This column offers an overview of the requirements for including and accommodating English-language learners (ELLs) in content assessments and an explanation of how accommodations for ELLs work. It concludes with recommendations drawn from research and practice to ensure accommodations are assigned and implemented in ways that are likely to…

This study describes enrollment and achievement trends of limited English proficient (LEP) students in New Jersey public schools between 2002/03 and 2008/09. It documents achievement gaps between LEP and general education students in language arts literacy and math. The study's main findings include: (1) From 2002/03 to 2008/09, LEP student…

Maryland's 24 school systems have made great strides in improving public education from pre-kindergarten through high school to ensure children are getting a high-quality education. This guide provides information and online links, including: (1) Maryland's state testing and reporting processes; (2) Programs available to support student…

Educational assessment and, more broadly, educational research in the United States have entered into an era characterized by a dramatic increase in the prevalence and importance of test score use in accountability systems. This volume covers a selection of contemporary issues about testing science and practice that impact the nation's public…

This paper offers facts and figures on Utah's education status for the school year 2010-2011. This paper contains the following: (1) Core CRT Language Arts Testing, 2010; (2) Core CRT Mathematics Testing, 2010; (3) 2010 Public Education General Fund--Funding by Source and Expenditures by Function; (4) 2009-10 Public School Enrollment Demographics;…

This paper offers facts and figures on Utah's education status for the school year 2011-2012. This paper contains the following: (1) Core CRT Language Arts Testing, 2011; (2) Core CRT Mathematics Testing, 2011; (3) 2011 Public Education General Fund--Funding by Source and Expenditures by Function; (4) 2010-11 Public School Enrollment Demographics;…

The majority of Latin American immigrant students in ESEA Title VII Spanish/English programs that have been evaluated seem to suffer from inexperience in taking tests like the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS). This study was designed to assess test familiarity, language of the test, and literacy, and to examine whether certain…

For 21 years the Annual Condition of Education Report has helped the Iowa Department of Education meet its goal, providing valuable information on everything from enrollment to student performance, from the teachers to finances to the demographics. The data for this annual report are presented according to: (1) Background Demographics; (2)…

This document focuses on assessment portfolios and examines the advantages and challenges of using an assessment portfolio system inclusive of English language learners as a district-wide assessment tool. Advantages of including English language learners in the assessment program include increased school accountability for all students, a shared…

Describes approaches taken in Texas to bring about academic accountability for students of limited English proficiency through evaluating and reporting annually on their progress in English-language literacy and their learning of school subjects and by documenting the growth in successful performance on state tests by this special population. (SLD)

The first section of this report guides Delaware educators through the decision-making process for participation in the Delaware Student Testing Program (DSTP) for students with disabilities and for students who are dually eligible as a student with a disability and limited English proficient (SD/LEP).The second section will guide Delaware…

The Texas Education Code required the commissioner of education to conduct a study to determine the need to expand the assessment system to include the assessment in grades 7 and 8 of limited English proficient (LEP) students whose primary language is Spanish and other students of limited English proficiency. This report presents the research…

This report presents a description of state policies regarding the participation of English language learners (ELLs) in statewide assessment programs during the 1998-1999 school year. The data collected included descriptions of policies: (1) for the inclusion and exemption of ELLs; (2) regarding the allowance or prohibition of accommodations in…

Several forces are driving Alaska's school accountability initiatives. These include: (1) the Legislature's passage in 1997 and 1998 of the High School Graduation Qualifying Examination (HSGQE) and other accountability measures; and (2) the passage by the U.S. Congress of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. In the past, schools excluded some…

This policy brief addresses the inclusion of English language learners (ELLs) in large-scale assessments and ELL assessment accommodations. The inclusion of ELL students creates specific accountability policy challenges. States differ in the students they include and their inclusion policies and accommodation practices, and, at present, inclusion…