Accommodations in Oregon Oregon Department of Education Fall Conference 2009 Staff and Panel Presentation Dianna Carrizales ODE Mike Boyles Pam Prosise

Objectives Provide Oregon’s definitions for Accommodations and Modifications Increase awareness of Oregon’s expectations for the implementation of Accommodations Develop awareness of Oregon’s Accommodation deliberation process Provide information on national trends in Accommodations and implications for Oregon Provide information on the state of Oregon’s decisions regarding Accommodations Provide an update on recent changes in Oregon’s Accommodations format

Accommodations and Modifications (Definitions revisited) Accommodations – practices and procedures in presentation, response, setting, and timing or scheduling that, when used in an assessment, provide equitable access to all students. Accommodations do not compromise the learning expectations, construct, grade- level standard, and/or measured outcome of the assessment Modifications – (instructional) practices and procedures that if applied to an assessment setting may compromise the intent of the assessment through a change in the learning expectations, construct, grade-level standard, and/or measured outcome.

How we got here Historical purpose (ASK Settlement, 2001):  Broaden the list of accommodations available to students with learning disabilities  Provide an alternative to the standard assessment for those learning disabled students who are disadvantaged by the regular assessment  Institute an appeals process  Conduct further research to ensure the validity of the tests with respect to students with disabilities, and  Provide greater training and information about the assessment to students, teachers, and parents.

Information Sources United States Department of Education (April 2007)  A state must: Develop, disseminate information on, and promote the use of appropriate accommodations to increase the number of students with disabilities who are tested against academic achievement standards for the grade in which a student is enrolled; Research  National Center on Educational Outcomes  Council of Chief State School Officers  Current university and educational research Accommodations Panel  (review of district, school, parent, and student recommendations)

State Level Evaluation of Accommodations (NCEO) States will be evaluated on: Selection of accommodations  Validity of process Agreement of assessment accommodations with instructional accommodations  Consistency of implementation (validity) Monitoring accommodations availability and use  IDEA fidelity Accommodations use provides valid inferences and meaningful scores about students’ knowledge and skills  Maintaining the integrity/construct of the assessment

District and School Level Considerations (CCSSO 5-steps) Step 1: Expect Students with Disabilities To Achieve Grade-level Academic Content Standards Step 2: Learn About Accommodations for Instruction and Assessment Step 3: Select Accommodations for Instruction and Assessment of Individual Students Step 4: Administer Accommodations During Instruction and Assessment Step 5: Evaluate and Improve Accommodations Use

Accommodations Panel Guiding Principles Instruction should allow for access to information and practice of skills Assessment should allow for demonstration of knowledge and skills without compromising rigor of expectation Accommodations wherever provided, should be part of a plan toward increased independence (during both instruction and assessment) Accommodations, used correctly, can contribute to a heightened awareness of student ability and should inform the decision-making cycle Educators should maintain an awareness of the relationship between instruction and assessment

Guiding Principles (cont’d) Validity at the forefront Following appropriate testing expectations Provision in the classroom as a prerequisite Student familiarity with Accommodations Student awareness of the limitations of assistance (based on location) Adult interaction at an item level

National trends in Accommodations Electronic Accommodations tracking systems Electronic Accommodations decision making tools Re-examination of categories Development of validation processes More interest in national alignment Allowing only validated Accommodations to be used during a statewide assessment

Oregon’s current trends and future hopes in Accommodations Support changes that ensure clarity of intent Determine a consistent and reliable process that allows educators to accurately monitor Accommodations use between classroom and assessment settings Respond to needs generated by ongoing developments in the OAKS system (e.g. online Writing, Assessment of Essential Skills, Reading Performance Assessments) Link Accommodations to assessment electronically

Consistency Between Instruction and Assessment (1) Accommodations used in the classroom should allow for (a) students to have access to instruction and (b) the opportunity to demonstrate learning. (2) Accommodations used for assessment should be routinely used for instruction (i.e. Assessment accommodations should not be used for the first time on test day.) (3) The goals of instruction and assessment should be considered before making decisions about accommodations.

Implications for Oregon Accommodation changes, reassignment, removal Continued streamlining of Accommodations decision-making process to ensure that assessment validity is maintained Involvement in national discussions on Accommodations

Changes to Expect Structural changes  Change in format and structure of tables (now manual) Technical changes  Removed mistakes and oversights (e.g. hearing aids)  Provided Accommodations by population  Provided administration definitions Theoretical changes  Reassigned some accommodations to allowable resources  Administration Conditions (e.g., Extended time, Frequent breaks)

Oregon’s Accommodations Manual Walk through manual  Table of contents  Structure of chapters  Structure of Accommodations and tables  Selected definitions

Questions? Questions

Contact Information Accommodations questions and recommendations:  Office of Student Learning and Partnerships   (503)