Including students with disabilities in the new standards and accountability systems is one of the key challenges facing school districts around the nation. In this article, the authors first address the evolving assessment and accommodations requirements of both the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEIA), with specific emphasis on the interrelationships between education curriculum standards, participation options, and accommodation decisions. Second, using findings from earlier studies, they discuss the decision-making practices of school personnel with regard to participation and accommodations practices for students with high-incidence disabilities who participate in state assessments with or without accommodations. Finally, they suggest areas for future research, including those that may arise with the emergence of alternate assessments based upon modified achievement standards and from the increased monitoring of accommodation decisions under both NCLB and IDEIA.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education. (1999). Standards for educational and psychological testing . Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
2.
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. (1990)
3.
Browder, D., Flowers, C., Ahlgrim-Delzell, L., Karvonen, M., Spooner, F., & Algozzine, R. (2004). The alignment of alternate assessment content with academic and functional curricula. The Journal of Special Education, 37(4), 211—223.
4.
Browder, D., Karvonen, M., Davis, S., Fallin, K., & Courtade-Little, G. (2005). The impact of teacher training on state alternate assessment scores. Exceptional Children. 71, 267—282.
5.
Clapper, A.T., Morse, A.B., Thurlow, M.L., & Thompson, S.J. (2006). How to develop state guidelines for access assistants: Scribes, readers, and sign language interpreters. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes.
6.
DeStefano, L., Shriner, J.G., & Lloyd, C. (2001). Teacher decision making in participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessment. Exceptional Children , 68, 7—22.
7.
Elliott, S.N. (2006, March). Selecting accommodations wisely: Facilitating test access & enhancing implementation integrity. Presentation at the Educational Testing Service Conference on Accommodation of Students with Disabilities on State Assessments, Savannah, GA.
8.
Elliott, S., Braden, J., & White, J. (2001). Assessing one and all: Educational accountability for students with disabilities. Reston, VA: Council for Exceptional Children.
9.
Ganguly, R. (2006). Types of accommodations used by students with disabilities in state assessment: Analysis of Project PAR data. Unpublished manuscript, University of Illinois at Urbana— Champaign.
10.
Ganguly, R., & Shriner, J.G. (2004, February). Academic & social-behavioral accommodations for students with emotional-behavior disorders. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders, Kansas City, MO.
11.
Gong, B. & Marion, S. (2006). Dealing with flexibility in assessments for students with significant cognitive disabilities. National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, Inc. Retrieved April 25, 2006, from www.naacpartners.org/Products/Files/Gong%20&%20Marion%20assessment%20flexibility_041306.pdf.
12.
Harr, J., & Perez, M. (2006, April). Accommodation rates on state assessments and NAEP: Implications for students with disabilities and English Language Learners. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association, San Francisco, CA.
13.
Harr, J., & Perez, M. (n.d.). Study of the relationship between NAEP and State inclusion and accommodation policy and practice. Washington, DC: National Academy of Education.
14.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1990, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (1990)(amended 1997)
15.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (2004)(reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1990)
16.
Johnstone, C.J., Altman, J., Thurlow, M.L., & Thompson, S.J. (2006). A summary of research on the effects of test accommodations: 2002 through 2004 (Tech. Rep. No. 45) . Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes.
17.
Kleinert, H., & Kearns, J. (2004). Alternate assessments. In F. Orelove, D. Sobsey, & R. Silberman (Eds.), Educating children with multiple disabilities: A collaborative approach (4th ed., pp.115—149). Baltimore : Brookes.
18.
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20 U.S.C. 70 § 6301 et seq. (2002)
19.
Phillips, S.E. (1993a). Update on testing accommodations: Part 1. National Council on Measurement in Education Newsletter, 2(1), 2, 6.
20.
Phillips, S.E. (1993b). Update on testing accommodations: Part 2. National Council on Measurement in Education Newsletter, 2(2), 2—3.
21.
Pullin, D. (2006, March). Accommodations in testing: Law, policy and practice. Presentation at the Educational Testing Service conference on accommodation of students with disabilities on state assessments, Savannah, GA.
22.
Rouse, M., Shriner, J., & Danielson, L. (2000). National assessment and special education in the United States and England and Wales. In M. McLaughlin & M. Rouse (Eds.), Special education and school reform in the United States & Britain (pp. 66—97). London: Routledge .
23.
Shriner, J.G., & DeStefano, L. (in press). Assessment participation and accommodation of middle school students with disabilities. In. L. Cook (Ed.), Large scale assessments and accommodations: What works?Reston, VA: Council for Exceptional Children.
24.
Shriner, J.G., & DeStefano, L. (2001). Participation in statewide assessments: Views of district-level personnel. Assessment for Effective Intervention , 26, 9—16.
25.
Shriner, J.G., & DeStefano, L. (2002). Project IEP-D: Improving education professionals' decision making (Grant H325N020081). U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, Division of Personnel Preparation.
26.
Shriner, J.G., & DeStefano, L. (2003). Participation and accommodation in state assessment: The role of Individualized Education Programs. Exceptional Children, 69, 147—161.
27.
Shriner, J.G., & Wehby, J.H. (2004). Accountability and assessment for students with emotional and behavioral disorders. In R. Rutherford, M. Quinn, & S. Mathur (Eds.), Handbook of research in behavioral disorders (pp. 216—231). New York: Guilford Press.
28.
Sireci, S.G. (2006, March). Assessment accommodations: What have we learned from research?Presentation at the Educational Testing Service conference on accommodation of students with disabilities on state assessments, Savannah, GA.
29.
Sireci, S.G., Li, S., & Scarpati, S. (2003). The effects of test accommodations on test performance: A review of the literature (Research Rep. No. 485). Amherst, MA: Center for Educational Assessment.
30.
Sireci, S.G., Scarpati, S.E., & Li, S. (2005). Test accommodations for students with disabilities: An analysis of the interaction hypothesis. Review of Educational Research, 75, 457—490.
31.
Thompson, S.J., Johnstone, C.J., & Thurlow, M.L. (2002). Universal design applied to large-scale assessments (Synthesis Rep. No. 44). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes.
32.
Thurlow, M. (2001). Use of accommodations in state assessments: What databases tell us about differential levels of use and how to document the use of accommodations (Tech. Rep. 30). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes. Retrieved December, 19, 2006, from http://education.umn.edu/NCEO/OnlinePubs/Technical30.htm
33.
Thurlow, M.L. (2006, March). Accommodations in state policies: What a wonderful world of diversity. Presentation at the Educational Testing Service conference on accommodation of students with disabilities on state assessments, Savannah, GA.
34.
Thurlow, M.L., & Bolt, S. (2001). Empirical support for accommodations most often allowed in state policy (Synthesis Rep. No. 41). Minneapolis : University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes.
35.
Thurlow, M.L., Elliott, J.L., & Ysseldyke, J.E. (2003). Testing students with disabilities: Practical strategies for complying with district and state requirements. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
36.
Thurlow, M.L., & Shriner, J.G. (2000). Curriculum, instruction, and assessment for inclusive schooling. In R. Villa & J. Thousand (Eds.), Restructuring for effective and caring education (2nd ed., pp.132— 139). Baltimore: Brookes.
37.
Tindal, G. (2006, March). Accommodations research: Reconsidering the test accommodation validation process. Presentation at the Educational Testing Service conference on accommodation of students with disabilities on state assessments, Savannah, GA.
38.
Tindal, G., & Ketterlin-Geller, L.R. (2004). Research on mathematics test accommodations relevant to NAEP testing. Washington, D.C.: National Assessment Governing Board.
39.
Title I—Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged; Final Rule, 68 Fed. Reg. 68698 (Dec., 9, 2003) (34 C.F.R. Part 200)
40.
Title I—Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged, 34 C.F.R. § 200.1 (2004)
41.
Title I—Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged; Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA); Final Rule, 72 Fed Reg. 17748 (April 9, 2007) (34 C.F.R. Parts 200 and 300)
42.
U.S. Department of Education. (2005, August 9). Alternate achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities: Non-regulatory guidance. Available at http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/saa.html#guidance
43.
U.S. Department of Education. (2006). Decision letters on states' final assessment system under Title I of the Improving America's School Act (IASA). Available at http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/nclbfinalassess/index.html
44.
U.S. Department of Education, (2007, April). Modified academic achievement standards: Non-regulatory guidance Draft. Available at www.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/nclb/twopercent.doc
45.
Yell, M.L., Katsiyannis, A., & Shriner, J.G. (2006). No Child Left Behind Act, adequate yearly progress, and students with disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children , 38(4), 32—39.
46.
Yell, M.L., & Shriner, J.G. (1997). The IDEA amendments of 1997: Implications for special and general education teachers, administrators, and teacher trainers . Focus on Exceptional Children, 30(1), 1—19.
47.
Yell, M.L., Shriner, J.G., & Katsiyannis, A. (2006). Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004: Implications for educators, administrators, and teacher trainers. Focus on Exceptional Children, 39(1), 1—24.
