Special Education Students and mCLASS Assessments

Table of Contents Description Special Education and mCLASS:Reading 3D FAQ Special Education and mCLASS:Math FAQ Appendix 1 2 3 4

Description The questions in the following guide were compiled from users across the country regarding special education and some mCLASS assessments. We have assembled the most commonly asked special education-related questions from those educators and provided answers in the following guide. We hope that these answers will help support your implementation of mCLASS:Reading 3D and mCLASS:Math. The Wireless Generation Customer Care Team is also available to answer questions that may not be found in this guide. Please note that the students IEP dictates whether or not you will administer mCLASS assessments, along with other classroom, local, and state assessments to your special education students.

Special Education and mCLASS:Reading 3D: FAQ 04/11 Is mCLASS:Reading 3D appropriate for my special education students? mCLASS:Reading 3D is an assessment instrument well-suited for use with capturing the developing reading skills of special education students learning to read, with a few exceptions: a) students who are deaf; b) students who have fluency-based speech disabilities, e.g., stuttering, oral apraxia; c) students who are learning to read in a language other than English or Spanish; d) students with severe disabilities. Use of mCLASS:Reading 3D is appropriate for all other students, including those in special education for whom reading connected text is an IEP goal. Please check each students IEP to determine if he/she fits these criteria. Does mCLASS:Reading 3D assessment allow for testing accommodations? Yes. The purpose of the testing accommodations is to facilitate assessment for children for whom standard administration may not provide an accurate estimate of their skills. Please see the table in the appendix listing the valid and acceptable accommodations that are unlikely to change substantially the meaning or interpretation of a students scores. Where do I find information about required accommodations for my special education student(s)? All information regarding required accommodations and modifications for assessments can be found in the students IEP. Does the DIBELS portion of the mCLASS:Reading 3D assessment allow for extended time? Removing the timed component of the assessment will substantially change the interpretation of the target skills being assessed. As a result, if the DIBELS assessment is administered to a student with extended time or in an untimed situation, the scoring guidelines for interpreting level of risk and for making instructional recommendations would not apply for the student. For the DIBELS measures, fluency is an integral aspect of the construct being assessed. Scores from an un-timed administration would not be comparable or interpretable with the procedures for reporting and interpreting DIBELS scores. Should an educator elect to administer the DIBELS in an un-timed way, the reliability and validity data for DIBELS would not be applicable, and the benchmark goals would not be relevant or appropriate and therefore the student would not be able to be compared to either his nondisabled peers OR peers challenged with similar disabilities.

Do I provide the DIBELS portion of the mCLASS:Reading 3D assessment at grade level for special education students? Yes, during the Benchmark screening, all students, including special education students, should be administered grade-level materials unless otherwise specified in their IEP. Does the TRC portion of the mCLASS:Reading 3D assessment allow for extended time? Not applicable. The timing/fluency information in TRC is optional. Do I provide the TRC portion of the mCLASS:Reading 3D assessment at grade level for special education students?

Not applicable. Selecting the appropriate level is dependent on childs ability to comprehend text and not the childs grade level. Special Education and mCLASS:Math 04/11 Is mCLASS:Math appropriate for my special education students? The students IEP dictates whether or not you will administer the mCLASS:Math assessment, along with other classroom, local, and state assessments to your special education students. mCLASS:Math is designed to be administered to all students who can read and comprehend instructions in English or Spanish and who are physically capable of taking the tests. This includes, but is not limited to, the ability to sit at a desk or table when completing the tests, write numerical values, and produce verbal responses to mathematical questions on various topics appropriate for the students age level, for example addition/subtraction, mental calculation, and written math methods and concepts. *It is important to note that mCLASS:Math is not appropriate for students who are deaf, cannot produce a written response, and are substantially nonverbal. Please check each students IEP to determine if he/she fits these criteria. Where do I find information about required accommodations for my special education student(s)? All information regarding required accommodations and modifications for assessments can be found in the students IEP. Does the mCLASS:Math assessment allow for testing accommodations? The standard practice for CBM assessment is to incorporate accommodations per the students IEP. The accommodations must be used in exactly the same way for each administration of the assessment, and the resulting data will not be comparable across students, classrooms, and schools.

Accommodations that would keep the results comparable include: Providing additional practice items and examples; and Individual (rather than group) administration of screening for Grades 2 and 3. Accommodations where results comparability across students is not validated include: Reading instructions to students; Providing extra time during benchmark screening or progress monitoring assessments; and Any additional accommodations. Please note that removing the timed component of the benchmark screening portion of the assessment will substantially change the interpretation of the target skills being assessed. As a result, if the benchmark screening portion of the assessment is administered to a student with extended time or in an untimed situation, the scoring guidelines for interpreting level of risk and for making instructional recommendations would not apply for the student.

Are Diagnostic Interviews appropriate for my special education students? The Diagnostic Interview component within mCLASS:Math is well-suited for assessing students with disabilities. These untimed, one-on-one assessments provide educators with a view into students thinking that may not surface in more traditional assessment settings. Students are asked to express (in their own words and methods) how they think about and solve problems. This highly individualized approach makes teachers aware of each students individual methodology and works well with students with disabilities, who may require additional time or alternative modes of expression to communicate successfully with educators.

Do I provide the mCLASS:Math benchmark assessment at grade level for special education students? Yes, during the benchmark screening, all students, including special education students, should be administered grade-level materials unless otherwise specified in their IEP.

Appendix

mCLASS:3D Approved Accommodations for Retesting and Test-Teach-Test A powerful accommodation for students who experience a variety of difficulties is to repeat the assessment under different conditions or with different testers. Retesting should take place on different days with different probes under different conditions that are considered to potentially impact student performance. The median of the three most recent assessments should be used as the best indicator of childs skills. Response to instruction is a second, powerful accommodation for students who experience a variety of difficulties. Repeated assessment on different days with different probes in the context of explicit instruction on the target skills. The target skills are phonemic awareness, phonics, and accuracy and fluency with text. The target skills should be explicitly taught, under no conditions should the specific items on a probe be explicitly taught. The median of the three most recent assessments should be used as the best indicator of the childs skills. Approved Accommodations for Setting and Tester The child may be tested in an alternate setting. For example, a special room with minimal distractions, complete quiet, or enhanced or specialized lighting may be used.

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The child may be tested with a familiar person, interpreter, specialist, or other facilitator present. The familiar person or interpreter may assist in supporting the student and tester to obtain an accurate estimate of the students skills. The child may be tested by a tester with whom the child is comfortable and who is familiar with the childs language and communicative strategies. For example, the childs teacher, or an aide especially familiar to the child, or even the childs parent. In all cases the tester must receive appropriate training, observation, and supervision. The child may be tested by a professional with relevant specialized training. For example, a child with severe articulation difficulty might be tested by a Speech-Language Pathologist. Appropriate training is essential. Approved Accommodations for Directions The practice item may be repeated or one additional example may be provided. If necessary, the child can be provided with a lead example in addition to the model example. The sounds in sam are /s/ /a/ /m/. Do it with me, /s/ /a/ /m/. The childs understanding of directions can be checked. For example, the child can be asked to repeat or summarize the directions. The directions can be provided in a manner more accessible to the child. For example, directions can be provided in sign language for a child who would be more comfortable with sign than verbal directions. A child with limited English proficiency may be provided with the directions in their primary language. For example, to assess a childs early literacy skills in English, directions for the task may be provided in Spanish and stimulus items presented in English. Approved Accommodations for Stimulus Materials Large print or enlarged edition of stimulus materials may be used. Closed-circuit TV for enlargement of print and picture stimuli is appropriate if necessary to enhance performance for students with low vision. Colored overlays, filters, or lighting is appropriate if vision and performance are enhanced. If a student has sufficient skills with Braille, a Braille edition of

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stimulus materials may be used. A Braille edition of materials is in development. Scores for the Braille edition may not be directly comparable. An alternate font for stimulus materials may be used. For example, most print materials use a Times font as a frequently encountered font in reading materials in first and second grade. The target for any font is a font that would be used in reading materials in first grade. Stimulus materials may be printed in color for ease of identification and use. Alternate pictures of the target words may be used if pictures that are more familiar to the student are available. The target word should not be changed. If the words used in the Initial Sound Fluency are unfamiliar vocabulary for the student, the student can be asked to repeat the word associated with each picture. For example, This is mouse. What is this? This is flowers. What is this? This is pillow. What is this? This is letters. What is this? If the words used in the Initial Sound Fluency are unfamiliar vocabulary for the student, the vocabulary can be pre-taught prior to administration of the measure. The words selected for the ISF measure are drawn from written materials appropriate for first and second grade students, so students can be expected to encounter the words in their reading. Amplification or a direct sound system from tester to student are appropriate if it will facilitate hearing of directions or test stimuli. Approved Accommodations for Student Responses If necessary to facilitate student responding, the student or tester may have a marker or ruler under a line of text or items in order to focus attention. This accommodation should only be used if necessary for the student to respond. In a standard administration, if the student skips a row, the row is not counted or penalized, and instructionally relevant information on the students tracking skills is obtained. The student may respond using a preferred or strongest mode of communication. For example, the student may sign, use a word board, or computer to use a word or read a passage. The tester should make a professional judgment regarding the fluency of response. If the students fluency is affected by the accommodation, then the standard scoring rules should not be applied.

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