Literacy Assessments: Significant Disabilities

1. Literacy Assessments:Significant Disabilities Presented by: Janet Cornelius, Louisiana Department of Education Nanette Olivier, Louisiana Department of Education Dr. Caroline Musselwhite, Consultant AAC Intervention March 23, 2009

2. Webinar Objectives • Provide overview of literacy assessment requirements for students with significant disabilities in the Ensuring Literacy for All Schools. • Review the use of 2 assessment tools for these students. • DIBELS • Bridge • Provide information on resources available to support the assessments.

3. Who are these students? • Students with significant and often complex disabilities • Intellectual, communication, sensory, social/behavioral and motor impairments • Participate in LAA1 • Have typically been left out of the “literacy loop” The school-wide literacy plan must include the needs of these students!

4. Significant Disabilities Access Guide Web Site • http://sda.doe.louisiana.gov • Literacy section on the left hand navigational tool bar

7. Program AssurancesEnsuring Literacy for ALL Schools • School-wide literacy plan • Core reading instruction time • Extended time for Tiers II and III • Literacy Coach role • Benchmark screening assessments • SBRR intervention and progress monitoring

8. 7. Collaborative planning time 8.-11. Support PD • Collaboration with teacher ed. college • District-level literacy team • Collaboration amongst partners • Procure & allocate resources • Funding • SIP has literacy as primary focus

9. Who is responsible for implementation of assessments for students with significant disabilities? • Reading coach • Special education teacher • Certified interventionist • Speech pathologist • Pupil appraisal • Must be a certified/licensed person!! • Technical assistance (AT Center, LDE)

10. Assessment: ************** Checklists, Inventories, etc.

11. Handout: QIL

13. Use Standard Procedures If Possible

14. Example: DIBELS • developed / supported by University of Oregon & Dynamic Measurement Group • administered individually • set of tests used a various age levels • provides national and district benchmarks to be used as goals and indicators

15. Sample ModificationsAge of Student “It may be appropriate for monitoring the progress of older children with very low skills in phonological awareness.” (p. 10). However, comparing to benchmarks would not be valid.

16. DIBELS Approved Accommodations Administration & Scoring Guide, p. 47

17. Sample Significant ModificationsMeans of Indicating Ex: Initial Sound Fluency Goal: Student is asked to indicate (point or say) the picture showing the target sound. Modification: Student uses a eye gaze or a headstick to make the selection. If the response is quick and clear, just make a note of the modification. Concerns: If the response speed is slow, benchmarks will not be valid. Comments: May still be useful to see student progress across time.

18. Eye Gaze Frame • • purchased, or • • home-made • • may be made of: • Plexiglas • PVC piping • • affix pics with velcro

19. Trade Card Holder • center cut out (to read eye gaze) • photos in pockets or taped on • student looks to choose answer • or, partner assisted eye gaze (‘this one? … this one?)

20. Sample Significant ModificationsMode of Communicating Ex: Initial Sound Fluency Goal: Student is asked to tell the sound a word begins with (“What sound does ‘clock’ begin with?”). Modification: Student uses a phoneme page on a speech output device (note in literacy folder!) Concerns: This changes the task difficulty (making in more difficult) and likely changes the speed Thus, benchmarks will not be valid. Comments: May still be useful to see student progress across time.

21. When to Try Alternate Assessments

22. BRIDGE FEATURES Background: developed for NC preschoolers Emergent Literacy: observing literacy for real purposes; ‘trying out’ beginning understandings of print; strong link between oral and written language development Evidence-Based Reading Research (EBRR): focus on specific skills such as phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge, etc.

23. Based on The Literacy Pyramid

24. THE BRIDGEPierce, Summer, O’DeKirk, in progress Foundations of Reading (book knowledge, print awareness, etc) Foundations of Writing (motor, cognitive-linguistic) Alphabet Knowledge Phonological/Phonemic Awareness Oral Language (related to literacy)

25. BRIDGE: Foundations of Reading

26. BRIDGE: Foundations of Writing

27. BRIDGE: Alphabet Knowledge

28. BRIDGE: Phonological / Phonemic Awareness

29. BRIDGE: Oral Language(Related to Literacy Activities)

30. BRIDGE: Other Information

31. BRIDGE: Other Information(Language Sample, MLU, Sentence Structures)

32. HELP!!! More support, Please!!

33. Bridge Guide FREE!! Download this 19-page guide full of examples!

35. Bridge Training PowerPoint

36. 90 Items, with specific examples

37. Resources • LA DOE website for significant disabilities http://sda.doe.louisiana.gov • Flowchart (at website) • Assessment Tools Chart (at website) • BRIDGE (links from Assessment Tools Chart)

38. Action Plan?? • Talk to Literacy Coach for your school? • Pick 5 students to assess in March? • Make an eye-gaze frame to use with DIBELS? • Download BRIDGE? • Other ideas???

39. Next Steps • Archived webinar • March 30 webinar • April 27 Annual Literacy Celebration • April 28-29 – related presentations at the Annual Literacy and Numeracy Conference