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Directed Questions
Instr. Assessments
Directed Questions for Relating Instructional Assessments to Standards
Multiple Choice
Attention: ONLINE RESPONDING IS DISABLED
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1.
What is the primary factor in determining whether students with disabilities should participate in regular district or statewide assessment?
example:
When considering participation decisions, it is most important to think about goals of a student´s instruction in relation to the purpose of the assessment. The instructional goals for students with disabilities are the primary factor in determining whether they should participate in regular district or state-wide assessment.
2.
What evidence might one include into an accountability system other than a student´s performance?
example:
Accountability has a number of layers including the classroom, building, district, and state. Various levels of accountability exist and can be considered. In addition to student performance an accountability system might include information on other educational results such as the graduation rate, parental involvement, and numbers of students in the school or district.
3.
Explain the basic differences between assessment and testing.
example:
Testing is a narrow term while assessment is a broader term, which can include various methods of gathering information. Assessment is the process of measuring learning against a set of standards including methods such as interviews and observations in addition to testing. Testing might involve using one method to gather information about knowledge an individual or group has.
4.
Discuss new and current laws emphasizing the need to include all students in educational accountability systems.
example:
Besides Section 504 and the ADA, several new laws require students with disabilities be afforded the opportunity to participate in educational accountability systems. Federal law IDEA (1997) has clarified that students with disabilities must participate in assessments and accountability systems in one or more of three ways: 1) standard assessment, 2) assessment with accommodations, and 3) alternate assessment. The Goal 2000 Act specifies that all students, including students with disabilities, be a part of the overall improvement of America´s schools. The passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, 1994 (referred to as the Improving America´s Schools Act) also reinforced this in its Title I legislation.
5.
Provide a rationale for including students with disabilities in the accountability system. How does this inclusion provide us with a more accurate picture of the status of education?
example:
The picture that we have of education is not fully representative and accurate if we do not include all students. All students can learn and all learning is important whether it involves deciphering complex mathematical formulas, or the recognition of the letter "a." Policy makers have recognized that individuals with disabilities are people first, and that they have the same rights to appropriate public education as all other students.
6.
How do district/state content standards vary across the nation?
example:
An analysis of 47 states´ content standards conducted by the National Center on Educational Outcomes in 1997 showed that standards were quite varied and included several non-academic standards. Despite the states´ indication of standards being established for all students, 11 states did not mention students with disabilities at all. Nine states considered students with disabilities as part of ´all´ suggesting that accomodations would need to be given in order to allow access to the standards. Despite this, very few states indicated that special educators were a part of the standard setting process.
7.
What major issues effected the development of district/state content standards and performance? Considering the differences existing nation wide, can you provide a brief understanding of your own district/state standards?
example:
National issues abound in regards to including students with disabilities in assessment and accountability systems, both of which are based on standards. Here are some of the major issues considered in the adoption of Standards-Based Instruction:
Appropriateness of standards for students with disabilities
Participation policies or practices
Accommodation policies or practices
Development of an alternate assessment
Data on Exclusion
Data on who receives accommodations
8.
Can you explain the term ´backmapping´? Can you explain how this effects IEP goals and benchmarks and the learning standards established for all students?
example:
The term ´backmapping´ is a relatively new one. It has evolved from the need to link standards to instruction in order to align it with assessment. Once you have identified the desired result of learning standards and benchmarks you can begin the instructional process by asking assessment questions. Start with a standard and examine it in terms of its elements of instruction.
A student´s IEP must reflect his or her current levels of need in the areas that may not be covered by standards. Using backmapping, we can take a standard and link it to the scope and sequence of the curriculum and instructional sequence. The final result of backmapping as an IEP goal and benchmark reflects the learning standards established for all students.
9.
In addition to Braille and large-print editions of tests what other accommodations are used in state assessments? Can you provide some examples of other accommodations frequently used?
example:
Braille and large print are among the most frequently allowed accommodations, but there are many others that are used more frequently. Examples of different types of accommodations often used include special lighting, the availability of separate rooms, individualized instruction or small groups, repeated directions, larger bubbles on multiple-choice questions, sign language presentations, magnification devices, timing responses, the use of reference materials, writing samples, and others.
10.
How do accommodations impact the student with a disability?
example:
The purpose of accommodations is to avoid measuring the student´s disability. The purpose of accommodations is to level the playing field, which means assessing a student´s abilities rather than the student´s disabilities. Assessment accommodations provide students with the means to show what they know without being impeded by their disability. Perhaps the easiest way to think about accommodations is in terms of what is changed-the setting in which the assessment is given, the timing of the assessment, the scheduling of when the assessment is given, the presentation or how it is given, or the response the student makes to an assessment item.
11.
Do norm-referenced assessments allow more accommodations than criterion-referenced assessments?
example:
Since most norm-referenced tests have been developed without consideration of students with disabilities, and without including them in the standardization sample, these types of assessments generally allow fewer accommodations than criterion-referenced assessments.
12.
Should instructional accommodations be used during assessments? Why or why not?
example:
There should be a link between accommodations used during instruction (to help learning take place) and during classroom tests (to accurately reflect what the student has learned) and the accommodations recommended for the student when taking a district or statewide assessment. There will be some accommodations that are used during instruction that may not be appropriate for use during an assessment. However, instructional accommodations should used during an assessment.
13.
Is it the IEP team that always determines what accommodations students with disabilities will use during assessments?
example:
While nearly all states require that the IEP team be involved in the decision about whether a student will participate in a district or state assessment, only about two-thirds of states require that IEP teams be involved in decisions about accommodations a student will use during statewide assessments. We do not have estimates of requirements for IEP involvement in decisions about accommodations for district assessments.
14.
How can a teacher help a student become more self-motivated to do well on tests?
example:
Possible Answer:
Instead of focusing only on school accountability, a teacher can turn the test taking into an effort to increase the score. Giving students a practice test and scoring it to find a percentage correct score, then setting a higher level of performance as a goal is one way a teacher can improve self-motivation in the student. Another way is to link this to class grades or to student rewards.
