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NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Factors Related to the Performance of LEP Students on Basic Standards Tests (#27)Formats: OnlineThis year 2000 report summarizes factors related to the performance of students from non-English language backgrounds in Minnesota state assessments in school years 1996 through 1998.
Published: July 2000
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Appeals Processes for Students Who Fail Graduation Exams: How Do They Apply to Students with Disabilities? (#36)Formats: OnlineA report of findings about high stakes tests for students with disabilities, as of the year 2000, and the appeals processes for those who need an alternative way of demonstrating skills. High stakes tests that determine whether students earn a standard high school diploma are on the rise. They are viewed as the way to make sure that students meet high standards and graduate with the skills needed to be successful employees. At the same time that more and more states are investing in graduation exams, there are concerns about students who have met high standards, yet are unable to pass a test. To determine the extent to which there are other options for demonstrating skills, and to check the availability of these to students with disabilities, the authors studied state Web sites for information on appeals processes and the availability of waivers. They found only six states with appeals processes, and these varied considerably from locally set procedures to relatively specific requirements. In one state, the appeals process is viewed as the avenue for students with disabilities to have access to accommodations. In most states, there is no evidence that students with disabilities have been considered. Further, states do not have data on the number of students involved in appeals processes, much less disaggregated for students with disabilities. The difficulty they experienced in finding information about an appeals process is certainly encountered by students and families whose lives are affected by graduation exams. Without appeals processes, or easily found information on such processes, the likelihood that lawsuits will be viewed as the only avenue for recourse is dramatically increased.
Published: July 2000- Alternate Assessment Forum: Connecting into a WholeFormats: Online
A report summarizing the discussion sessions during the Third Annual Alternate Assessment Forum held in 2000. One hundred thirty-five representatives from 39 states plus American Samoa participated in a forum on June 23-24, 2000 in Salt Lake City, Utah to discuss alternate assessment. Representatives were primarily state department of education staff, but also included some local or regional education staff, university staff, parents, and test publisher staff, all of whom have played major roles in helping states develop their alternate assessment systems. The forum, a third annual pre-session to the CCSSO National Large Scale Assessment Conference, was co-sponsored by the Regional Resource and Federal Centers (RRFCs), the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE), and the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO).
Published: 2000 - NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Participation and Performance of Limited English Proficient Students During Second Attempts on a Graduation Exam (#28)Formats: Online
This year 2000 report examines the performance of English learners taking the Minnesota's Basic Standards Test in 8th grade for the first time and those needing to retake the test in school years 1996 through 1998.
Published: June 2000 
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Social Promotion and Students with Disabilities: Issues and Challenges in Developing State Policies (#34)Formats: OnlineThis 2000 policy study looks at existing and emerging state policies on social promotion to determine the extent to which students with disabilities are included or excluded. Results reflect the status of state policies at one point in time, as determined from publicly available state documents and statutes. The review is meant to contribute to thoughtful policy development and stimulate consideration of issues associated with high stakes testing to assess accountability for students with and without disabilities.
Published: June 2000
NCEO Synthesis Reports: State Alternate Assessments: Status as IDEA Alternate Assessment Requirements Take Effect (#35)Formats: OnlineA report describing the approaches states were taking, as of the year 2000, to alternate assessments for the small number of students with disabilities who could not participate in state and district-wide assessment programs. The National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) developed an online survey on the development of alternate assessments and received responses from all 50 states. In addition, five educational units that received IDEA Part B funds (American Samoa, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Marshall Islands, Virgin Islands, and Washington DC) completed the survey. While the presentation in this report of all the approaches states are taking does not imply endorsement of any specific state alternate assessment practices, it does indicate that states were still moving in many directions despite regulations suggesting directions for development.
Published: June 2000
NCEO Policy Directions: Non-Approved Accommodations: Recommendations for Use and Reporting (#11)Formats: OnlineThis year 2000 report is intended to help states and districts consider the issues surrounding the use of non-approved accommodations. Recommendations are provided for ways to use and report data from assessments taken with non-approved accommodations.
Published: May 2000
NCEO Out-of-Level Testing Project Reports: Past and Present Understandings of Out-of-Level Testing: A Research Synthesis (#1)Formats: OnlineThis year 2000 report reviews the historical development for out-of-level testing, summarizes how the literature defines out-of-level testing, explains how it has been studied, gives the rationale used to support its use, and addresses what is missing from the literature.
Published: May 2000
NCEO Synthesis Reports: State Participation and Accommodation Policies for Students with Disabilities: 1999 Update (#33)Formats: PDFThis 2000 report summarizes states' policies on the participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessment, and the accommodations noted in state policies as available for those students. NCEO also checked for changes in state assessment policies.
Published: April 2000
NCEO Technical Reports: Where's Waldo? A Third Search for Students with Disabilities in State Accountability Reports (#25)This year 2000 report analyzes state education reports to determine what types of information are provided on students with disabilities. It is the third such study conducted by the National Center on Educational Outcomes, and was based on 170 reports from state accountability offices and state special education offices. Findings reported include the following: (1) despite IDEA requirements for public reporting of assessment participation and performance data for students with disabilities, only 14 states included participation data and 17 states included performance data for students with disabilities in state assessments, (2) participation levels varied from 33% to 97% of students with disabilities, and (3) information on performance levels varied widely. The report presents several recommendations to states. These include the need for states to indicate how they will move toward meeting IDEA requirements for reporting data on students with disabilities, to consider how best to present these data to avoid unintended consequences, and to ensure an accounting of participation data for each performance score that is reported.
Published: April 2000- 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 
NCEO Synthesis Reports: Gray Areas of Assessment Systems (#32)Formats: OnlineA 2000 paper clarifying what is meant by "gray areas of assessment" systems, delineating the primary issues that surround and contribute to gray areas, and providing suggestions for developing fully inclusive systems. As part of our nation's educational commitment to equity and excellence for all, we must develop better understanding of what it means to be accountable for all children, and identify more inclusive strategies of assessment and accountability. In response to our national commitment, and to specific legislation such as Title I of the Improving America's Schools Act (IASA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 1997 (IDEA '97), states and school districts are in the midst of developing large-scale assessment systems. Some have considered the challenge of students who do not fit into these assessment systems as one of "gray area students." New understanding is emerging that the problem does not lie with the students, but with the systems. This paper provides brief case studies of the assessment practices in two states, thereby highlighting the reality of gray areas as states implement their assessment systems. After a review of the national reform context, it presents a model that provides a basis for defining and addressing gray area concerns.
Published: March 2000- NCEO Maryland/Kentucky State Assessment Project: Instructional and Assessment Accommodations in Kentucky (#7)Formats: Online
A report from the past Maryland-Kentucky-NCEO Assessment Project, a federally funded effort supported, in part, by a grant to the Maryland State Department of Education.
Published: January 2000 - NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Unintended Consequences of the Minnesota Basic Standards Tests: Do the Data Answer the Questions Yet? (#23)Formats: Online
This year 2000 report presents a literature review on the effects of statewide testing policies on the education of students with and without disabilities to examine whether the perception of increased referrals for special education assessments or 504 Accommodation Plans at the local level was present in published research.
Published: January 2000 - NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Participation and Performance of Limited English Proficient Students: Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments in Reading and Math, 1998-99 (#24)Formats: Online
This year 2000 report summarizes the participation and performance of English learners taking Minnesota's Comprehensive Assessments in Reading and Math for year 1998-1999.
Published: January 2000 
National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) WebsiteFormats: OnlineA website presenting NCEO, which is a federally-funded technical assistance center that supports states and districts on issues related to inclusive assessments, particularly for students with disabilities, English learners (ELs), and ELs with disabilities. NCEO has a rich set of reports and other publications on a range of topics related to educational assessments. NCEO is one of ICI's affiliated centers.
Published: 2000- NCEO Policy Directions: Diploma Options and Graduation Policies for Students with Disabilities (#10)Formats: Online
This year 2000 report identifies key issues to consider when answering questions on graduating testing policies for students with disabilities. It also makes suggestions for establishing inclusive and fair diploma options and graduation policies.
Published: January 2000 - NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Feasibility and Practicality of a Decision Making Tool for Standards Testing of Students with Limited English Proficiency (#22)Formats: Online
This year 1999 report describes a decision-making tool to provide educators of English learner and bilingual students with the most current participation and test accommodation guidelines for informed decisions. The report describes the tool and reports on the results of a study examining the tool's feasibility.
Published: December 1999 - NCEO Minnesota Assessment Project Reports: Feasibility and Practicality of a Decision Making Tool for Standards Testing of Students with Disabilities (#21)Formats: Online
This year 1999 report describes a study on the feasibility and practicality of an interactive decision-making tool developed to help special educators make appropriate participation and accommodations decisions, with students and their families, on Minnesota's statewide assessments.
Published: December 1999 - NCEO Maryland/Kentucky State Assessment Project: Instructional and Assessment Accommodations in Maryland (#6)Formats: Online
A report from the past Maryland-Kentucky-NCEO Assessment Project, a federally funded effort supported, in part, by a grant to the Maryland State Department of Education.
Published: December 1999