1. Guide you through the history of the accountability movement.



2. Provide you with the trademarks of a standards-based classroom.



3. Assist you in making accommodation decisions for students who need them, both in instruction and assessment.



4. Develop ways you can prepare students and parents for the big testing day.

1. Educational Accountability: What does it really mean?
   1. Reasons Promoting an Inclusion Accountability System
      1. For an accurate picture of education.
      2. To make fair comparisons.
      3. To meet legal requirements.
      4. To avoid unintended effects.
      5. To promote higher expectations.
      6. To benefit from reforms.
      
      
   2. What is Educational Accountability?
      1. Definition: A systematic means of assuring those inside and outside the educational system that schools are moving in desired directions.
      2. Layers of accountability:
         1. Classroom accountability
         2. School building accountability
         3. School district accountability
         4. State level accountability
      
      
   3. Assessment
      1. Definition: The process of measuring learning against a set of standards.
      2. Functions of assessment:
         1. Accountability
         2. Instructional Improvement
         3. Program Evaluation
         4. Student Diagnosis
         5. High School Graduation
      
      
   4. What is the Relationship Between Accountability and Assessment?
      1. Assessment and accountability results show how students are doing against a set of learning goals or standards.
      
      
   5. What Does This Have to Do With Me?
      1. State or school district's test results
      
      
   6. What Makes Up Accountability Systems?
      1. Two kinds of accountability:
         1. System accountability
         2. Student accountability
      2. Dimensions of accountability systems:
         1. Target of accountability
         2. Consequences of accountability
         3. Information used to determine accountability
         4. Instruments used to collect student performance data
         5. Standard
      3. The most common consequences for systems:
         1. School performance reporting
         2. School warnings, probation, or watch
         3. School accreditation
         4. School takeover
         5. School monetary rewards or exemptions from regulations
         6. School awards or recognition
         7. High school skill warrantees, where schools guarantee to re-educate students if employers or post-secondary institutions determine they do not have the needed basic skills for success
      
      
   7. State Accountability Systems
      1. Types of information used in state accountability systems:
         1. Student test scores
         2. Dropout rate
         3. Attendance rate
      2. Instruments used to collect information
      3. Performance standards
         1. School indexes
      
      
   8. Assumptions About Including Students with Disabilities in Accountability and Assessment Systems
      1. Assumption 1: All Students Can Learn.
      2. Assumption 2: Schools Are Responsible for the Learning of All Children.
      
      
   9. Conclusion
   
   
2. Standards-Based Instruction
   1. Standards and Students with Disabilities: Where does it all start?
      1. National issues
         1. Appropriateness of standards for students with disabilities
         2. Participation policies or practices
         3. Accommodation policies or pracitces
         4. Developement of an alternate assessment
         5. Availability of data on who is excluded
         6. Availability of data on who receives accommodations
      
      
   2. Standards-Based Instruction: What are the components?
      1. Basic principles
         1. The accountability system is accountable to itself
         2. Accountability is built on standards that reflect all students in our schools
         3. Opportunity to learn is a primary element in the accountability system
         4. All constituents of stakeholders of the accountability system have a clear understanding of the components of the acountability system
      
      
   3. Standards-Based Classroom vs. Business as Usual
      1. Seat time is not sufficient to gain credit
      2. "D's" are not passing grades
      3. Emphasis on core academic disciplines
      
      
   4. Relevance for All Students
      1. 85% of students with disabilities are able to participate in the typical district or state assessment.
      
      
   5. Trademarks of a Standards-Based Classroom
      1. Students know the standards and level of proficiency required
      2. Students are provided multiple opportunities to learn
      3. Student asignments reflect an integration of facts,concepts, and strategies
      4. Each assignment is an assessment in itself
      
      
   6. Aligning IEPs with Standards
      1. Restructuring of the IEP
         1. Goals and benchmarks the student is working toward
         2. The district and state assessment students with disabilities will participate in
         3. Assessment accommodations needed
      
      
   7. Linking IEPs to Standards
      1. Backmapping Standards to Instruction
         1. Educators think as assessors
         2. How does backmapping work?
      
      
   
   
3. Accommodations for the Classroom
   1. Purpose of accommodations
      1. Accommodations provide equal footing
      2. Types of accommodations: setting, timing, scheduling, presentation, response, and other
      
      
   2. Eligibility for and decisions about accommodations
      1. Students with an IEP or 504 plans
      2. Decisions are responsibility of IEP teams
      
      
   3. Accommodations: what is the controversy?
      1. Ability vs. disability
      2. Visible vs. hidden disabilities
      3. Making good decisions about accommodations
      
      
   4. Accommodation research: what do we really know?
      1. History of accommodation research
      2. "Over-accommodation"
      
      
   5. Think about what happens during instruction
      1. Accommodations, instruction, and assessment
      2. Training and practice in using accommodations
      
      
   6. Involve others in making accommodation decisions
      1. Nature and purpose of the assessment
      2. Instructional accommodations students use
      3. State or district accommodation guidelines
      4. Preparation for optimal use of accommodations
      5. How accommodations might change over time
      
      
   7. Criteria for good accommodation decisions
   8. Do’s and Don’ts in testing accommodations
   9. Accommodation issues and teaching all students
      1. Students who require no special accommodations
      2. Students who require accommodations
      3. Students who will take the alternate assessment
      4. Students who fall in the middle
      5. Students with limited English proficiency (ESL)
      
      
   10. Considering the integrity of an assessment
       1. Criterion-referenced vs. norm-referenced test
       2. Five principles
       
       
   11. Where the rubber hits the road: the reality of accommodation use
       1. IEP documentation issues
       2. Non-approved accommodations
       3. Appeals process
       
       
   
   
4. Preparing Students for Testing and Assessment
   1. Assessment literacy
      1. Philosophy and terminology
      2. Discuss the purpose of tests
         1. High stakes vs. low stakes consequences
         2. Consequences to the student, the educational system, or both
      3. Discuss the nature of the test
         1. Knowledge about the test and its requirements
         2. Test matrix
      
      
   2. Setting performance goals (and expectations)
      1. "Pygmalion effect"
      2. Accountability decisions
      3. Identifying realistic goals
      
      
   3. Preparing for the test
      1. Review general test vocabulary items
      2. Review specific content area terms
      3. Address the administration of tests
      4. Provide general strategies for different types of items
      5. Provide practice tests
      6. Give students one or more test taking strategies
         1. SCORER
         2. Mini strategies
      
      
   4. Taking the test
      1. Personal strategies
         1. Self regulation
         2. Time management
      2. Recommendations for self-regulation and time management strategies
         1. Four recommendations
         2. Positive thinking and visualization
      3. Using accommodations well
         1. Self advocacy
         2. Fairness issues
         3. Knowledge about the test and the policies about accommodations
      4. Physical and mental readiness
      
      
   5. Helping students become advocates for their own testing needs
   
   

Elliott, J., and Thurlow, M. (2000). Improving test performance of students with disabilities on district and state assessment. Thousand Oaks,CA: Corwin Press.

Elmore, R.F., & Rothman, R. (1999) (Eds.), Testing, teaching, and learning: A guide for states and school districts. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.

Huebert, J.P., & Hauser, R.M. (1998) (Eds.). High stakes: Testing for tracking, promotion, and graduation. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Klingner, J.K., & Vaughn, S. (1999). Students' perceptions of instruction in inclusion classrooms: Implications for students with learning disabilities. Exceptional Children, 66 (1), 23-37.

McDonnell, L.M., McLaughlin, M.J., & Morison, P. (1997). Educating one & all: Students with disabilities and standards-based reform. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Tindal, G., Heath, B., Hollenbeck, K., Almond, P., & Harniss, M. (1998). Accommodating students with disabilities on large-scale tests: An empirical study of student response and test administration demands. Exceptional Children, 64 (4), 439-450.