Updated, December 2010
IDEA, our nation’s special education law, requires that children with disabilities participate in statewide assessment programs, with or without accommodations, unless the IEP team determines that such a large-scale assessment would not be appropriate for the child.
If the IEP team determines that the child must take an alternate assessment instead of a particular regular State or districtwide assessment of student achievement, the IEP must include a statement of why the child cannot participate in the regular assessment and why the particular alternate assessment selected is appropriate for the child.
Indicator 3 is intended to provide States and the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) with concrete data regarding how students with disabilities are participating in statewide assessments. Indicator 3 reads:
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Participation and performance of children with disabilities on statewide assessments:
A. Percent of districts meeting the State’s AYP objectives for progress for disability subgroup.
B. Participation rate for children with IEPs in a regular assessment with no accommodations; regular assessment with accommodations; alternate assessment against grade level standards; alternate assessment against alternate achievement standards.
C. Proficiency rate for children with IEPs against grade level standards and alternate achievement standards. [20 U.S.C. 1416 (a)(3)(A)]
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These, then, are the data that States must compile and report to OSEP in keeping with its monitoring and supervision activities regarding the extent to which students with disabilities participate in statewide assessment programs and how they perform.
Resources to Support Data Gathering for Indicator 3
Guidance documents on Indicator 3.
http://spp-apr-calendar.tadnet.org/byindicator.html#b_indicator_3
And technical assistance.
http://spp-apr-calendar.tadnet.org/explorer/view/id/518
How are we doing?
What’s the current status on improving participation and performance of students with disabilities in statewide assessments? What are the data telling us? Read this summary from August 2010. The status of Indicator 3 is described on pages 16-51.
http://uploads.tadnet.org/centers/88/assets/221/download
Resources to Support Student Participation in Large-Scale Assessments
What are these different types of assessments mentioned in the indicator?
Visit NICHCY’s webpage on Accommodations in Assessment for a summary of the types of assessment this indicator mentions.
http://www.nichcy.org/schoolage/iep/iepcontents/assessment
There’s a National Center on Assessment for Children with Disabilities.
The National Center on Educational Outcomes conducts research and provides information on the participation of students with disabilities in national and state assessments, standards-setting efforts, and graduation requirements.
http://www.cehd.umn.edu/nceo/default.html
Need to improve your system’s accountability system?
The Assessment and Accountability Comprehensive Center (AACC) provides a set of resources to help states, districts, and schools improve their accountability systems.
http://www.aacompcenter.org/cs/aacc/print/htdocs/aacc/home.htm
Find out all about alternative assessments.
The National Alternate Assessment Center (NAAC) was created to act as a repository of technically sound alternate assessments, to demonstrate through selected partner states high quality design and administration of all types of alternate assessments, and to provide technical assistance and dissemination of information on alternate assessments.
http://www.naacpartners.org/
Teacher quality impacts everything.
The Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC), and its Center on Teacher Quality project are funded to work with states on developing models for improving the preparation, licensing, and professional development for both general and special education teachers of students with disabilities.
http://www.ccsso.org/Resources/Programs/Interstate_Teacher_Assessment_Consortium_(InTASC).html
More resources on teacher quality…
The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality (NCCTQ) is where the regional comprehensive assistance centers, states, and other education stakeholders turn for resources on strengthening the quality of teaching for students with disabilities—especially in high-poverty, low-performing, and hard-to-staff schools.
http://www.tqsource.org/
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