of an effort to obtain expert opinions about the challenges of inclusion (who should be included - or excluded - from assessments, how the decision is made, and who makes the decision) and accommodations (what modifications can be made in assessment materials and/or procedures that still allow valid assessment results to be obtained). This monograph presents papers on issues of inclusion and accommodations be field experts Bob Algozzine, Paul H. Koehler, Barbar L. Loeding and Jerry B. Crittenden, Jack Merwin, Daniel J. Reschly, and Maynard C. Reynolds.
Published: September 1993- NCEO Data Analytics: Number and Percentage of English Learners with Disabilities by Disability Category, 2012-13 to 2020-21 (#18)Formats: Online
This interactive report presents information on the percentage of students with disabilities ages 6-21 who are also English learners (i.e., English learners with disabilities), and the proportion of these students by category for school years 2012-13 and 2020-21. English learners with disabilities are students who receive special education services as indicated in an Individualized Education Program (IEP) and who are also developing English proficiency. The U.S. Department of education receives data from states on the number of these students in each of 13 disability categories, and the number and percentage of English learners with disabilities varies over time, by category, and by state. The data in this report allow users to view one or more disability categories for comparison, and provides data by state.
Published: March 2023 
NCEO Data Analytics: State and National Demographic Information for English Learners (ELs) and ELs with Disabilities, 2012-13 (#4)Formats: OnlineThis interactive report presents data that states have submitted on the five languages most frequently used by English learners (ELs) in each state, the percent of identified ELs receiving services, the percent of ELs with disabilities, and a state profile page. The data are derived from Consolidated State Performance Reports (CSPRs), the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and from calculations made using these sources for the school year 2012-13.
Published: April 2016
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Science Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) During School Year 2014-2015 (#99)A report that analyzes the characteristics of states' science alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS) in 2014-2015. Federal law requires that all students, including students with disabilities, participate in state assessments used for accountability purposes. It also requires states to assess students in several content areas, including science. Most students with disabilities take the general science assessment with or without accommodations, but a few students with the most significant cognitive disabilities participate in AA-AAS. Although federal regulations do allow states to define the complexity, depth, and breadth of the AA-AAS, the apparent lack of consistency in the domains assessed suggests that some students with significant cognitive disabilities may not be getting access to the same rigorous grade-appropriate content.
Published: November 2015- V3-3: Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team MeetingFormats: Online
An Individualized Education Program (IEP) team meeting is held at school. The student's mother, teachers, and the school principal talk about the read-aloud accommodation for math and how it will be implemented in classes.
Published: 2014-05-05 
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Results of a Cognitive Interview Study of Immediate Feedback and Revision Opportunities for Students with Disabilities in Large Scale Assessments (#92)A report covering a study that was part of a larger research project originally designed to investigate an approach to Alternate Assessments with Modified Achievement Standards that provides immediate feedback and revision opportunities for students when they answer test items. After answering an item, students would receive feedback about whether the answer was correct or incorrect and would be given additional chances to correct their answer (for partial credit). This particular study employed cognitive interviews to determine whether: (a) Feedback and Revision had a qualitative impact on student interaction with the assessment (i.e., students' interview responses suggest that the feedback and revision feature had an impact on those students' success on the test), and (b) there were qualitative differences between groups of students with and without disabilities (i.e., students' interview responses suggest that the utility and effects of feedback and revision differ for these two groups).
Published: December 2013
NCEO Synthesis Reports: A Perspective on Education and Assessment in Other Nations: Where Are Students with Disabilities? (#19)Formats: OnlineFindings about the exclusion of students with disabilities in U. S. assessments necessarily lead to questions about the status of students with disabilities in international comparison assessments and in the assessments used in other nations. Are students with disabilities included in these assessments? Are appropriate accommodations used during the assessments? When are "exclusion rates" reported? Do all countries start from the same base of "all" students? The purpose of this 1995 report is to address these kinds of questions. We do this by examining students with disabilities in international comparison studies and in assessments in each of 14 nations, including the U. S., that are among those included in previous or current international comparative studies.
Published: April 1995- NCEO Reports: 2021-22 Participation Guidelines and Definitions for Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Academic Achievement Standards (#440)
This report provides an update to previous analyses of the guidelines, definitions, and criteria states have developed for making decisions about alternate assessment based on alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS) participation. This report provides an analysis of the 2021-22 policies of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. We analyzed criteria that should be used and factors that should not be used to determine participation, the state definitions of “most significant cognitive disabilities,” the information provided to parents about the AA-AAAS, mentions of English learners in materials related to the AA-AAAS, exemption and non-exemption materials regarding participation, and the content areas for which participation decisions are made.
Published: June 2023 - NCEO Brief: Including Students with Disabilities in K-2 Academic Assessments (#28)
This Brief provides an overview of issues related to the inclusion of students with disabilities and English learners with disabilities in early grade (i.e., K-2) assessments. State academic assessments are required by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) starting in grade 3. Academic assessments administered in earlier grades often are used to measure progress or growth, for instructional decision making, to predict grade 3 summative assessment performance, and for tracking literacy for reading guarantees. Even though the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that students with disabilities participate in state and district-wide assessments administered before grade 3, these students have sometimes been excluded. This Brief also suggests strategies for improved practices.
Published: November 2022 - NCEO Reports: Updated Assessment Principles and Guidelines for English Learners with Disabilities (#424)
This updated report, originally published in 2013, presents five core principles of valid assessments for English learners with disabilities, along with a brief rationale and specific guidelines that reflect each principle. The principles were developed through a Delphi review involving experts in the fields of assessment, instruction of English learners, and special education. Appendices to this report describe the Delphi data collection process, and members of the expert panel. References and selected core resources related to each principle and guidelines are also included in an appendix. This update of the report recognizes the contextual changes that have occurred since 2013, but does not alter the principles themselves.
Published: August 2020 
NCEO Reports: Status of State-Defined Alternate Diplomas in 2018-19 (#416)The purpose of this report is to summarize the status of state-defined alternate diplomas in the 50 U.S. states three years after the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESSA) indicated that states could develop these diplomas and use them in accountability calculations. To count this diploma in a graduation measure for accountability, several criteria must be met, including that it must be standards-based, aligned to state requirements for the regular high school diploma, and obtained within the time period for which the state ensures the availability of a free appropriate public education (FAPE). This report documents the status of state-defined alternate diplomas in states in 2018-19 and provides recommendations to states intending to develop a state-defined alternate diploma.
Published: September 2019
NCEO Brief: Using Local Assessment Data to Measure Progress Toward the State-Identified Measurable Result (SIMR) (#14)The purpose of this Brief is to outline key strategies for the collection, analysis, and use of local assessment data to monitor progress toward the (State-Identified Measurable Result)SIMR. It provides information and suggestions for state education agencies and technical assistance providers who work with local education agencies (LEAs). It highlights six strategies, and then identifies several questions that states may want to consider if they choose to use local assessment data to measure progress toward their SIMRs.
Published: February 2018
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Flexibility Waiver Plans for Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) (#96)A report compiling, analyzing, and summarizing what states said about the Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) in their waiver applications. The U.S. Department of Education offered these waivers to states that requested flexibility from some of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act accountability requirements. The states' waiver applications included information that pertained to the AA-AAS, alternate achievement standards, and the students with disabilities who participate in the AA-AAS.
Published: 2014
NCEO Technical Reports: Participation and Performance Reporting for the Alternate Assessment Based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) (#58)A report examining publicly-reported participation and performance data for the alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS). Analysis included all states publicly reporting AA-MAS data, regardless of whether they had received approval to use the results for Title I accountability calculations. Data were examined for school years 2006-07 through 2009-10. Because most states had not yet reported data for 2009-10, the authors focused most of the analyses on 2006-07 (six states with an AA-MAS), 2007-08 (eight states with an AA-MAS), and 2008-09 (eight states with an AA-MAS).
Published: April 2011
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Science Assessments for Students with Disabilities in School Year 2006-2007: What We Know about Participation, Performance, and Accommodations (#77)A report documenting the inclusion of students with disabilities in state science assessments in 2006-2007, the period just before the required implementation of statewide science assessments. The success of all students, including students with disabilities, on statewide assessments in mathematics and reading/English language arts has been examined closely, partly due to the role of these content areas in school accountability for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) known as "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB). States also were expected to establish science content standards by 2005-2006, and to develop assessments in science by 2007-2008.
Published: August 2010
NCEO Synthesis Reports: States' Participation Guidelines for Alternate Assessments Based on Modified Academic Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) in 2008 (#71)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: December 2008
NCEO Technical Reports: An Analysis of Accommodations Issues from the Standards and Assessments Peer Review (#51)A report commissioned by the Accommodations Monitoring Study Group of the Assessing Special Education Students State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards. It is the second in a three-part series providing information to states about the monitoring of accommodations to address the question of how states meet the NCLB requirement to routinely monitor the extent to which test accommodations are consistent with those provided during instruction, specifically for students with IEPs. This technical report provides a comprehensive analysis of the peer review guidance information and the methodology used in the research, as well as summarizing themes found across multiple peer reviews of state assessment systems. The first report in the series is Hints and Tips for Addressing Accommodations Issues for Peer Review.
Published: December 2008