PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual: Guidance for Districts and Decision-Making Teams to Ensure That PARCC Summative Assessments Produce Valid Results for All Students. Fourth Edition
Author: Bowman, Trinell
Date: 2015-09-19
Type: Guides - Non-Classroom
Subjects: Accessibility (for Disabled),Testing Accommodations,Summative Evaluation,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Disabilities,English Language Learners,Decision Making,Elementary Secondary Education,Mathematics Tests,Language Tests,Computer Assisted Testing,Profiles

The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is a group of states working together to develop a set of assessments that measure whether students are on track to be successful in college and their careers. These high-quality, computer-based K-12 assessments in mathematics and English language arts (ELA)/literacy give schools, teachers, students, and parents better information on whether students are on track in their learning and for success after high school, and tools to help teachers customize learning to meet student needs. The first full administration of the PARCC assessments occurred during the 2014-2015 school year. This is the fourth edition of the &quot;PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual&quot; (summer 2015). The &quot;PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual&quot; (the &quot;Manual&quot;) will continue to be revised as research is conducted during the early years of PARCC assessment administration. This iterative process will ensure that the accessibility features and accommodations students receive on PARCC assessments provide a valid reflection of what they know and can do, and do not alter the construct of what is being assessed. Additional guidance on the accessibility features and accommodations for the PARCC Diagnostic Assessment and Speaking and Listening Assessment is forthcoming. This fourth edition of the &quot;Manual&quot; includes additional information on: the Student Registration/Personal Needs Profile; test administration guidance for before, during, and after testing; and, specifics on the availability of accessibility features and accommodations during the administration of the PARCC assessments. The following are appended: (1) Accommodations for English Learners Taking the Paper-Based Assessments; (2) Test Administration Protocol for the Human Reader Accommodation for English Language Arts/Literacy Assessments, and the Human Reader Accessibility Feature for Mathematics Assessments; (3) Protocol for the Use of the Scribe Accommodation and for Transcribing Student Responses; (4) Text-to-Speech, ASL Video, or Human Reader/Human Signer Guidance for English Language Arts/Literacy Assessments; (5) Guidance for Selecting and Administering the Extended Time Accommodation; (6) Unique Accommodation Request Form; (7) Use of an Emergency Accommodation on a PARCC Assessment; (8) Student Accommodation Refusal Form; (9) PARCC ELA Audio Guidelines; (10) PARCC Mathematics Audio Guidelines; (11) Legal Background; (12) Human Signer Guidelines; and (13) PARCC Assessments for Students with Visual Impairment, Including Blindness. [This manual is the result of four years of work among states, PARCC Inc. staff, and outside technical assistance. The manual was based on &quot;Accommodations Manual: How to Select, Administer, and Evaluate the Use of Accommodations for Instruction and Assessment of Students with Disabilities&quot; written by Carver Christiansen, J. VaDeZande, and S. Lazarus. This work was sponsored by the Assessing Special Education Students State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards through the Council of Chief State School Officers. For &quot;PARCC Accessibility Features and Accommodations Manual: Guidance for Districts and Decision-Making Teams to Ensure That PARCC Mid-Year, Performance-Based, and End-of-Year Assessments Produce Valid Results for All Students. Third Edition,&quot; see ED561902.]