Allowable Accommodations

(for use by any student – General Education, Special Education, and ELL – as appropriate)

Any departure from standardized test procedures can potentially invalidate the test results. The test validity is seriously threatened by modifications that change the nature of the task being tested.

Use of Allowable Accommodations should be based on individual student need. As with any accommodation, Allowable Accommodations must be used consistently by the student throughout curricular instruction during the school year. Many of the Allowable Accommodations require planning by school personnel prior to TCAP test administration. The teacher must discuss the accommodations with the student prior to testing.

TCAP Allowable Accommodations are specifically defined as follows.

Large Print or Braille Tests: Any large print or Braille test must be requested in advance. Audio versions of the test are sent along with Achievement, Competency, EOC and Gateway tests. With the exception of the Competency Test, audio versions are available to correspond with Braille tests only. “Readers” for illustrations and graphs are permitted with the large print or Braille versions of the TCAP assessments only when students have Visual Impairment verified on the IEP. Extended Time for students using large print or Braille tests is not permitted unless documented on the IEP or 504 Service Plan.

Signing Instructions: Directions normally read aloud to students may be signed verbatim for students who typically use sign language. Only spoken portions of the directions may be signed. This includes prompts for Writing Assessment. The interpreter must not fingerspell words that have a commonly used sign. Test instructions may not be clarified in any manner.

Repeating Instructions: Directions normally read aloud or signed to students may be re-read/signed verbatim as needed. This includes prompts for the Wring Assessment.

Calculator/Mathematics Tables (items not measuring computation): Calculators and/or mathematics tables (Click here for Multiplication Tables) may be used for test items that do not measure the academic skill of computation (e.g., applied concepts and algebraic problems) and are permitted on all TCAP Achievement, EOC and Gateway Tests. Therefore, use of calculators and/or mathematics tables on items not measuring computation is not considered a Special Accommodation, the IEP Team or 504 Review Committee should document use of calculators and/or mathematics tables on the Allowable/Special Accommodations Addendum. See Test Administration Manual for selected subtests and calculator restrictions.

Flexible Setting: Students may take TCAP assessments in an individual or small group setting, seated in a designated area of the room, in a study carrel or in another classroom setting (e.g., library). Homebound students may take the test at home or another approved location with appropriate documentation.

Note: Recommended size for small group setting is two to five (2-5) students. Small group setting should NOT exceed ten (10) students.

Visual/Tactile Aids: Aids may include magnifying devices, use of templates to reduce the amount of visible print on a page, masks, pointers and abacus.

Auditory Aids: Auditory aids include amplification devices and devices that are used as noise buffers. This includes white noise machines.

Multiple Testing Sessions (within school day): TCAP tests or subtests may be given in smaller segments adhering to the allotted time for that test/subtest as specified in the Test Administration Manual. Use of this accommodation requires individual or small group setting. Breaks taken by the student during the testing period must be closely supervised.

As an Allowable Accommodation, “Multiple Testing Sessions” does not apply to an entire general education classroom, but may be appropriate for a few students within that class.  Prior arrangements must be made with the Building Level Testing Coordinator. Questions about appropriate use of this accommodation should be directed to the System Testing Coordinator.

Achievement and EOC tests are timed and the administration must remain within the overall time allotted. The test/subtest must be completed within the school day. Competency and Gateway Tests are untimed and the student may take as much time as needed within the school day to complete the test.

Flexible Scheduling: The student may be administered fewer Achievement subtests during a given day than the recommended system schedule. Extended breaks between subtests may be given to the student. Achievement subtests, End-of-Course Tests, and the Writing Assessment may be given at a different time of day than the recommended assessment schedule for individual students who may perform better (e.g., medication schedule, behavioral issues) during a specific period of the day. The test/subtest must be completed within the school day. Each test/subtest given must be completed within the school day.

As an Allowable Accommodation, Flexible Scheduling does not apply to an entire general education classroom, but may be appropriate for a few students within that class. Prior arrangements must be made with the Building Level Testing Coordinator. Questions about appropriate use of this accommodation should be directed to the System Testing Coordinator. All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

Scribe/Recording Answers: Students who cannot mark their own answer documents may use an impartial Scribe. A Scribe may be used to record responses or to transcribe the student’s answers from a modified answer document or test booklet. Students who cannot utilize the answer document may record directly in the test booklet or on a separate piece of paper. This accommodation may require special return packing procedures.  Please contact your System Testing Coordinator for packing instructions. This accommodation is considered a Special Accommodation for the Writing Assessment, and students must meet the required conditions for Special Accommodation J prior to its use. When there is a short-term situation (e.g., broken dominant arm) where a student without an IEP or 504 Service Plan will require the use of a Scribe for the Writing Assessment, directions for Special Accommodation J must be followed for the administration of the test. In this case, the System Testing Coordinator should submit a Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Form for review and approval.

Marking In Test Booklet: With the exception of the Achievement Tests in grades K-3, students may mark in test booklets. This includes highlighting or underlining words or phrases. Careful attention must be given to ensure that students record all responses on their answer documents. Stray marks in grades K-3 test booklets could result in inaccurate scoring. If a student in grades K-3 requires additional marking during testing, a transparent overlay may be used. The building testing coordinator must ensure that all transparent overlays are erased after testing.

Student Reads Aloud to Self: The student may read aloud the test being administered to himself/herself if in an individual setting.

Special Accommodations

(for use by students with disabilities – identified under IDEA or Section 504 guidelines)

On December 9, 2003, the U.S. Department of Education issued final regulations for assessing students with disabilities under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB). These regulations allow more flexibility than previous Departmental guidance and contain language directing that IEP teams determine the accommodations necessary to measure the academic achievement of students with disabilities based on accommodations that are appropriate and consistent with the accommodations use during regular instruction.

Special Accommodations have been established to accommodate disabilities in reading, calculation, sensory (vision/hearing), and physical deficits. These accommodations apply when the severity of the disability causes the student’s performance to be an invalid measure of the student’s ability. For example, the student’s reading level may be significantly below grade level; therefore, knowledge of social studies, science, or mathematics may be obstructed by the student’s inability to read test instructions or test items.

Note: The regulations do not extend use of Oral Testing on reading/language arts tests or use of Calculator on tests of computation to students with 504 Service Plans.

Decisions about the need for and selection of Special Accommodations for students with disabilities are the responsibility of the IEP Team or 504 Committee. The use of Special Accommodations must be determined individually for each test and identified in the student’s IEP or 504 Service Plan. Special Accommodations provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity to demonstrate their achievement.

Accommodations should be those that the student needs during classroom instruction and assessments as identified in the IEP or 504 Service Plan. Special Accommodations may not be used only for participation in TCAP assessments. If the accommodation is not used consistently and proficiently by the student during classroom instruction and assessments, the student may not use the accommodation.

Special Accommodations should not give students with disabilities an unfair advantage over other students or subvert the purpose of the test. The IEP Team or 504 Review Committee must document on the IEP or 504 Service Plan assessment goals that incorporate the appropriate use of any accommodations to be used by the student during testing situations.

Special Accommodations Chart

The Special Accommodations Chart is shown on the next page. Included in this chart are the Special Accommodations available for each TCAP Assessment and the requirements for sue of each accommodation.

Column 1 – Special Accommodations

Students may use all test accommodations for which they are eligible. The student answer document displays only Special Accommodations allowed for that assessment. The bold letters corresponding to the accommodation will be provided on the answer document.

Columns 2, 3, 4, 5 – Achievement, Competency, EOC, Gateway, and Writing

Refer to the appropriate column indicating the TCAP assessment being given to the student’s class. Each Special Accommodation is addressed in Columns 2, 3, 4, or 5 in one of two ways:

1. Instructions provided indicate the corresponding Special Accommodation may be used for the assessment when required conditions in Column 6 have been met.
2. “Not Applicable” indicates that the corresponding accommodation does not apply to the specified TCAP Assessment.

Column 6 – Required Conditions for Special Accommodations

Column 6 provides specific requirements for Special Accommodations A-K.

SCHEDULING

1. Extended Time: Extended Time may be used as an accommodation on any timed test. The amount of Extended Time needed must be determined by the student’s IEP Team or 504 Review Committee. According to a publication by the Council for Exceptional Children, “When a student has too much time to finish the assessment, s/he may engage in nonproductive guessing or change answers when they should not be changed.”¹ To the extent possible the amount of scheduled Extended Time should be documented in the student’s current IEP or 504 Service Plan. This accommodation may be used with all assessment materials, including Braille, large print and regular print tests. No test should be administered more than 75 minutes without allowing for a 10-minute break.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

·       The student must be tested in an individual setting or small group setting with other students needing the same accommodation.

·       A test or subtest for which Extended Time is used may not exceed one school day.

·       Each test/subtest must be completed within one school day.

·       All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

Oral Testing

B. Read Aloud Internal Test Instructions and/or Items²: As with all Special Accommodations the need for the Read Aloud Accommodation must be documented in the student’s IEP or 504 Service Plan. Reading Aloud – Internal Test Instructions may be used on all subtests, as needed, by student’s IEPs or 504 Service Plans. The use of Reading Aloud – Internal Test Items for tests that do not measure reading/language arts is permitted for students with 504 Service Plans who have documented need. Reading Aloud – Internal Test Items may be sued on all tests, including those measuring reading/language arts, as appropriate, by students with IEP documentation of need.

¹ Council for Exception Children.(2000). Making Assessment accommodations: A toolkit for educators. Reston, VA: Council for Exceptional Children, 34.

² Note: The audiotape edition of the TCAP Competency Tests may be utilized for those students requiring accommodation B. Use of audiotape is considered a Special Accommodation. Students may use audiotape only or audiotape with the corresponding test booklet, based on the decision of the IEP Team.

Students using this accommodation are to be as independent as possible the IEP Team or 504 Review Committee must specify the extent to which the student is to receive the accommodation during the administration of a TCAP assessment, (e.g. the entire test is read aloud or certain passages are read aloud).

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation may not hear the test administration. This may be provided in an individual or small group setting with students needing the same accommodation.
• Internal Test Instructions must be read exactly as they are written in the test book. Any variation from the text will invalidate the test.
• Internal Test Items must be read exactly as they are written in the test book. Any variation from the text will invalidate the test.
• The test/subtest must be completed within the school day.
• All testing must be completed within the systems’ testing window.
• The Test Administrator may not explain the meaning of any words read to the student.

Note: Regulations under NCLB do not extend use of “Reading Aloud Internal Test Items” to tests measuring reading/language arts for students with 504 Service Plans.

C. Prompting upon Request: Prompting upon Request must be documented in the student’s IEP or 504 Service Plan. The use of Prompting upon Request on tests that do not measure reading/language arts is permitted for students with 504 Service Plans who have documentation of need. Prompting upon Request may be used on all tests, including those measuring reading/language arts, as appropriate, by students with IEP documentation of need.

This accommodation is appropriate for student who may need only certain words read to them upon request. Students using this accommodation will not need the entire test or even entire passages read aloud.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which student who do not need the accommodation may not hear the test administration. This may be provided in an individual or small group setting with student needing the same accommodation.
• Internal Test Instructions must be read exactly as they are written in the test book. Any variation from the text will invalidate the test.
• Internal Test Items must be read exactly as they are written in the test book. Any variation from the text will invalidate the test.
• The Test Administrator may not explain the meaning of any words read to the student.
• The test/subtest must be complete within the school day.
• All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

D. Interpreter Signs/Cues: This accommodation may be sued only by students with a Hearing Impairment/Deafness. IEP documentation of consistent use of this accommodation is required. Sign language interpreters should attempt to sign test instructions and items exactly as written. The interpreter may use a sign that is close to the word during test administration when doing so would not reveal the answer to the question. Anytime there is a standard sign for a word or concept, the sign is to be used during the test administration if at all possible. In the event there is no standard sign and a shortcut sign is available, the shortcut sign may be used during the administration of a TCAP test if the sign will not indicate the answer. A shortcut sign is a sign created in the classroom setting between the interpreter and the student for a commonly used subject-specific word for which there is no sign. Shortcut signs are not to be created during the actual administration of the TCAP test.
 

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• Finger spelling must not be used to administer items that require the student to demonstrate the skill of spelling.
• The interpreter is to sign greater/less than signs, equal signs, exponents, etc. in the same manner they are signed when used during classroom instruction and similar classroom assessments. The interpreter is not to sign information that would provide the student with the answer. For example, a question asks: Which digit is in the thousands place in the number 3,849? The interpreter would sign the number as “three-comma-eight-four-nine” instead of “three-thousand eight hundred forty-nine.”
• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation may not see the test administration. This may be provided in an individual or small group setting with students needing the same accommodation.
• The test/subtest must be completed within the school day.
• All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

E. Student Reads Into Auditory Recorder/Plays Back Immediately For Comprehension: Special Accommodation E may be used on all TCAP Assessments by student with an IEP or 504 Service Plan. This accommodation is effective for students when reading fluency is on grade level and difficulty in reading comprehension is documented. Special Accommodation E may be useful for students with 504 Service Plans in situations where Accommodation B or C is not permitted (i.e., read/language arts subtests of the Achievement Test and EOC English I and Gateway Language Arts Tests).

Extended Time limits may be determined by the student’s IEP Team or 504 Review Committee.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• Ensure that a blank tape is provided to the student.
• Ensure that the student has a functional audio recorder.
• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation cannot hear the student’s speaking or playback of the tape.
• Only the student may read into the audio recorder.
• The student may read only internal test instructions and items into the audio recorder to be played back immediately for response.
• Student’s responses to his/her recording of test items must be marked on the answer document provided for that test. If the student is answering directly in the test booklet, ensure that responses are transcribed onto the answer document.
• Refer to the Test Administration Manual for special instructions for returning the audiotape to the State. Under no circumstances may audiotapes be retained or copied.
• The test/subtest must be completed within the school day.
• All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

Mathematics

F. Calculator/Mathematics Tables [Click here for Multiplication Tables] (Items Not Measuring Computation):  With the exception of the Competency Test, Calculator/Mathematics Tables use is not considered a Special Accommodation for test items that do not measure the academic skill of computation (e.g., applied concepts and algebraic problems) and is permitted on the Achievement, EOC and Gateway Tests. If Calculator/Mathematics Tables use on items not measuring computation is appropriate for the TCAP assessment, and the school system does not permit this as an Allowable Accommodation, the IEP Team or 504 Review Committee Should document the Calculator/Mathematics Tables on the Allowable/Special Accommodations Addendum. In this case, the use of the Calculator/Mathematics Tables in the general education program should be recorded on the IEP or 504 Plan. The use of Calculator/Mathematics Tables as a Special Accommodation is not recorded on the answer document for Achievement, EOC and Gateway Tests as it is an Allowable Accommodation for these assessments. Refer to the Test Administration Manual for required calculator restrictions. For the Achievement Test, refer to the Teacher Directions for approved subtests.

Calculator/Mathematics Tables use is considered a Special Accommodation for the Competency Test. Items addressing calculation, applied mathematics and mathematical concepts are scattered throughout the test, and not clustered in a manner that would facilitate group administration using this accommodation. Careful one-on-one administration of the Mathematics Competency Test is required in order to monitor items that would allow the use of this accommodation. Refer to the Test Administration Manual for specified items.

G. Calculator/Mathematics Tables (100% Mathematics): Special Accommodation G may be used on all tests, including those measuring computation, as appropriate, by students with IEP documentation of need. This accommodation applies to the Achievement Test and to the Competency Test.Click here for Multiplication Tables

Note: Use of Calculator/Mathematics Tables is an Allowable Accommodation for all students on EOC and Gateway Mathematics Tests.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation may not have access to the calculator during the test administration. This may be provided in an individual or small group setting with students needing the same accommodation.

H. Manipulatives: Special Accommodation H may be used on mathematics test/subtests by students with IEPs and 504 Service Plans where manipulatives are used consistently throughout the mathematics program. Manipulatives include: counters, shapes, textured physically counted or manipulated by the student. Manipulatives used on TCAP assessments must be the same manipulatives used throughout classroom instruction and similar assessments. When the student typically uses manipulatives in mathematics instruction, those manipulatives should be brought to the mathematics testing session. The State does not provide manipulatives other than rulers for the TCAP assessments.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation may not have access to the manipulatives during the test administration. This may be provided in an individual or small group setting with students needing the same accommodation.
• Manipulatives used on TCAP testing must be the same manipulatives used by the student throughout classroom instruction and similar assessments.
• The Test Administrator may not review the test to determine if additional manipulaties are needed.

I. Assistive Technology: Special Accommodation I may be used by students with an IEP or 504 Service Plan goal where technology is used consistently throughout the general education program. Technology used as an accommodation must be necessary for everyday communications and post-school success. Assistive Technology can include, but is not limited to: computers, speech-synthesizers, communication devices, word processors with or without talk-text technology, and electronic readers.

Any device that would “Read-Aloud” the Reading/Language Arts portions of the Achievement, EOC, or Gateway Assessments requires IEP documentation of Accommodation B (read aloud internal test instructions/items). Students with 504 Service Plans may not use any device that reads aloud internal test items on the Reading/Language Arts sections of TCAP Assessments.

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• The student must be tested in an isolated area in which students who do not need the accommodation may not hear or see the technology during the test administration.
• The Test Administrator must follow all directions exactly as they are written in the Test Administration Manual.
• The Test Administrator must check the equipment prior to the test administration to ensure it is in working order.
• Use of prediction software, electronics spellers, spell check, and/or grammar check utilities is prohibited.
• All student responses must be transferred to a regular answer document.
• All documents, computer discs, or any record of student responses must be returned to the State. See the Test Administration Manual for special handling and return instructions.
• The Building Level Testing Coordinator must verify any test items or student responses are removed from computer hard drives.
• The test/subtest must be completed within the school day.
• All testing must be completed within the system’s testing window.

J. Scribe: Accommodation J is considered a Special Accommodation for the Writing Assessment. It is an Allowable Accommodation for the Achievement, Competency, Gateway and EOC tests. Special Accommodation J may be sued by students when indicated on the IEP or 504 Service Plan or due to short-term physical inability to write. Extended Time limits for the Writing Assessment may be determined by the student’s IEP Team or 504 Review Committee.

If the student can proficiently use a keyboard, the IEP Team or 504 Review Committee should consider the use of a keyboarding device (Assistive Technology) instead of dictation to a scribe for the Writing Assessment. According to a report by the National Center on Education outcomes, “If students are unable to handwrite, but can efficiently type on a computer, a computer response accommodation should be considered prior to a dictated response accommodation.”³

Eligible students must receive this accommodation under the following conditions:

• Students using this accommodation should be tested in a quiet room apart from other students to avoid confusion while testing.
• The Scribe must not correct what the student dictates.
• The Scribe should remain silent throughout the testing process.
• The student must dictate his/her essay to the Scribe by spelling out each word, letter-by-letter.
• The student must dictate all punctuation.
• The Scribe must not alert the student of mistakes during testing.
• If the student requests to go back to a certain passage, the Scribe should either show the student the written page or spell back what the student dictated.
• The essay should be completed on the answer document provided for the Writing Assessment.

³Thurlow, M., & Bolt, S. (2001). Empirical support for accommodations most often allowed in state policy (Synthesis Report 40). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes, 13. World Wide Web: http://educationumn.edu/NCEO/onlinePubs/Synthesis41.html.

K. Unique Accommodations: Based on the final NCLB Regulations for the students receiving special education services, request regarding accommodations not listed in Allowable or Special Accommodations will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis using the Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Form. All Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Forms should be received by the Department of Education no later than one month prior to the TCAP Assessment(s) to which they apply.

In rare cases additional accommodations may be needed for students who are not receiving services under Special Education or Section 504 (e.g., a short-term medical problem). For these students Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Forms should be submitted to the Department of Education for review and approval.

The following guidelines should be sued when determining if a Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Form should be considered:

• The use of the accommodation must be currently documented in the student’s IEP. (The unique accommodation does not have to be documented on the current Allowable/Special Accommodations Addendum, but a copy of the approved Unique Adaptive Accommodations Request Form should be attached to the IEP.)
• The accommodation must be used for the purpose of student access to the general education curriculum.
• The accommodation shall be age appropriate, related to the student’s disability, and must meet the individual instructional needs of the student.
• The accommodation must be part of the student’s regular instructional program, used consistently throughout the school year for all related classroom assignments and tests. (The accommodation may not be introduced for the first time on a TCAP assessment.)
• The student must be proficient in the use of the accommodation.
• Any accommodations that change the standards measured by altering the number of items on the test or answer choices will not be considered.

Testing Irregularities

It is the responsibility of each school’s lead special education teacher or 504 Coordinator, respectively, to confirm that students using Special Accommodations have met the required conditions and that they are documented on the student’s IEP or 504 Service Plan. It is the Test Administrator’s responsibility to obtain a list of all students using Allowable and/or Special Accommodations and to ensure all accommodations are applied appropriately.

A Report of Irregularity should be submitted under the following conditions:

1. A student qualifies for a Special Accommodation, but does not receive it.

2. A student does not qualify for a Special Accommodation, but receives it.

3. A student qualifies for a Special Accommodation, but that accommodation was provided

    incorrectly.

APPENDIX

2004-2005

TCAP

Accommodations