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This study was inspired by the final regulations for the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) indicating that each state has the option to develop a new assessment for students whose disabilities have kept them from obtaining proficiency. Sets of high school science achievement items were enhanced for the new test. A 3-by-2, within subjects, experimental design was used with 400 participants from 3 states. Although items remained connected to grade- level content standards, in the enhanced condition they were easier for all groups. Changes in measurement precision were mixed for students in the group eligible for the new examination. Participants tended to report that individual enhancements made items easier, but that packages of enhancements did not affect the difficulty of items., The Obama Administration's Blueprint for the Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (the Blueprint), calls for all students to be 'included in an accountability system that builds on [...]

Abstract. Students with disabilities must meet many testing demands, given the current emphasis on accountability and state competency testing. The purpose of this project was to develop and field test [...]

This study investigated the efficacy of a package of accommodations for poor readers in Grade 7. Students with and without word reading disabilities were randomly assigned to take an experimental version of a high-stakes reading comprehension test in 1 of 3 formats: (a) standard administration, (b) read aloud accommodations with 1-day administration, or (c) read aloud accommodations with 2-day administration. The significant condition effect and nonsignificant group by condition interaction suggested that accommodations helped both poor and average readers. However, the accommodation effect in average readers stemmed from low performance in the nonaccommodated experimental condition that was not apparent when the same students previously took the state-administered test. The 2-day administration was more effective than the 1-day administration., With the advent of the No Child Left Behind Act and its requirements for testing all students as part of the accountability process, students with disabilities have been under increased [...]

THE METACOGNITIVE performance of four groups of students was examined. The students' processes of visual analysis and discrimination of real-life pictures were used to measure metacognition. There were 61 participants: 18 hearing students, 18 deaf and hard of hearing students, 16 students with mild mental disabilities, and 9 students with physical disabilities. Analysis revealed no significant differences among hearing students, deaf and hard of hearing students, and students with physical disabilities. The performance of these three groups of students was significantly better than the performance of students with mild mental disabilities. It appears that students with mild mental disabilities encountered difficulties with pictures that required complex visual analyses and discriminations. These difficulties were manifested in a form of deficient simultaneous visual processing along with a low level of knowledge acquisition.

The interaction hypothesis proposes that valid test accommodations benefit only those with disabilities. To evaluate this hypothesis, Grade 3 students with word decoding difficulties identified with dyslexia and average decoders were randomly assigned to take the same version of the Texas reading accountability assessment under accommodated and standard administrations. The accommodated administration was given in 2 sessions with oral reading of proper nouns and comprehension stems. Only students with decoding problems benefited from the accommodations, showing a significant increase in average performance and a 7-fold increase in the odds of passing the test. These results supported the interaction hypothesis, showing that accommodations designed for a clearly defined academic disability can enhance performance on a high-stakes assessment., The effects of accommodations on the performance of students with disabilities on accountability and other high-stakes tests have been the topic of several recent reviews (Chiu & Pearson, 1999; Fuchs, [...]

With the passage of No Child Left Behind and the start of the high-stakes accountability movement, it has become increasingly important that teachers are able to appropriately assess all students, including those who qualify for alternate assessments. If suitable assessment is occurring, teachers can use these data to help improve student performance to meet both individualized education program (IEP) goals and state standards. In this study, which was conducted with teachers in an urban system within a high-stakes accountability state, students' alternate assessment scores improved when teachers received training on instructional practices. In addition, students who did well on alternate assessments also showed growth in direct observation of performance of their IEP objectives., In the past, students with severe disabilities were often exempted from the large-scale assessments that have been a key component of school reform. Since the passage of the 1997 Amendments [...]

Byline: Gregg A. Johns (1), Christopher H. Skinner (2), Gregory L. Nail (3) Keywords: interspersal; matching law; concurrent schedules of reinforcement; changeover delay Abstract: Within- and between-series designs were combined and used to evaluate the effects of interspersing briefer math problems (i.e., one-digit by one-digit multiplication, 1 x 1) with more time-consuming problems (i.e., two-digit by one-digit multiplication, 2 x 1) on time allocation to one of two concurrent computer-delivered mathematics computation assignments in four high school students with specific learning disabilities in mathematics. The computer presented students with a choice of 2 x 1 problems with 1 x 1 problems interspersed every third problem (i.e., experimental assignment) or 2 x 1 problems without interspersal (i.e., control assignment). Visual and statistical analysis showed that students allocated a greater percentage of their time to the interspersal assignments. These results support previous research on the matching law and problem completion rates and suggest that students' preference for assignments can be improved through the interspersal technique. Discussion focuses on future research and applied educational implications for curricula construction and task sequencing. Author Affiliation: (1) Oak Circle Center, Psychology Department, Mississippi State Hospital, Whitfield, Mississippi (2) School Psychology Programs, Department of Educational Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee (3) Service Outcome Division, Mississippi State Hospital, Whitfield, Mississippi Article History: Registration Date: 06/10/2004

This study investigated the factorial invariance of a fourth-grade state mathematics assessment across groups of general education students and students with learning disabilities with and without reading accommodations. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess the fit of a 2-factor model to each of the 3 groups. In addition to the overall fit of this model, several levels of constraint were investigated. Invariance across the 3 groups was supported for factor loadings and intercepts. However, invariance of the factor covariances across the general education group and the groups of students with learning disabilities was not supported. Because of the implications for aggregating reported scores, further research is needed into the relationship between the factors in the different groups.

In this study, fourth-grade special and general education students took a large-scale state-wide test using standard test administration procedures and two major accommodations addressing response conditions and test administration. On both reading and math tests, students bubbled in answers on a separate sheet (the standard condition) for half the test and marked the test booklet directly (the accommodated condition) for the other half of the test. For a subgroup of students, the math test was read to them by a trained teacher. Although no differences were found in the response conditions, an interaction was found in the test administration conditions (orally reading the test), supporting this accommodation for students with disabilities., With the most recent reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), students with disabilities must, to the greatest extent possible, be included in all large-scale, state-wide testing programs. [...]

The purpose of this study was to examine the rate of participation of students with disabilities in a large-scale norm-referenced assessment. Hawaii uses the Stanford Achievement Test (Stanford 8) to assess 86% of public school students in grades 3, 6, 8, and 10. We found that roughly 66% of all students with disabilities were assessed in 1995. Fairly precise participation rates of students with disabilities in norm-referenced tests can be identified using state assessment and demographic databases, but there is difficulty identifying characteristics of those not assessed. Cross-sectional data are included for preliminary evaluation of mean reading score performance for high incidence categories (mild mental retardation, specific learning disabled, emotional impairment, and nondisabled groups) based on 1994 and 1995 data., There are numerous complex issues surrounding testing students with disabilities in large-scale assessment programs. Most states identify between 9.5% to 12% of their students as receiving special education services and [...]

States and districts are required by the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 (Public Law 105-17) to have students with disabilities participate in state and district assessments and to report on their performance. High-stakes testing is a significant part of standards-based reform and educational accountability. However, there are both intended and unintended consequences of high-stakes testing on students with disabilities. There is the potential for these assessments to result in many benefits for students with disabilities, but educators need to know about the ways to ensure that this happens. Participation on Individualized Education Plan teams, good decisions about accommodations and alternate assessments, and careful thought about diploma options and related issues can help students realize the benefits of high-stakes testing., High-stakes testing is becoming a common component of educational reform. When the stakes are high for students, there is always concern about the potential for unintended consequences, such as increased [...]

NEW YORK SAT and ACT officials announced last month that they will no longer mark the scores of disabled students who are given extra time to take the college entrance [...]

The provision of testing accommodations for examinees with disabling conditions has become an important topic in recent years. This review presents a summary of the relevant issues. The first section traces the history of legislation related to the testing of individuals with disabilities and presents a brief summary of guidelines issued by relevant testing organizations. The second section provides a description of disabilities typically accommodated in large-scale examinations and highlights the ever-increasing role of learning disabilities in testing practice. Summaries of legal cases concerning testing accommodations are then presented. Next, psychometric issues are described, and results and ideas for future research are presented. The review also examines the emerging role of learning disabilities in the area of testing accommodations and addresses the intensely debated social policy questions related to equity and fairness in educational assessment.