1. ACCESS for ELLs: North Carolina Policy and Procedure Guidance
ACCESS for ELLs Training
January 8,2015

2. Training Requirement
Individuals who administer the ACCESS for ELLs must be trained in both
the administration of the subtests
the policy and procedure related to the test
This training is typically conducted by the LEA test coordinator.

3. Training Requirement
Training on the administration of the ACCESS for ELLs subtests must be either face-to-face, online, or a combination of both methods.
The WIDA ACCESS for ELLs Training Tool Kit is found through the WIDA homepage at

4. Training Requirement
Use your personal username and password to access the Training Tool Kit.
If you do not have a username and password, use the following to access the site
Username: northcarolina
Password: cardinal
if you should have access and do not have a username and password.

5. LEA Test and LEP Coordinators’ Responsibilities
See the bulleted points in the ACCESS for ELLs Policy and Procedure Guidance on pp

6. School Test Coordinator’s Responsibilities
See the bulleted points in the ACCESS for ELLs Policy and Procedure Guidance on pp
Be accessible to test administrators and proctors during ACCESS for ELLs testing.
School TC may serve as test administrator ONLY in an emergency and where there are a small number of students who need to be tested.

7. Test Administer Qualifications
Employed by the school system
Classified (teacher assistant or other roles) or certified school staff member (retired teachers, if working for the school as substitute, or members or the staff in any capacity)
Highly proficient in English language, and
Trained on the ACCESS for ELLs (or Alt. ACCESS) as a test administrator.

8. Testing Window
The state testing window for the ACCESS for ELLs is February 2 through March 13, 2015.
All students enrolled in the school system between February 2 and March 6 are required to be assessed and will be included in AMAO calculations.

9. Testing Window
However, students who enroll after March 6 are not required to be assessed on the ACCESS for ELLs and will not be included in the AMAO calculations for that year.
These students will take the W-APT if they are identified as a language minority student.

10. Comprehensive Objective Composite
The Comprehensive Objective Composite (COC) includes the criteria that must be met to exit LEP identification under State Board of Education policy (GCS-A-012).

11. Comprehensive Objective Composite
Results from the ACCESS for ELLs are used to determine whether a student has exited LEP identification.
The student must reach an overall composite score of 4.8 or above, with at least a 4.0 on the reading subtest and at least a 4.0 on the writing subtest for kindergarten and tiers B and C in grades 1-12 to exit LEP identification.

12. Previously Identified LEP Students
Students who have exited LEP identification within the last two years.
If a school or district has an LEP subgroup (minimum number of 30 students) and the subgroup fails to meet the AMO target, MFLEP students are included in the calculations for determining the status of the LEP subgroup for AMO.

13. Sample Test Items
Information for sample ACCESS for ELLs test items is located at
There you will find a link to the grades 1-12 sample test items.

14. Student Markings in the Test Book
The ACCESS for ELLs is comprised of a scannable test book.
Highlighters are permitted as a test taking strategy on the ACCESS for ELLs if:
Students are instructed how to properly use highlighters in the test book.
Test administrators and proctors monitor test administrations to ensure highlighters are used properly.

15. Student Markings in the Test Book
While highlighters are permitted test administrators must ensure that student responses are
dark pencil marks that completely fill bubbles, and
any stray pencil or highlighter marks do not interrupt the white space surrounding the area designated for bubbling.

16. Student Markings in the Test Book
White space surrounding the are designated for bubbling should be left clear of student markings. Erase any stray pencil marks.
If pencil markings cannot be erased and/or highlighter markings are inside of the white space that must be kept unmarked the test administrator must transfer the student responses into a new, clean test book.

17. Student Markings in the Test Book
Extra test books are provided to districts for transcribing responses in the case of student markings that cannot be erased.
The test administrator or designee at the school district level must transcribe the student responses, clip the two test books together and ship the documents to MetriTech for processing and scoring.

18. Student Markings in the Test Book
If test books are submitted and cannot be scored because of stray pencil marks or improper highlighter markings, the cost and resubmission of the new test book will be at the expense of the school district.
See examples of “correct” and “incorrect” bubbling and student marking are in the ACCESS for ELLs Policy and Procedure Guidance on pp

19. Student Marks Answers in Test Book Accommodation
The most recent version of the North Carolina Testing Students with Disabilities publication requires students provided the Students Marks Answers in Test Book accommodation to circle their responses to test questions directly in their test books during the test administration.

20. Student Marks Answers in Test Book Accommodation
Under secure conditions in a group setting (three or more designated school personnel), test administrators or other designated school personnel must review each student test book to ensure the student’s final answers are clearly bubbled and ready to be machine scored.

21. Student Marks Answers in Test Book Accommodation
Tampering with student responses to test items on an answer document constitutes a serious breach in test security.

22. Typical Testing Accommodations
Only eligible students with an IEP, Section 504 Plan, or transitory impairment plan who are also identified as LEP receive testing accommodations on the ACCESS for ELLs.

23. Review of Accommodations Used During Testing Form
Before test administrations, the Review of Accommodations Used During Testing form must be used to record the required testing accommodations documented on the student’s IEP, Section 504 Plan or transitory impairment documentation.

24. Review of Accommodations Used During Testing Form
During the test administration the test administrator must use the form to
Indicate if the accommodation was provided to the student during testing,
Describe how accommodations were provided to the student,
Record if the student used the accommodation, and
Explain how the accommodation was used

25. Braille Forms
WIDA does not recommend that the ACCESS for ELLs be given in Braille.
Use of the Braille Edition accommodation on the Reading Test (or Interpreter/Transliterator Signs/Cues on the Listening Test) will result in non-valid scores because the construct (reading English) will be confounded.
If translated into Braille it would become a test of the student’s ability to read Braille.

26. Braille Forms
WIDA will provide the ACCESS for ELLs Reading and Writing Tests in Braille.
However, the IEP team must inform the student and parent that the use of the Braille forms will result in non-valid scores.

27. Testing Irregularities
Use the Online Testing Irregularity Submission System (OTISS) to report all testing irregularities for the ACCESS for ELLs.
Do not use OTISS for requesting that students be removed from the LEP Consolidated Federal Data Collection system (LEP CFDC).

28. Testing Irregularities
The school system LEP coordinator should submit the CFDC Record Change Report (RCR) to the NCDPI ESL consultants to report students who need to be removed from the LEP CFDC.

29. Misadministrations
There is only one form of the ACCESS for ELLs available per grade span and tier.
Therefore, the school system must wait five days to re-administer the same form of the test to the student if a misadministration is declared.

30. Instructions for Hand Coding
In the event that a Pre-ID label is missing or damaged, test administrators will need to hand code student information on the front and back cover of the student test book.
Test administrators are to use the information in the Replacement Instructions for North Carolina Schools Directions section of the ACCESS for ELLs Policy and Procedure Guidance, see pp

31. The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs is designed for only a small population of ELLs with significant cognitive difficulties.

32. The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
Eligibility Criteria
Current IEP
Participates through the Extended Content Standards
Significant cognitive disability
Prior year’s ACCESS for ELLs score yielded NA across any and/or all domains or yielded a composite score of less than 2.0
If no prior year’s score, the student’s W-APT result must have a proficiency level of 1 in all applicable domains

33. The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
The Alt ACCESS Report in the CFDC is available to assist in the identification of eligible students in grades 3 through 12 in each LEA, and is available during the October Headcount window.

34. WIDA Help Desk
Contact the WIDA Help Desk regarding questions about the administration and scoring of the ACCESS for ELLs
Phone:
The WIDA Help Desk is available Monday through Friday 8:00 am to 7:00 pm EST.