The participation of students with significant cognitive disabilities in accountability assessments aligned with general education standards is a heavily debated topic in the field of special education. Attempts to understand the impact of these assessments have generally been limited to correlational methods. We employed a…

Creating a fully inclusive educational environment continues to be a topic for educational reform. Children with disabilities have the right to access their education in the Least Restrictive Environment. In the United States, this right is protected by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2004). Approximately 13.3% of the total number…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), and implementing regulations maintain requirements for State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs) to prepare and disseminate report cards that provide information on State, LEA, and school performance and…

This study investigated the effects of using modified items in achievement tests to enhance accessibility. An experiment determined whether tests composed of modified items would reduce the performance gap between students eligible for an alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS) and students not eligible, and the…

This guidance is written to assist State educational agencies (SEAs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) in understanding and implementing the report card requirements under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA). Although each SEA and LEA may consider this guidance in developing and…

According to the amendments of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997, students with severe cognitive disabilities could no longer be omitted from standards-based reform but an alternate assessment needed to be administered (Arnold & Johnson, "Validating an Alternate Assessment," 2007, p. 266). The purpose of the…

The Virginia Alternate Assessment Program (VAAP) is the assessment tool that Virginia uses to measure the progress of students with significant cognitive disabilities on the state's Aligned Standards of Learning (ASOL). The VAAP was developed in order to comply with No Child Left Behind's (2001) requirement of educational accountability for all…

Federal legislation mandates all students, including those with significant cognitive disabilities, participate in standards based education and in state assessments linked to those standards. To address this issue, this study used a multiple case study design in order to determine the impact alternate assessments based on alternate achievement…

The purpose of this document is to describe the US ED growth model pilot program from its inception to the point at which the program was no longer a pilot and was opened up to all states. In addition, the paper is designed to help states in the process of planning to submit a growth model proposal. The information in this document is mostly…

In response to federal requirements for general curriculum access and participation in large-scale academic assessments, states have shifted curriculum for students with significant cognitive disabilities from a primarily functional model to one that includes academics. What does academic instruction look like for students with significant…

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…

This document presents a seven-step process to be used in developing a standards-based Individualized Education Program (IEP). Each step is followed by guiding questions for the IEP team to consider in making data-based decisions. Two student examples are provided to illustrate application of the components of a standards-based IEP. The student…

Federal regulations (U.S. Department of Education, 2007a) provide states with the flexibility to offer an alternate assessment based on modified academic achievement standards (AA-MAS). This assessment option is for a small group of students with disabilities who can make significant progress, but may not reach grade-level achievement within the…

The No Child Left Behind Act specifies schools' responsibilities for including special education students in their overall assessment programs. These students must be assessed under a standardized test that is used for all students within a district--a test that is designed to show whether a student is meeting that state's standards for learning.…

This policy brief examines several questions regarding the impact of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on students with disabilities, including: What are the benefits of the law? What are the unintended consequences? Does NCLB conflict with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA)? In addition, the author conducted an…