This study explores the integration of socio-humanitarian safety components into the chemistry curriculum for secondary education, emphasizing how contextual and competency-based assessments can enhance the preparedness of future chemistry teachers. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the research evaluates the effectiveness of traditional,…

Introduction: This study evaluated performance and engagement on the tactile science alternate assessment based on alternate academic standards (AA-AAS). This assessment was designed for students with significant intellectual disabilities and visual impairments (i.e., blindness and low vision). Four primary research questions guided this study.…

Little attention has been paid to the question about generality versus modularity of the learning potential (LP). The main research question of our study was: Is the students' LP established with the help of a dynamic assessment of their English as a foreign language (EFL) oral proficiency general enough to predict their subsequent EFL reading and…

The development of alternate assessments for students with disabilities plays a pivotal role in state and national accountability systems. An important assumption in the use of alternate assessments in these accountability systems is that scores are comparable on different test forms across diverse groups of students over time. The use of test…

Although concept maps have been used as alternative assessment methods in education, there has been an ongoing debate on how to evaluate students' concept maps. This study discusses how to evaluate students' concept maps as an assessment tool before and after 15 computer-based Predict-Observe-Explain (CB-POE) tasks related to acid-base chemistry.…

Alternate assessments have been used for the last 10 years to evaluate schools' efforts to teach children with significant cognitive disabilities. However, few studies have examined the reading skills of children who participate in these assessments. The purpose of this study was to extend understanding of the reading skills of this population by…

This study evaluated the benefits of item enhancements applied to science-inquiry items for incorporation into an alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards for high school students. Six items were included in the cognitive lab sessions involving both students with and without disabilities. The enhancements (e.g., use of visuals,…

This study examined whether students who graded and corrected their own test papers improved their learning and standardized test scores on the North Carolina end-of-course test in United States History. Four preexisting, intact classrooms of 11th grade United States History students in two different high schools formed the basis of this…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the score differences on the Texas Academic Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) Reading and Mathematics measures among students in Grades 10 and 11 as a function of music enrollment. Specifically, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and enrollment in choir, band, or orchestra or no music enrollment…

This study is examining student eligibility for and participation in alternate assessments, the technical quality of the alternate assessment instruments and implementation procedures, the alignment of assessments with content and achievement standards, and the use and effectiveness of alternate assessments in measuring student outcomes. The…

In April 2007, Federal No Child Left Behind regulations were finalized that provided states with additional flexibility for assessing some students with disabilities. The regulations allowed states to offer another assessment option, alternate assessments based on modified academic achievement standards (AA-MAS). States are not required to have…

Accountability for students with disabilities who receive special education services is now a result of policy requirements in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004 and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001. Together these pieces of federal legislation require that students participate in statewide…