Adopted: 00/00/00
Revised: 9/25/15
CLASSIFICATION:Instruction / First Reading: 9/25/15
Second Reading: 12/11/15
SUBJECT: PARTICIPATION IN STATE AND DISTRICT WIDE ASSESSMENTS / Adopted: 1/22/16
The West End SELPA Superintendents’ Council recognizes that all students with disabilities shall be included in general state and district-wide assessment programs with appropriate accommodations, and alternate assessments where necessary and as indicated in their respective individualized education programs. The West End SELPA Superintendents’ Councilfurther recognizes that state achievement test results provide an indication of student progress in achieving state academic standards and may be used to promote high-quality teaching and learning. The Superintendent or designee shall administer mandatory student assessments within the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) as required by law and in accordance with Board Policy and administrative regulation.
The Superintendents’ Councilstrongly encourages all students at the applicable grade levels to participate in the state assessments in order to maximize the usefulness of the data and enable the district to meet participation levels required for state and federal accountability systems. The Superintendent or designee shall notify students and parents/guardians about the importance of these assessments and shall develop strategies to encourage student participation. Students shall be exempted from participation only in accordance with law and administrative regulation.
The Superintendents’ Councilshall annually examine state assessment results by school, grade level, and student subgroup as one measure of the district’s progress in attaining its student achievement goals and shall revise the local control and accountability plan and other district or school plans as necessary to improve student achievement for underperforming student groups.
West End SELPA Board Policy 0430, Comprehensive Local Plan for Special Education, section titled, “Participation in State-Wide Assessments” states: “It shall be the policy of the LEAs that all students with disabilities shall participate in state and district-wide assessment programs. The IEP team determines how a student will access assessments with or without accommodations and/or modifications, or access alternate assessments, consistent with state standards governing such determinations.”
Districts shall permit a special education student to take the high school exit exam with any authorized accommodations or modifications provided for the high school exit examination in his/her IEP or 504 Plan. If a student’s IEP or 504 Plan does not address the exam specifically, the student shall be permitted to take the exam with any authorized accommodations or modifications provided for standardized testing in his/her IEP or 504 Plan. If a student’s IEP or 504 Plan does not address either the exam or standardized testing, the student shall be permitted to take the exam with any authorized accommodations or modifications provided for general classroom testing in his/her IEP or 504 Plan.
In the case of a district-wide assessment, the local educational agency, shall develop and implement guidelines for the participation of individuals with exceptional needs in alternate assessments for those pupils who cannot participate in regular assessments with accommodations as indicated by their respective individualized education programs. The guidelines shall provide for alternate assessments that meet the following requirements:
- Are aligned with the state’s challenging academic content standards and challenging pupil academic achievement standards.
- If the state has adopted alternate academic achievement standards permitted under the regulations promulgated to carry out paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of Section 1111 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, measure the achievement of individuals with exceptional needs against those standards.
In the case of a district-wide assessment, the local educational agency, shall make available to the public reports regarding the assessment of pupils that have been identified as individuals with exceptional needs with the same frequency and in the same detail as it reports on the assessment of pupils that have not been so identified, in accordance with subparagraph (D) of paragraph (16) of subsection (a) of Section 1412 of Title 20 of the United States Code.
In the case of a district-wide assessment, the local educational agency, shall, to the extent feasible, pursuant to subparagraph (E) of paragraph (16) of subsection (a) of Section 1412 of Title 20 of the United States Code, use universal design principles in developing and administering any assessments under this section.
Legal References:
EDUCATION CODE:
49076Student Records; access
51041Evaluation of educational program
52052Academic Performance Index; numerically significant student subgroups
52060-52077Local control and accountability plan
56205(a)(15)
56345Individualized education program, contents
56385 State and district-wide assessment programs
60600-60630Assessment of academic achievement
60640-60649California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress
60660-60663Electronic learning assessment resources
60810Assessment of language development
60851High school exit exam for a pupil with a disability
99300-99301Early Assessment Program
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
850-864State Assessments
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 20
1412Participation of students with disabilities in state assessments
6311Adequate yearly progress
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 34
200.1Standards and assessment
FEDERAL REFERENCES
20 USC 1412(a)(16)
Management Resources:
CSBA PUBLICATIONS
Supporting Student Achievement: Student Assessment System in Flux, Governance Brief, June 2013
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PUBLICATIONS
Assembly Bill 484 Questions and Answers
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY PUBLICATIONS
The Early Assessment Program: Handbook for School Site Leaders, 2008
SMARTER BALANCED ASSESSMENT CONSORTIUM PUBLICATIONS
Usability, Accessibility, and Accommodations Guidelines, August 2015
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, OFFICE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS PUBLICATIONS
The Use of Tests as Part of High-Stakes Decision-Making for Students: A Resource Guide for Educators and Policy-Makers, December 2000
WEBSITES:
CSBA:
California Department of Education, Testing and Accountability:
California Learning Resources Network:
California State University, Early Assessment Program:
Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium:
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights:
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