Setting Alternate Achievement Standards Prepared by Sue Rigney U.S. Department of Education NCEO Teleconference March 21, 2005

Regulation on alternate achievement standards §200.1 “For students… with the most significant cognitive disabilities, who take an alternate assessment, a State may, through a documented and validated standards-setting process, define alternate achievement standards…”

Content v Achievement Standards Gen’l AssmtAA-GLASAA-AAS Content Standards taught and assessed (access and alignment targets) Grade level Grade level, w/ extension or expansion to entry points Achievement Standards Grade level Alternate level Participating Students Most students, including those with disabilities, (with or w/o accommoda- tions) Students with disabilities who need alternate way(s) to show what they know Students with significant cognitive disabilities

Achievement standard Label Descriptor Student work Cut score(s) 4 Components

Alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards Should have:  Clearly defined structure  Guidelines for which students may participate  Clearly defined scoring criteria and procedures  Report format that clearly communicates student performance in terms of the academic achievement standards defined by the State

This is a real assessment Based on academic content Structured to permit observation of student achievement of a clearly defined construct Scoring criteria are consistent with the construct Aggregation of data is consistent with the construct

Essentials of the standard setting process Define goals; purpose to be served by the cutscore Select participants; qualifications depend on the decisions to be made using the cutscore, familiarity with population tested Train participants; start with practice & feedback Define the performance standard Data collection procedures Kane, ed Cizek pp.64-69

Standard setting options Test-centered Angoff - estimates difficulty of items for hypothetical examinees Bookmark - sets cut points within set of ordered item booklet Examinee-centered Contrasting groups - based on judgements about performance of examinees Body of work Profile (policy capturing) Different procedures yield different results

Bookmark method Arrange items in order of difficulty from easiest to hardest 67% answer this item correctly Descriptors provide general notion of levels Judges identify boundaries between performance levels Judges get feedback data and confirm cut points

Body of work method Judges examine student responses to a variety of tasks Collections of student work prepared for Training Range finding Pinpointing Data analysis

Generic Steps Select large, representative panel of judges Choose method, prepare agenda and training materials Prepare achievement level descriptors Train participants to use the method Compile item ratings or other judgments, prepare summary information as feedback

More steps Participants discuss initial summary information Another round of ratings, compile information and discuss as in 5 & 6 Final opportunity to review information and arrive at final recommended achievement standards Evaluate standard-setting process Assemble documentation of process and other evidence appropriate for validity

Document the procedures Number of participants, how selected Qualifications of participants Qualifications of those designing methodology Materials used Instructions to participants Frameworks developed by participants Timeline, schedule of events, actual agenda

More documentation Any deviations from intended procedures Evidence of consistency/inconsistency of judgments Between rates Between rounds

Checklist for performance standards Understandable and useful for stakeholders Clearly differentiate among levels Grounded in student work but not tied to status quo Built by consensus Focused on learning Handbook, p. 16

Peer Review looks for Formal adoption by Board? How linked with grade-level content? Involvement of diverse stakeholders? Alternate achievement standard available for each grade level? Documentation of process used? Results reported in terms of the alternate achievement standards?

Questions What should alternate standards look like? Grade-by-grade? How can group data reflect individual student growth? What if the AA-AAS doesn’t meet “commonly accepted professional standards”? Will our state “pass” peer review?