Marquart, A. (2000, April). The use of extended time as an accommodation on a standardized mathematics test: An investigation of effects on scores and perceived consequences for students of various skill levels [Paper presentation]. Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Large-Scale Assessment, Snowbird, UT, United States.

Students were tested under two conditions: 1) standard time limit (20 minutes) and 2) extended-time (up to 40 minutes).

A total of 96 grade 8 students from four Iowa school districts (U.S.) participated. There were approximately equal numbers of males and females in the sample. Twenty-three (23) students had identified disabilities (mild learning disabilities, mild physical disabilities, speech and language disabilities, mild cognitive disabilities, behavioral disabilities, emotional disabilities) and were receiving special education services, and had extra time listed on their IEP as an appropriate test accommodation. One-half of the students without disabilities were students labeled at-risk in the area of mathematics by their teachers, and the remaining half of students without disabilities were students who were performing at or above grade level in math.

Students completed alternate forms of standardized mathematics tests developed from the TerraNova Level 18 (grade 8) mathematics test (CTB/McGraw-Hill, 1998). Each test contained 15 multiple choice items. Students also completed a survey to gather data about their reactions to working on the test under accommodated and non-accommodated testing conditions. The Academic Competence Evaluation Scale (ACES; DiPerna & Elliott, 1998) was used to identify students 'at-risk'.

There were no significant differences between any of the three student groups in the amount of change in their performance between the standard and extended time conditions. There was also no significant difference in effect sizes for the accommodation between groups (at-risk, students without disabilities, and students with disabilities). All students reacted more positively to the test (according to the reaction survey) when given extended time rather than standard time to complete the test. [See also Marquart (2000)]