All students, including students with disabilities, participate in state accountability systems. Many students participate in the regular assessment, with or without accommodations, but some students may require participation in an alternate assessment to demonstrate their knowledge and skills. Students with more significant cognitive disabilities…

All students, including students with disabilities, must be included in state accountability systems as required by law. In April 2007, federal regulations provided states the flexibility to offer another assessment option--an Alternate Assessment based on Modified Achievement Standards (AA-MAS) for some students with disabilities. The AA-MAS is…

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…

This digest considers the use of performance assessment within outcomes-based accountability systems for students with and without disabilities. Application of performance assessment to students with disabilities involves defining the outcomes, developing performance standards, developing assessment accommodations, and scoring. Implications of…

This brief document analyzes the goals and indicators provided by states as part of the second round of state Biennial Performance Reports (BPRs) covering the academic years 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 as required by the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Review of state (or other federal jurisdiction) BPRs examined:…

This Oklahoma state plan documents the policies and procedures that public and private schools, agencies, and institutions follow when providing special education and related services to handicapped children, consistent with Public Law 94-142. Part I includes submission statements and certifications. Part II contains policies, procedures, and…

Following a brief discussion of the development of the "South Carolina Educational Objectives for 1975," needs assessment data are provided. These data provide the criteria, status measure, and discrepancy related to School Dropouts, Instruction in Basic Skills, Program for the Handicapped, State-Wide Kindergarten, First Grade Failures,…

This report on Colorado's efforts to develop early intervention services for infants and toddlers with special needs and their families begins with a planning matrix displaying the program's philosophical base, methods, and system components. The report points out that the statewide service system should be designed to ensure access for all…

The purpose of this booklet is to introduce parents of students with disabilities to the "big ideas" contained in school improvement efforts under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and to provide them with the information they need to help ensure that their children…

This paper presents findings of an analysis of the 1989-90 mathematics and reading portions of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) and of perceptions of special education teachers participating in the MEAP. Noted are the purpose of the MEAP and exclusion for students who: (1) receive more than half their reading/English instruction…

The eight goals and the corresponding strategies outlined in this document reflect Ohio's special education plan for the 1990's. The goals are based on Ohio's mission of special education for students with handicaps, which is to prepare each student to be a contributing member of society by providing high-quality programs, research, and services…

This booklet examines national and state educational reform in the 1990s, noting the ways in which performance assessment is being presented as a mechanism of reform. Three reform initiatives are examined: national education goals, standards, and reform legislation. In conjunction with these reform movements, new methods of assessment are being…

In its annual evaluation of the vocational and technical education program of Maryland, the Maryland Advisory Council on Vocational-Technical Education reviewed the State Plan and statistical record of the Division of Vocational Technical Education (DVE) for fiscal year 1972, and conducted interviews with representatives of DVE. Included in this…

As part of the educational reform movement, states and local districts have implemented outcomes-based accountability for student outcomes. Outcomes-based accountability systems are using results of both traditional assessments, such as norm-referenced tests, and authentic performance assessments in an effort to measure broad domains of student…

This paper documents the gap between the supply of and demand for adult services in each state of the United States, places this situation in its political context to explain why this gap exists, and discusses policy alternatives. The paper profiles the nature of the population of individuals with disabilities exiting public education and examines…