Brief of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual English Learner (EL) Section

Full document can be found at the bottom of the page at this address: http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual

Download Brief Here

PARCC’s goals for promoting student access:

• Apply principles of Universal Design
• Minimizing/eliminating features that are irrelevant to what is being measured
• Measuring the full range of the complexity of the standards
• Leveraging technology for delivering assessment to allow for wide accessibility
• Building accessibility throughout the test itself without hindering validity
• Using a combination of accessible-authoring and accessible technologies from the inception of items and tasks
• Engaging state and national experts in the development process: item review, bias and sensitivity review, policy development and review, and research.

Abbreviations and Jargon in the Manual:

• ELs: Students whose primary or home language is other than English and cannot perform ordinary classwork in English because they may have limited or no age-appropriate ability to understand, speak, read, or write in English.
• Refused ESL/ESOL Services are students considered EL who are qualified to receive ESL or ESOL services, but whose families have refused or waived such services.
• Former English Learners: Students who are no longer classified as ELs, but whose progress is tracked for two years after they achieved the standards of fluency as identified on the state English proficiency assessment.

Effective accommodations for ELs should meet three conditions

1. Reduce the linguistic load necessary to access the content of the curriculum or assessment
2. Do not alter what is measured by the test or the test itself. As a result, accommodated scores of students receiving accommodations should be included and reported together with scores of students not receiving accommodations
3. Address the unique linguistic and socio-cultural needs of an EL student by reducing the effects of English language skills on the student’s overall performance on the assessment.

Eligibility

• ELs with IEPs are eligible to receive BOTH EL accommodations and accommodations determined for SWDs by their IEP/504 team.
• Students for whom a district elects to provide EL support, but who are not officially classified as EL, are NOT ELIGIBLE for EL accommodations or exemptions for any statewide assessments.
• Students not receiving language support program services due to parent/guardian refusal, but who are classified as EL, ARE considered eligible for PARCC testing accommodations.

Modifications are unacceptable changes to the test itself or what the test measures and are NOT
PERMITTED on PARCC assessments. Examples include:

• Clarifying or paraphrasing test items
• Answering questions about test items or coaching students during the test
• Defining words or paraphrasing the test for the student
• Using dictionaries that provide definitions rather than word-to-word
• Allowing the student to complete the assessment in a language other than English.

Individuals involved in making accommodation decisions:

• ESL/bilingual teachers, general educators who work with the student, school/district ESL/bilingual coordinator, school/district test coordinators, school administrators, guidance counselor, students, and parents

The group should:

• discuss which accommodations might assist a student during daily instruction in the classroom;
• determine which accommodations to “try out” with the student during instruction in each content area; 
• document and evaluate the effectiveness of the accommodations used over time; 
• make adjustments to the use of accommodations for the future; 
• determine which of the accommodations used effectively in the classroom should be used on PARCC tests, provided they are allowed on the tests.

The process for selecting, administering, and evaluating accommodations for EL is outlined on pages 58-61. This includes the table for calculating the Composite ELP level from WIDA scores and ELDA scores.

Considerations:

• Level of English language proficiency (ELP) on the state ELP test classified as beginning, intermediate, or advanced
• Literacy development in the native language and interrupted schooling/literacy background

Background factors that impact effective accommodations use :

• grade/age, 
• affective filter such as level of student anxiety/comfort with English, and 
• time in U.S. schools

To submit feedback on the Students with Disabilities portion of the Manual, please go to the PARCC website and click on the feedback survey link at the bottom of this page: http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual

Brief of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual for SWD

Brief of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual Students with Disabilities (SWD) Section

Full document can be found at the bottom of the page at this address: http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual

Download Brief Here

• PARCC’s goals for promoting student access:
• Apply principles of Universal Design
• Minimizing/eliminating features that are irrelevant to what is being measured
• Measuring the full range of the complexity of the standards
• Leveraging technology for delivering assessment to allow for wide accessibility
• Building accessibility throughout the test itself without hindering validity
• Using a combination of accessible-authoring and accessible technologies from the inception of items and tasks
• Engaging state and national experts in the development process: item review, bias and sensitivity review, policy development and review, and research.
• Abbreviations and Jargon in the Manual:
• SWD: a student with a disability is one who has been found eligible based on the definitions provided by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
• Students existed from Special Education Services are students who have been determined by their IEP team to no longer require special education services.
• Accommodations are intended to reduce or even eliminate the effects of a student’s disability and /or English language proficiency level; however, accommodations do not reduce learning expectations. Accommodations adhere to the following principles:
• Enable students to participate more fully in instruction and assessments and to demonstrate their knowledge and skills.
• Should be based upon individual student needs and not upon a category of disability, English language proficiency, level of instruction, amount of time spent in general classroom, program setting, or availability of staff.
• Should be based on a documented need in the instruction/assessment setting and should not be provided for the purpose of giving the student an enhancement that could be viewed as an unfair advantage
• For SWDs, should be described and documented in the student’s appropriate IEP or 504 plan
• For ELs, should be described and documented in an EL plan or other appropriate documentation
• Students who are both ELs and SWDs may qualify for SWDs and ELs accommodations, and should have all accommodations listed in an IEP/504 plan and El plan or other appropriate documentation
• Should be implemented as soon as possible after completion and approval of the appropriate plan and become part of daily instruction.
• Should not be introduced for the first time during the testing of a student.
• Should be used for instruction should also be used on local district assessments and state assessments.
• An Embedded Support is a tool, support, scaffold, or preference that is built into the assessment system that can be activated by any students at his or her own discretion.
• Accessibility Features are available to all students, but will be selected and “turned on” by a school-based educator prior to the assessment, based on the student’s Personal Needs Profile (PNP)
• Considerations when making decisions for assessment accommodations
• Student characteristics: what accommodations does the student regularly use in the classroom? Has the student indicated preference in using the accommodation? What input have teachers or parent/guardians had?
• Individual test characteristics: What tasks are required? What is the test designed to measure? Are there barriers for the student in doing those tasks? Are there accommodations already being used that match the needs of the task? Are there additional accommodations needed to meet the task?
• PARCC Accommodation Policy to maintain validity or assessment: Is the accommodation allowed for the test or portion of the test noted as a barrier? Are there consequences for using the accommodation? Does the accommodation change the target of the assessment
• Questions to guide evaluation of accommodation use at the school and district level:
• Are there policies to ensure ethical testing practices, the standardized administration of assessments, and that test security practices are followed before, during, and after the day of the test?
• Are there procedures in place to ensure test administration procedures are not compromised with the provision of accommodations?
• Are students receiving accommodations as documented in their IEP and 504 plans?
• Are there procedures in place to ensure that test administrators adhere to directions for the implementation of accommodations?
• How many students with IEPs or 504 plans are receiving accommodations?
• What types of accommodations are provided and are some used more than others?
• How well do students who receive accommodations perform on state and district assessments? If students are not meeting the expected level of performance, is it due to the students not receiving access to the necessary instruction, not receiving the accommodation, or using accommodation that were not effective>
• Questions to guide evaluation at the student level
• What accommodations are used by the student during instruction and assessments?
• What are the results of classroom assignments and assessments when accommodations are used versus when accommodations are not used?
• What is the student’s perception of how well the accommodation worked?
• What combinations of accommodations seem to be effective?
• What are the difficulties encountered in the use of accommodations?
• What are the perceptions of teachers, parents, and others about how the accommodation appears to be working?

To submit feedback on the Students with Disabilities portion of the Manual, please go to the PARCC website and click on the feedback survey link at the bottom of this page: http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual

Brief of the PowerPoint of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual

Brief of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual

Highlights of Informational Powerpoint. Full document can be found at the bottom of the page at this address:

http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual


• Full administrative guidance is not found in the Manual at this time. That will come summer/fall 2013
• Embedded supports available to ALL STUDENTS at his/her discretion could be audio amplification, highlighting, pop-up glossary, eliminate answer choices, flag items for review, directions read aloud and repeated, magnification device, noise buffers, notepad, spell checker, writing tools
• Accessibility Features “turned on” for students based on each student’s Personal Needs Profile could include answer marking, background/font color or color contrast, line reader tool, masking, text-to-speech for the mathematics assessments
• Proposed Accommodations for Students with Disabilities (SWD): assistive technology, Braille, Closed-captioning of video, descriptive video, familiar test administrator, paper-pencil edition, tactile graphics, video of human interpreter for directions and math assessments, Braille note-taker, Scribing/speech-to-text for mathematics, extended time, frequent breaks, time of day, adaptive or specialized furniture, separate or alternate location, small group, special lighting, specified area or preferential seating, calculation device, read aloud or text-to-speech for ELA/Literacy Assessments including items response options and passages, scribe or speech-to-text for ELA assessments, video of human interpreter for ELA including items response option and passages for a student who is deaf or hard of hearing, word prediction on the ELA PBA
• Accommodations for English Learners (EL) will be based on a combination of WIDA Levels 1-6 and ELDA Levels 1-6, to achieve a Composite ELP Levels of Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced.
• Proposed Accommodations for Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced EL students: Word – word dictionary, extended time, and frequent breaks.
• Proposed Accommodations for Beginning EL only: Test directions clarified by test administrator in student’s native language, read aloud or text-to-speech for test items and response options read aloud in English, and scribe or speech-to-text for responses dictated for mathematics assessment in English.
• The public comment period is April 18-May 13, 2013
• To submit feedback on the Manual, please go to the PARCC website and click on the feedback survey links, one for EL and one for SWD. Links are at the bottom of this page: http://parcconline.org/parcc-draft-accommodations-manual


Submitted by Brook Meiller 4/19/2013

Brief of FAQs from DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual

Brief of DRAFT PARCC Accommodations Manual
Highlights of FAQs. Full document can be found here: http://parcconline.org/sites/parcc/files/PARCCDraftAccommodationsManualforSWDEL.pdf

• The manual includes not only proposed participation and accommodations policies for Students with Disabilities (SWD) and English Learners (EL) but also information about tools that will be provided through PARCC’s computer-based assessment delivery system for ALL students to optimize their performance on the assessments.
• Definition of accommodations for SWD: practices and procedures that change presentation, response, setting, and/or timing/scheduling of assessments and are intended to provide equitable access during instruction and assessments for students with disabilities.
• Definition of accommodations for EL: practices and procedures that provide equitable access during instruction and assessments for ELs, such as reducing linguistic load, and provide a valid means for ELs to show what they know and can do.
• An embedded support is a tool, support, scaffold, or preference that is built into the assessment system that can be activated by ANY STUDENT at his or her own discretion.
• Accessibility features are available to ALL STUDENTS, but are “turned on” by a schoo-based educator prior to the assessment, based on each student’s Personal Need Profile (PNP).
• IPE team and 504 plan team members are responsible for selecting accommodations for both instruction and assessment.
• An EL team can be convened to identify appropriate accommodations for each EL student.
• In summer 2013, PARCC states and key stakeholders will review and vet a number of appendices to the Manual.
• If an accommodation is not listed in the Manual, PARCC states will review requests for unique accommodations in their respective states on an individual basis and will provide approval after determining whether the accommodation would result in a valid score for the student.
• The expectation is that all PARCC students will take the test on computer. However, the PARCC assessments will be available in paper and pencil format for SWD whose IEP/504 plans require it, and for schools that have gained approval for paper and pencil-based testing from the State Educational Agency.
• PARCC’s policy concerning translations will be included in the first edition of the PARCC Accommodations Manual in summer 2013.

Submitted by Brook Meiller 4/19/2013

Primary Source Resources

I was invited to do a guest blog post about our weekly #OklaEd chat this week.  We were talking Common Core crowdsourcing, and my post focused on resources for primary sources.  I thought I would link it here as well.

http://oklaedchatblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/woo-hoo-we-are-out-of-box.html