This pace does not warrant the same type of instructional intervention that other content areas may benefit from NWEA data. The science committee is recommending not moving forward with a full adoption of the NWEA assessment in science and instead to focus energy on the development and use of formative assessments that can more directly impact students' day-to-day learning in a timely manner. 14 PART V: ACCOMMODATIONS FOR SPECIAL POPULATIONS STUDENTS The School District of Clayton is committed to ensuring that all students have the opportunity to learn at the highest levels. As part of this learning process, it is important that all students are assessed in a fair and thorough manner to ensure that all assessment tools that are utilized accurately measure the learning and progress of all students. The District is accountable for the growth of all students and it is incumbent upon the District to accurately and comprehensively assess all students regardless of any type or level of disability. In order to assess all students in a fair and accurate way, it may be necessary to afford some students with assessment accommodations that ensure that these students are able to access methods of assessment on a level playing field with non-disabled students. Such accommodations must be included in an IEP or 504 Plan of a student and all accommodations must be carried out by the District in compliance with these support plans. All students will be expected to participate in either the MAP assessments in the various content areas or be assessed with the MAP Alternate Assessment (MAP-A). These accommodations will also be afforded to students on all forms of standardized testing administered by the District. Classroom assessments will be modified as needed as outlined in an IEP or 504 Plan. All DESE guidelines will be followed when providing accommodations on standardized assessments required by the state. These guidelines are shared as part of the annual training for all Building Test Coordinators and all Building Test Proctors working with special populations groups. The assessment program for the School District of Clayton complies with the guidelines of the following state and federal laws: ● Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA: Public Law 105-17) ● Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ● Goals 2000: Educate America Act (Public Law 103-227) ● Improving America’s Schools Act (IASA: Public Law 103-382) In order to comply with federal and state laws, the School District of Clayton has developed the following guidelines for including students with special needs in the state and district-wide assessment programs:

take into account the current level of functioning, skill level and learning characteristics of the student. The instructional and curricular goals will also be taken into account when determining the need for testing accommodations. It may be determined that students with disabilities may: a. if appropriate, engage in the assessments without accommodations and under the same conditions of other students. b. if appropriate, be provided accommodations and/or modifications to ensure that a disability does not limit the student’s access to the assessment and to ensure the District is assessing the student fairly in light of a diagnosed disability. For a small percentage of students, the severity of a disability may require that the student be assessed utilizing the MAP Alternate Assessment (MAP-A), a portfolio assessment of student work samples. MAP-A eligibility is determined annually by the student’s IEP team, using 15 DESE guidelines to determine eligibility. In order to meet MAP-A criteria, a student must be significantly delayed in cognitive ability and possess limited adaptive skills that may also be impacted by other physical and behavioral limitations. The student must also have been evaluated and found to be eligible for services through IDEA. c. be exempt from testing due to significant disabilities. This exemption must be determined by an IEP team and documented in the student’s IEP.

receiving instruction. A student should be included in any part of the MAP and MAP/EOC assessments for which they receive instruction.

in an IEP or 504 Plan. DESE also may approve additional accommodations on a case-by-case basis. Any accommodations not on the approved list must receive approval from DESE. Any accommodations must be clearly stated in a student’s IEP or 504 Plan. These accommodations typically fall into these general categories: a. Timing or scheduling of the assessment where the student is afforded additional time and/or allowed to take breaks during testing. The amount of additional time allotted is identified in the IEP or 504 Plan. b. Test setting utilized including allowing testing in an alternate location to reduce distractions or allow the use of special lighting or furniture. c. Test directions related to allowing the use of sign language, reading directions several times and/or underlining key words in the directions. d. How the test questions are prepared, including the use of large-print tests, increasing the spacing between questions, using magnification or hearing devices, using markers to help students keep their place or placing a few test questions on one page. Accommodations must be discussed and agreed upon by an IEP or 504 team and must be expressed in writing in the IEP or 504 Plan. If the determination is made that a student will not participate in a required assessment, a statement to this effect must be included in the IEP or 504 Plan. The statement must include why the student is not being assessed and how the student will be assessed using alternative methods.

If the determination is made that a student will not participate in a required assessment, a statement to this effect must be included in the IEP or 504 Plan. The statement must include why the student is not being assessed and how the student will be assessed using alternative methods. Accommodations are designed to level the playing field for students with disabilities but are not designed to give the student an unfair advantage in assessment situations. Accommodations may be implemented using teachers, teacher aides, student teachers or volunteers. All persons who will be implementing accommodations will receive training in test administration and confidentiality procedures. It will be the responsibility of the District Test Coordinator and Building Test Coordinator to ensure that all test proctors are properly trained, with this training taking place on a yearly basis. The District is ultimately responsible for ensuring that all assessment programs are carried out in an equitable and ethical manner. Accommodations are directly related to the students’ diagnosed disability and are intended to compensate for a specific disability to allow full access and benefit from the curricular goals that are being assessed. 16