1. PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual July 25, 2013 First Edition Release

2. Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) 5 * Accurate as of 7/25/2013

3. What’s Included in the Manual The first edition of the PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual is a comprehensive policy document that will support local educators in the selection, administration, and evaluation of accommodations for the assessment of students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities on the computer-delivered PARCC Mid-Year, Performance-Based, and End-of-Year Assessments. The manual provides educators with information on the accommodations which, when used on the PARCC End-of-Year, Performance-Based-Assessment, and Mid-Year assessment, will result in a valid score for a student. 3

4. Still to Come Manual is a proposed policy document, so full administrative guidance is not included in the document at this time. Fall 2013, PARCC states and key stakeholders will review and vet a number of appendices to the manual which will be designed to support states and districts in the implementation of the policies. Additional supports coming fall 2013: – PARCC Test Administration Manual – PARCC Style Guide – PARCC Assistive Technology Guidelines – PARCC Translation Policy – Online professional development module on accommodations policies – State-level professional development on selecting, administering, evaluating, and monitoring accommodations Accommodations policies for the Speaking & Listening and Diagnostic Assessments 4

5. First Edition of the Manual First edition represents best thinking of the PARCC states to date, in consultation with PARCC’s state expert working groups on accessibility, accommodations and fairness; technology; ELA/literacy; and mathematics, as well as national experts. First edition has been shaped by three rounds of public comment, synthesis of current research, stakeholder meetings, and PARCC state development. Future editions will be drafted based on upcoming field tests, targeted research studies, and operational testing. Focus is on accessibility and accommodations for computer-delivered PARCC Mid-Year, Performance-Based, and End-of-Year Assessments in Mathematics & ELA/Literacy. 5

6. Development & Review  Manual was developed and reviewed over the past year through an iterative process involving the following groups: – State experts serving on the PARCC Accommodations, Accessibility and Fairness Operational Working Group; – K-12 PARCC State Leads; – Additional state agency experts (including special education and English learner experts); – External experts, including English learner expert Lynn Shafer Willner, the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) and the PARCC Technical Working Groups on Equity, English Learners and Students with Disabilities; – National advocacy groups for students with disabilities, English learners, and equity and fairness; and – Staff from PARCC’s project management partner, Achieve. 6

7. PARCC Comprehensive Accessibility Policies 7 Features for All Students Accessibility Features* Identified in advance Accommodations ** * Available to all participating students **For students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities

8. Accessibility Features for All Students Tool, support, scaffold, or preference that is built into the assessment system that can be activated by any student, at his or her own discretion. Universal Design features expected to benefit a diverse array of students and are available to all students. Provided onscreen, stored in a toolbar, or are accessible through a menu or control panel, as needed. During the assessment, students can choose which accessibility features they need for specific items. Examples include: audio amplification, highlighting, pop-up glossary, etc. 8

9. Accessibility Features for All Students 9 Audio Amplification Blank Paper (provided by test administrator) Eliminate Answer Choices Flag Items for Review General Administration Directions Clarified (by test administrator) General Administration Directions Read Aloud and Repeated (by test administrator) Highlight Tool Headphones Magnification/Enlargement Device NotePad Pop-Up Glossary Redirect Student to Test (by test administrator) Spell Checker Writing Tools

10. Accessibility Features Identified in Advance Available to all students (i.e., not limited to students with IEPs, 504 plans, or English learners), but will be selected and “turned on” by school-based educators prior to the assessment, based on each student’s Personal Needs Profile (PNP). Based on each student’s individual needs, a PNP is created for the student to ensure that he or she receives appropriate access without the distraction of other tools and features that are not required by the student. Although school-based educators will enable specific accessibility features for students, the student will decide whether or not to use the feature. These accessibility features will be readily available on the computer-delivered testing platform. 10

11. Accessibility Features Identified in Advance 11 Accessibility Features Identified in Advance Answer Masking Background/Font Color (Color Contrast) General Masking Line Reader Tool Text-to-Speech for the Mathematics Assessments

12. Administrative Considerations for All Students Detailed guidelines on the administration of the PARCC assessments will be included in the PARCC Test Administration Manual. Principals may determine that any student may require one or more of the following test administration considerations, regardless of the student’s status as a student with a disability or who is an English learner: – Small group testing – Frequent breaks – Time of day – Separate or alternate location – Specified area or seating – Adaptive and specialized equipment or furniture 12

13. Proposed Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

14. Presentation Accommodations 14 Content AreaPresentation Accommodations ELA/Literacy Text-to-Speech or Video of a Human Interpreter for the ELA/Literacy Assessments, including items, response options, and passages* Braille Edition of ELA/Literacy Assessments (Hard-copy braille tests and refreshable braille displays for ELA/Literacy) Closed-Captioning of Multimedia Passages on the ELA/Literacy Assessments Descriptive Video Mathematics Video of a Human Interpreter for the Mathematics Assessments for a Student Who is Deaf or Hard of Hearing Braille Edition of Mathematics Assessments (Hard-copy braille tests for Mathematics) Both Content Areas Additional Assistive Technology (Guidelines available fall 2013) Tactile Graphics Video of a Human Interpreter for Test Directions for a Student Who is Deaf or Hard of Hearing Paper-and-Pencil Edition * See notes below

15. Response Accommodations 15 Content AreaResponse Accommodations ELA/Literacy Scribing or Speech-to-Text (i.e., Dictation/Transcription or Signing) for constructed responses on the English Language Arts/Literacy Assessments* Word prediction on the ELA/Literacy Performance-Based Assessment* Mathematics Calculation Device and Mathematics Tools* (on Non-calculator Sessions of Mathematics Assessments) Both Content Areas Additional Assistive Technology (Guidelines available fall 2013) Braille note-taker Scribing or Speech-to-Text (i.e., Dictation/Transcription or Signing) for the Mathematics assessments, and for selected response items on the English Language Arts/Literacy assessments * See notes below

16. Other Proposed Accommodations for Students with Disabilities 16 CategoryAccommodation Timing & SchedulingExtended Time Setting Many settings that were once considered accommodations are now consider accessibility features for all students and will be included in the test administrator manual. These include – separate location, small group testing, specified area or seating, time of day, and frequent breaks.

17. Unique/Emergency Accommodations A small number of students may require additional accommodations either because they are not listed in the PARCC manual, or they do not have an IEP or 504 plan but require an accommodation as a result of a recently-occurring accident or illness. PARCC states will review requests for unique accommodations in their respective states on an individual basis and will provide approval after determining whether the accommodation would result in a valid score for the student, using guidelines comparable across PARCC states. 17

18. Proposed Accommodations Policies for English Learners

19. Proposed Guidance on Selecting Accommodations for English Learners When selecting accommodations for English learners, consider the student’s: 1. Level of English language proficiency (ELP) on the state ELP test o Beginning, Intermediate, or Advanced 2. Literacy development in the native language o Native language literacy o Interrupted schooling/literacy background 3. Background factors that impact effective accommodations use o Grade/age o Affective filter (i.e., level of student anxiety/comfort with English) o Time in U. S. schools

20. Accommodations for English Learners 20 Accommodation BeginningIntermediateAdvanced Extended Time General Administration Directions Clarified in Student’s Native Language (by test administrator)  š General Administration Directions Read Aloud and Repeated as Needed in Student’s Native Language (by test administrator)  Scribe or Speech-to-Text: Responses Dictated for Mathematics Assessment in English  š Word-to-Word Dictionary (English/Native Language) š KEY for Table 5 below: Highly recommended for use by English learners at this English language proficiency level  Recommended for use by English learners at this English language proficiency level May not be appropriate for students at this ELP level

21. Public Comment on Manual – Responses & Considerations

22. Audience and purpose of manual Which students are eligible for accommodations? Who selects accommodations? Conditions for provision of accommodations How accommodations differ from accessibility features Purpose of the “personal needs profile” How accommodations interact with IEP and construct validity Impact of accommodations on students and instruction Degree of specificity of policies and student criteria School technology readiness Clarify the research basis for English learner accommodations Differing feedback on level of restrictiveness of calculator, reading access, and writing access accommodations Major Themes from the Three Public Comment Periods

23. 1.Clarified the audience and purpose of the manual 2.Detailed the accessibility features intended for all students, and accommodations intended for students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities 3.Strengthened the section on accommodations selection by IEP teams, 504 plan teams, and English learner educators 4.Revised the decision-making guidelines for calculator, reading access, and writing access accommodations, and clarified construct validity for students who receive them 5.Conducted a thorough legal review 6.Provided additional guidance on the decision-making process for English learner students 7.Strengthened student-first language throughout the document 8.Explained the function of the “personal needs profile” and process for selecting accessibility features 9.Met with stakeholder and advocacy groups to discuss final draft prior to release 10.Partnered with leaders in assistive technology to plan for guidelines in the fall 2013 manual release. PARCC Responses to Public Comments

24. ActivityDate Early research and development phaseJune 2011 – January 2013 Draft reading access & calculator accommodations policies released for public commentJanuary 16 – February 4, 2013 National Students with Disabilities and English Learner Stakeholder BriefingJanuary 18, 2013 Draft writing access accommodations policies released for public commentFebruary 8 – 20, 2013 1 st draft of manual reviewed by statesMarch 12, 2013 Accessibility, Accommodations and Fairness national technical experts discussed manualMarch 14, 2013 PARCC State Lead ReviewMarch 20-27, 2013 Follow-up meetings with advocacy/national organizations providing public commentsMarch 27 – April 20 Executive Committee discussion and vote to move to public commentApril 10 Public comment on the manualApril 18 – May 13 Draft manual revised in response to feedbackMay 14 – June 11, 2013 Governing Board vote on adoption of PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual (First Edition) June 26, 2013 PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual (First Edition) releasedJuly 25, 2013 Supporting guidelines, tools, and policies released.Fall 2013 Second edition of PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual released after field testing and item development research studies Late 2013-early 2014 Manual Development Timeline

25. For additional information about PARCC, please check out the website: www.parcconline.org. www.parcconline.org Want to be the first to know about PARCC releases? Sign up for our newsletter here: www.parcconline.orgwww.parcconline.org Policy questions: Please contact Danielle Griswold (dgriswold@achieve.org) with any questions relating to the content of the first edition of the PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual.dgriswold@achieve.org Media questions: Please contact Chad Colby (ccolby@achieve.org) with questions relating to communications and/or PARCC.ccolby@achieve.org Questions?