This study analyzed the written accommodation guidelines for students with disabilities in 18 states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia) that use graduation examinations. Each state uses a…

This report is designed to assist states and districts as they consider the issues surrounding the use of non-approved testing accommodations for students with disabilities, including changes in test setting, timing, scheduling, presentation, or response. Recommendations are provided for ways to use and report data from assessments taken with…

This paper identifies issues to consider as educational policy makers make decisions about diploma options and graduation policies for students with disabilities, especially in the context of the increasing use of requirements that students pass specified tests to graduate. A table compares advantages and disadvantages of four diploma options: (1)…

The purpose of this booklet is to introduce parents of students with disabilities to the "big ideas" contained in school improvement efforts under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and to provide them with the information they need to help ensure that their children…

This report presents six core principles of inclusive assessment and accountability systems with a brief rationale and specific characteristics that reflect each principle. The principles are: (1) All students with disabilities are included in the assessment system; (2) Decisions about how students with disabilities participate in the assessment…

This report analyzes information from a study that described how data on English language learners (ELLs) were reported nationwide, investigating ELLs' participation rates in and performance on state assessments. Data are reported for state reading and math tests; state writing, science, and social studies tests; and native language and other…

This annotated bibliography of 66 resources was developed as part of a federally funded project in Minnesota to promote the participation of students with limited English proficiency (LEP) and students with disabilities in the Minnesota Graduation Standards. Specifically, the project is encouraging participation in the Basic Standards Exams of…

The purpose of this study was to examine the participation and performance of English language learners with disabilities on the 1999-2000 Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments. For the rest of this report we refer to these students by the term students with limited English proficiency (LEP) who also have disabilities (SLEPD) 1. We wanted to do this…

This report describes how assessments are scored and results are reported in the inclusive assessment and accountability systems in Maryland and Kentucky. Specific topics include: (1) how school performance is reported to the public; (2) what components go into the reported performance of schools; (3) how scores are obtained for students in the…

This paper discusses federal requirements for addressing general education curriculum standards and student participation in educational assessments in the Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) of students with disabilities. Specific regulations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are cited, and the following recommendations are…

This monograph describes the functions of large-scale educational assessments and examines existing and developing policies as they pertain to transition-age youth with disabilities. It stresses that the level of representation of students with disabilities in such assessments will have impact on their level of representation in national and state…

This report presents findings from an investigation of the perceptions, hopes, and fears of educators as they work toward including students with disabilities in Minnesota's High Standards. The findings are from questionnaires and interviews that were conducted from January to March 1999, with 90 educators across all grade levels from ten schools…

The purpose of this research study was to illustrate the ways in which out-of-level testing policies have changed over the three years from 2000-2001 to 2003-2004. In 2000-2001, 12 states were using out-of-level tests to measure student progress toward content standard proficiency. A detailed research study conducted at the end of 2000-2001 to…

English language learners (ELLs) were once expected to learn English before they learned critical content needed to succeed in school, but this is longer true, because now federal education laws require that ELLs be held to the same academic standards as other students. There are, however, requirements to assess and document progress on tests of…

This report describes and compares the inclusive assessment and accountability systems of Maryland and Kentucky, with a focus on components, scoring methods, reporting practices, data use, participation of students with disabilities, testing accommodations, and implementation considerations (including cost and training issues). Maryland and…