9/24/15

 The SAT will replace the ACT in Michigan in March of  Today’s 11 th graders will be the first cohort to take the SAT this spring.  They will still take the WorkKeys assessment and the M-STEP as part of the MME.

 The Preliminary SAT (PSAT) will be made available for grades  Each test is grade-level specific and functionally replaces the PLAN/Explore tests provided by ACT.  The 8-10 th grade PSATs are used for practice and feedback.  The 11 th grade PSAT is also the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), so a good score can result in a scholarship.

 The SAT and 11 th grade PSAT/NMSQT are high- stakes tests that affect scholarship money and college admissions.  It is likely that evaluations will be requested for the purpose of obtaining SAT and PSAT accommodations.  The SAT offers the same range of accommodations as the ACT but the two agencies have different ways of determining who gets accommodations.  We should better understand the process so we are able to inform students and parents.

 To submit a request, someone from the school should make an account with SSD Online ( with-disabilities/ssd-online/get-access). with-disabilities/ssd-online/get-access  SSD Online allows staff to directly scan the student’s files to College Board (SAT Publisher), who will then make a decision on accommodations.  Throughout the process, the SSD Online Coordinator can track the progress of the request and submit additional information.

 March 2016 SAT accommodation request deadlines is February 16,  All documentation must be received before then.  You can began accommodation requests right now as long as your school has an AI code (a school identifier code within their database).

 The request process can take up to seven weeks, and that is only after all necessary documentation has been received.  If they find during their review process that not all documentation has been submitted, then the seven-week timeline resets after the necessary documentation has been received.  Accommodation request deadlines require you to be very proactive.

 For the student to receive accommodations, documentation should meet the following seven criteria:  Criterion #1 and #2 have important implications. Source: screenshot from College Board’s website at

 For physical disabilities, hearing impairments, and vision impairments, the student must be diagnosed by a licensed professional.  E.g., ophthalmologist, medical doctor, otorhinolaryngologist, optometrist  For mental disabilities (e.g., ASD, learning disorders, ADHD, psychiatric disorders), a DSM diagnosis must be made.  Thus, a school-based evaluation may be considered by the reviewer when making a decision about accommodations, but without a formal diagnosis, the student is automatically excluded from accommodations.

 Evaluator must be qualified to DIAGNOSE.  SSWs and Ed.S. level school psychologists cannot diagnose – they can only make eligibility recommendations.  SLPs and Ph.D. level psychologists can make diagnoses, though.

 Contracting with outside evaluators for some of these evaluations may be necessary.  We have no authority over outside evaluators, meaning that there is no guarantee that their reports meet the minimum levels of specificity outlined by College Board.  Communicating these requirements is essential.

 To assist outside evaluators in writing satisfactory reports, a detailed description of the documentation needed for each individual disability category can be found here: with-disabilities/documentation-guidelines/disability- documentationhttps:// with-disabilities/documentation-guidelines/disability- documentation  This resource is important, because very specific content must be included in the reports, some of which outside evaluators do not always include:  Relevant educational, developmental, and medical history as it relates to the diagnosis.  A narrative summary of the evaluation results.  Connection between disability and requested accommodations, specifically addressing reasons why the requested accommodations are needed on the College Board’s Standardized Exams.  Standard scores on subtests.

 Across disabilities, the most recent evaluation should be no more than five years old.  IQ data is generally not considered valid until the student is eight years old. Source: screenshot from College Board’s website at

 If extended time is desired, the most recent evaluation needs to include both timed and untimed academic achievement subtest(s): Source: screenshot from College Board’s website at

 These are very specific report requirements that outside evaluators should know when writing their reports. Source: screenshot from College Board’s website at

 Michigan Special Education evaluation criteria is less stringent than what College Board requires.  In MARSE, IQ testing is not a required component of determining SLD eligibility or OHI eligibility.  College Board requires IQ scores (preferably collected in grade 3 or later) for all students with Specific Learning Disabilities and students with ADHD.

 When I called customer service, they said that the decision to offer accommodations is up to the reviewer. One reviewer might say no while another might say yes.

 If an accommodation is approved by College Board, it applies to all College Board tests (i.e., if you qualify for PSAT accommodations you also qualify for SAT accommodations and vice versa).  Approval lasts for all of high school and one year after that.  e.g., if a student is approved for accommodations for the 8 th grade PSAT, that student can continue receiving them throughout high school and for a full year after that.  WorkKeys is NOT produced by College Board – it is produced by ACT.  Receiving WorkKeys accommodations requires you to go through the accommodation request process with ACT.

 Step 1: Begin the process well ahead of time!  To see what documentation is needed for a specific student, find that student’s disability here:  disabilities/documentation-guidelines/disability- documentation disabilities/documentation-guidelines/disability- documentation  Review that student’s file to see if available records sufficiently meet College Board’s criteria.  If unsure, submit anyway via SSD Online and see what else they want from you.  If more data is needed, seek an evaluation.  Share College Board requirements with any outside evaluator to ensure that the evaluation is satisfactory.  Submit via SSD Online and track the status of the request.  If an accommodation request is rejected, you can always re-apply after obtaining more data.

 Issue: The SAT is a high stakes test; arguably the most important test that many individuals will ever take. Performance on this test can greatly affect the individual’s life trajectory.  Question: Because this test is so important, are we obligated under FAPE to pay for a comprehensive medical evaluation for a student having or suspected of having a disability if that student’s available information is insufficient for the College Board reviewer to make a determination regarding provision of accommodations?

 Answer from attorneys: The school/district is not obligated under FAPE to provide, or help the parents get, a medical evaluation for the purpose of obtaining SAT accommodations.  Informing parents of the process is critical though.  If the student’s IEP states the need for accommodations, we have to provide them.  However, College Board will not accept the test as valid if we provide the accommodations without their approval.  Thus, an IEP amendment may need to be made to state that no accommodations for the SAT will be provided.