Adding Value to Accommodations Decision-Making (AVAD) 2006 Enhanced Assessment Instruments Grant Project Therese Gleason Carr, South Carolina Department of Education

Today’s Agenda Overview of AVAD grant and ASES role Overview and screenshots of Accommodation Station Key upcoming activities of the ASES SCASS Questions and discussion

2006 Enhanced Assessment Instruments Grant Award The South Carolina Department of Education received a 2006 Enhanced Assessment Instruments Grant award to undertake the AVAD project.

Overall goal of AVAD: To ensure the valid, effective use of accommodations designed to increase access to large-scale assessments for English language learners and students with disabilities

AVAD Project Partners South Carolina Department of Education, lead state and fiscal agent LEP SCASS ASES SCASS Michigan State University: Rebecca Kopriva University of Oregon: Gerald Tindal University of Nebraska/Psychometric Inquiries: Barbara Plake Phoebe Winter, project evaluator

AVAD Project Period Current project period from October 1, 2006 to March 31, 2008 One-year no-cost extension has been requested SCASS grant activities will begin in spring/summer 2007 SCASS grant activities will be scheduled during or immediately before/after regularly scheduled SCASS meetings

AVAD’s Objectives: 1)to validate and enhance the Selection Taxonomy for English Language Learner Accommodations (STELLA) and publish the program on the SDE’s Web site 2)to create and validate a decision-making taxonomy for the Accommodation Station (AS) based on the ASES Accommodations Manual and publish the program on the SDE’s Web site

AVAD’s Objectives, cont.: 3) to develop 20 prototypes of computer-based access enhanced science items for grade four, and 4) to disseminate results through reports, the SDE’s Web site, User and Technical Manuals for STELLA and AS, the ASES Professional Development Guide video, and Web-Ex teleconferences

What role does the ASES SCASS play? The ASES SCASS will serve as an expert panel for the development and review of the Accommodation Station (AS), an online decision-making model designed to assist IEP teams in assigning valid and appropriate accommodations to individual students with disabilities. Current AS collects and consolidates information but does not include a decision-making algorithm. The ASES manual and materials will serve as the basis for an algorithm that will be built and incorporated into the current AS. A professional development video component will be developed to accompany existing ASES materials.

What is the Accommodation Station (AS)? An online decision-making model that helps IEP teams determine which testing accommodations are appropriate for individual students with disabilities (developed by Jerry Tindal at the University of Oregon)

Accommodation Options loaded into AS Presentation Accommodations Time Accommodations Setting Accommodations Response Accommodations Aids Accommodations

AS Screenshots What does the Accommodation Station (AS) look like?

Functions Menu

Entering Schools

Editing School Information

Entering Teachers

Entering Students Back to Logistics

Entering Students Back to Logistics

Entering Students

Editing Student Information

Main Menu

Testing

Mouse Test

Short Stories

Rapid Reading

Mazes

Math

Student Survey

Teacher Survey

Main Menu

Reports

Main MenuBack to Logistics

Technical Assistance User Manual Online Diagnostic Technical Checklist

Accommodation Station Demonstration Demo available at

Objectives of the ASES SCASS Develop a taxonomy/decision-making rules for the AS Review the taxonomy Make recommendations for changes to existing AS Serve as an expert panel in vetting the AS with the new taxonomy programmed into it Serve as an expert panel in reviewing the interface of the revised AS Develop a video component to accompany the ASES Professional Development Guide

Developing a Taxonomy or Decision-Making Rules for the AS A beginning set of decision-making rules will be developed and vetted by the ASES SCASS. Rules will take relevant student information and pair it with relevant accommodation factors for individual students. Accommodation factors identify which student needs the specific accommodation was designed to address. In this way, individual students will be matched with accommodations appropriate to their particular needs. The basis of such matching is in current ASES Accommodations Manual as well as the AS.

LEP SCASS: Parallel Activities LEP SCASS will serve as expert panel to provide input and feedback on STELLA and computer-based access-enhanced prototype items Opportunity to participate in a subgroup of states within the SCASS focusing on accommodations issues Accommodations subgroup will commit to participation in AVAD meetings/conference calls Updates on AVAD will be provided to the larger SCASS group

Benefits of Participation ASES SCASS member states will have input into the design and development of AS ASES SCASS member states (and any other interested parties) will have free access to the AS once it is completed and placed on the SDE Web site ASES SCASS member states will be able to adapt the AS to best fit the policy and needs of their states ASES SCASS members will develop a video component to accompany the Accommodations Manual, PowerPoint, and Professional Development Guide

Draft Timeline of Key 2007 Activities January (Columbia, SC): *Taxonomy Team meet in SC to develop first draft of decision-making rules February 3-6 (Mega-SCASS): present draft taxonomy for initial feedback; brainstorming session on PD guide video May (Salt Lake): present revised taxonomy; planning session for ASES PD guide video October TBA: review online AS with new taxonomy programmed in and preview/plan draft video *Small group of expert project consultants who will serve as core team in developing taxonomy

Questions? Please contact Therese Gleason Carr at or (803) Thank you very much for your collaboration!