2015 Special Education Assessment Updates

1. 2015 Special Education Assessment Updates TETN Event # 20967 Presented June 5, 2014 Texas Education Agency - Student Assessment Division

2. Disclaimer • These slides have been prepared by the Student Assessment Division of the Texas Education Agency (TEA). • If any slide is amended or revised for local use, please remove the TEA footer at the bottom of the slide. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

3. General Updates Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

4. End-of-Course (EOC) Assessments • For students receiving special education services and have failed an EOC assessment: • STAAR EOC • An ARD committee may determine that the student should continue testing until he/she passes the assessment OR they can determine no further testing is necessary based on the instruction the student is receiving. • If a student meets curriculum requirements and passes all 5 STAAR EOC assessments, he/she can graduate on the DAP, RHSP, or the MHSP. • If a student does not pass a STAAR EOC assessments, he/she will only be able to graduate on the MHSP. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

5. End-of-Course (EOC) Assessments(continued) • For students receiving special education services and have failed an EOC assessment: • STAAR Modified EOC • A student will not have another opportunity to take a STAAR Modified EOC assessment if he/she failed or was absent during testing. However, according to federal and state regulations, students who take a modified assessment are not held to the same graduation requirements as students who take the general assessment. Meeting the passing standard on a STAAR Modified EOC assessment is not a graduation requirement, so participating in additional testing opportunities was never necessary. • A student will graduate on the MHSP if he/she took at least one STAAR Modified EOC assessment. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

6. STAAR Modified U.S. History • Administered for the first (and last) time spring 2014. • Only raw scores will be reported since standards for this assessment will not be set. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

7. STAAR Modified Released Tests • The following 2014 STAAR Modified assessments will be released in August 2014. • grades 3–8 mathematics • grades 6 and 8 reading • grades 5 and 8 science • grade 8 social studies • Algebra I • biology • English I and II • U.S. history Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

8. STAAR Modified Released Tests • In order to support future test administrations within the STAAR program, it was necessary to remove select reading selections, writing passages, and test questions from certain tests. Therefore, the following 2014 STAAR Modified assessments will be only partially released: • grades 3, 4, 5, and 7 reading • grades 4 and 7 writing Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

9. 2015 ARD and Accommodations Training • Updated ARD committee training for assessment decisions will be posted in the Fall of 2014. • Remember, allowable testing accommodations currently posted apply to the 2014 calendar year…meaning that these policies remain in effect until December 2014. • 2015 allowable testing accommodations will be posted in the Fall of 2014. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

10. TAKS • August 20, 2013 Letter to Districts Primary test administrations no longer provided • Student may test during any of the TAKS test administrations (October, March, July) • The 2013–2014 school year will be the last year for paper administrations of TAKS. Beginning in October 2014, TAKS will become an online test only. • Only TAKS will be administered online beginning Fall 2014. • ARD committees will document the accommodations the students need on TAKS and are allowed per the 2010-2011 Accommodations Manual. • For example, if a student is eligible to use a supplemental aid, he/she can use it during the online TAKS retest. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

11. STAAR A: General Information • The U.S. Department of Education informed states that assessments based on modified standards for students served by special education cannot be used for accountability purposes after the 2013-2014 school year. • STAAR Modified will be administered for the last time in 2014. • Spring 2015 will be the first administration of STAAR A, the accommodated version of STAAR. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

12. HOW IS TEA PLANNING TO INCLUDE STUDENTS PREVIOUSLY ASSESSED WITH STAAR MODIFIED IN GENERAL STAAR IN 2015 AND BEYOND? • September: TEA met with a focus group (consisting of classroom teachers, campus administrators, district personnel, Education Service Center specialists, and advocates) to obtain input regarding how students with disabilities that are currently eligible for STAAR Modified are being provided access to the general curriculum. • November-present: TEA staff has been working on plans for possible additional accommodations via an online delivery system similar in functionality to STAAR L Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

13. 2014-2015 Assessment Options for Students Receiving Special Education Services • STAAR • STAAR Spanish • STAAR L • STAAR A • STAAR Alternate Accommodations policies for 2015 have not yet been finalized. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

14. STAAR A Cognitive Lab • May 12-30, 2014 • 5 school districts • 16 campuses • 67 elementary, middle, and high school students Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

15. STAAR A Cognitive Lab • Subjects • grade 4 reading • grade 4 mathematics • grade 7 writing prompt • grade 8 science • grade 8 social studies • English I reading • English I writing • Algebra I Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

16. STAAR A Cognitive Lab • Observations • Grade-level content continued to be a challenge for most of the students; however, all students reported that the embedded accommodations were helpful and felt that the experience was a positive one. • In addition, the embedded accommodations seemed to provide better access to the content being assessed. For example, students did not understand the meaning of some vocabulary, but they understood the simplified language in the popups. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

17. STAAR A Cognitive Lab • Observations (continued) • Most students indicated a preference for taking tests on computers. • Teachers indicated that students would need practice with tools but that the tools provided aligned with accommodations used during instruction. They also felt that the tools would be helpful for their students. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

18. STAAR A: Sample Test Questions Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

19. STAAR A Resources to beMade Available Fall 2014 • Eligibility criteria • Tutorials • Planned to be multi-subject • Will be released by grade cluster • ARD Resources Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

20. Will the Modified PEIMS Codes Still Be Available? • There are no plans at this time to delete these codes. • However, the code table CO22 is updated three times a year (March, July, December). At any one of these times, changes may be made based on new information or educator feedback. • Contact TEA’s Curriculum Division at 512-463-9581 or curriculum@tea.state.tx.us for questions about PEIMS codes and curriculum requirements. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014

21. Graduation Requirements • Graduation requirement rules were finalized on January 31st. • TEA is now working to adjust 19 TAC §89.1070. • Contact TEA’s Curriculum Division at 512-463-9581 or curriculum@tea.state.tx.us for questions about graduation requirements. Texas Education Agency June 5, 2014