There has been a paradigm shift from accommodations to the identification of levels of accessibility (e.g., universal features, designated features, and accommodations). A consequence of this shift is that many students with disabilities who previously were assigned accommodations now access many of them as universal or designated features. This…

Many students with disabilities use accessibility features and accommodations during instruction and when taking assessments. It is important to consider teacher perceptions and experiences when making accessibility decisions. The National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) synthesized and summarized research conducted between 1999 and 2022 on…

This Brief provides an overview of how students' insights on the usefulness and feasibility of various accessibility features and accommodations should be taken into account when identifying accessibility features and accommodations for instruction and assessment. Students are often the best source of information about their strengths and needs,…

This report contains the proceedings of a forum held on June 28, 2023 in New Orleans, Louisiana, to discuss issues surrounding meaningful accessibility of assessments. The forum was a post-session to the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Student Assessment (NCSA) and was a collaboration of the "Assessment,…

This report highlights the findings of the sixteenth survey of states conducted by the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO). It has been administered for more than three decades to collect information from states about the participation and performance of students with disabilities in the assessments that comprise the comprehensive…

This "Guide" is an update to the State Guide to Universally Designed Assessments produced by the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) in 2006 (Johnstone et al.). It provides a brief overview of what a universally designed assessment is, followed by a set of steps for states to consider when designing and developing, or…

This Brief provides an overview of issues related to the inclusion of students with disabilities and English learners with disabilities in early grade (that is, K-2) assessments and offers strategies for improved practices.

This Brief contains a scan of the interim assessment landscape, and is focused on the availability of documentation supporting the appropriateness of these assessments for students with disabilities. The purpose of this Brief is to advise the development of guidance that facilitates improved practices related to the use of interim assessments for…

This report presents the findings of a study aimed to address the gap between policy and practice for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) who serve students identified with a speech-language impairment, including other co-existing disabilities. The following research questions were addressed: (1) What factors influence how SLPs make accessibility…

To evaluate the experiences that teachers and other decision makers were having with accessibility features and accommodations, as well as their attitudes toward them, an online survey was conducted with educators in nine states. These states were part of an Enhanced Assessment Initiative grant project to promote optimal decision making about…

The new large-scale assessments rolled out by consortia and states are designed to measure student achievement of rigorous college- and career-ready (CCR) standards. Recent surveys of teachers in several states indicate that students with disabilities adjusted well to the new assessments, and liked many of their features, but that there also are…

In 2015, the Data-Informed Accessibility--Making Optimal Needs-based Decisions (DIAMOND) project received funding from an Enhanced Assessment Initiative grant to collect information that would support the development of professional development modules for educators making decisions within new accessibility frameworks. More accessibility features…

The Data-Informed Accessibility--Making Optimal Needs-based Decisions (DIAMOND) project received funding in 2015 from an Enhanced Assessment Initiative grant to collect information that would inform the creation of professional development modules for educators making decisions within new accessibility frameworks. The DIAMOND project conducted…

In 2015, the United States Department of Education awarded an Enhanced Assessment Initiative grant to the Data Informed Accessibility--Making Optimal Needs-based Decisions (DIAMOND) project to create professional development resources for educators who have to make decisions about accessibility features and accommodations. This study presents…

The purpose of this study was to gather in-depth information about teachers' experiences with accessibility features and accommodations in the classroom and on assessments. Expanded options for accessibility, beyond accommodations, has accompanied the increased implementation of technology-based assessments. Asynchronous online focus groups were…