Wisconsin Alternate Assessment for Students with Disabilities

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Wisconsin Alternate Assessment for Students with
Disabilities

• Test Administration Training

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Introductions
Wisconsin Alternate Assessment for Students with
Disabilities Office of Educational
Accountability Contact Information

• Phil Olsen- Assistant Director
• philip.olsen_at_dpi.wi.gov
• Brian Johnson- Alternate Assessments
• brian.johnson_at_dpi.wi.gov
• Kristen Kehoe- Special Populations
• kristen.kehoe_at_dpi.wi.gov

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Introductions
Wisconsin Alternate Assessment for Students with
Disabilities Special Education Team Contact
Information

• Sandra Berndt- Cognitive Disabilities
• sandra.berndt_at_dpi.wi.gov
• Jeremiah Holiday- Vision Impairment
• jeremiah.holiday_at_dpi.wi.gov
• Eva Kubinski- Continuous Improvement Focused
  Monitoring
• eva.kubinski_at_dpi.wi.gov
• Carol Schweitzer- Hearing Impairment
• carol.schweitzer_at_dpi.wi.gov

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Frequently Asked Questions

• The Department has developed a FAQ document for
  the WAA-SwD. This document is broken into
  specific categories related to the assessment.
• The WAA-SwD FAQ is updated on an annual basis and
  can be found at
• http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/faqwaa.html

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Agenda

• Background of WAA-SwD
• Student Participation
• Test Administration
• Example Test Items
• Accommodations
• Test Security
• Distribution/Scoring/Reporting

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Background

• 2007 Educator involvement
• Development of the Extended Grade Band Standards
• Pre-Alignment Study of the WAA-SwD
• Item Content and Bias Review
• 2008 Educator involvement
• Post-Alignment Study
• Standard Setting
• Additional descriptors were written to enhance
  the Extended Grade Band Standards

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Background - Usability Study

• Test administration of sample items
• Three students at grades 4, 5, and 6 with varying
  cognitive disabilities IEP Teams determined that
  all three students will participate in the
  WAA-SwD

• Lessons learned
• Use of manipulatives
• Redirection
• Test setting
• Incorporate test into the learning environment
• Practice patience!

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Background

• Extended Grade Band Standards
• Grade bands 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 10
• Instructional achievement descriptors defined for
  WAA-SwD Minimal, Basic, Proficient, and Advanced
  performance levels for Mathematics, Reading, and
  Science
• Posted August 27, 2007 http//dpi.wi.gov/sped/ass
  mt-extstd.html

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WMAS Reading, Mathematics and Science
ESSENCE
WISCONSIN EXTENDED GRADE BAND STANDARDS
WISCONSIN ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORKS
WAA-SwD
WKCE
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Student Participation

• IEP Team decision
• 2008-2009 Participation Checklist
• Students must take either WKCE or WAA-SwD for all
  tested subjects
• Revised September 2007, found online at
• http//dpi.wi.gov/sped/assmt-waa.html

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Participation Checklist
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WAA-SwD Tests
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WAA-SwD Schedule
The WAA-SwD will follow the same testing schedule
as the WKCE. A calendar of important assessment
and accountability dates for the WAA-SwD can be
found at http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/calendar.html
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Test Forms

• Grade clusters 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 10
• Separate test for each grade (one grade 3, one
  grade 4, etc.)
• One test book for every student
• all content areas in one book
• Separate Teacher Test Book
• all content areas in one book
• One student answer document for every student
• Tests will include a small number of field test
  items per content area
• Student Labels
• WKCE and WAA-SwD label shipment will be the same
• If no label, bubble in student information

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Test Item Mathematics grade 3-4 Teacher Test
Book
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Test Item Mathematics grade 3-4Student Test Book
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Who Does What?
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Test Administrators

• Test administrators qualifications
• Must be teachers or licensed staff (e.g., school
  psychologists, speech therapists, etc.)
• Paraprofessionals and aides cannot administer
  WAA-SwD
• Familiarity with student and the students
  response style and communication style is
  essential

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Test Administrators

• Prepare materials ahead of time, and familiarize
  yourself with the flow of test items
• Consider manipulatives and accommodations for
  each student
• Logistics what makes sense for each of your
  students?
• Stick to the script in the Teacher Test Book
• Test Administrators must read, verbatim, what
  follows the icon
• Remain neutral while reading and pointing to test
  items and answer choices (e.g., no inflection of
  tone should be detectable, no lingering pointing,
  etc.?)
• Redirect students as needed
• Test Administrators can re-read any section
  following the SAY icon however, the entire
  section must be read, and it must be repeated
  verbatim answer choices may be repeated as often
  as needed, with or without reading the question
• Maintain test security

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Reading Test

• 2/3 of items in the Reading Test are to be read
  to students by the teacher
• 1/3 of items are read by STUDENT items
• Spread throughout test at different levels of
  difficulty
• Encourage students to try their best on these
  independent reading items
• Test administrators must pay close attention to
  which items are read by STUDENT
• On these items, the test administrator will read
  prompts and can redirect students attention to
  the reading passage or answer choices test
  administrators cannot read the reading passage or
  answer choices stick to the script!

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Example Reading Item (grade 5-6)Teacher Test
Book Read by Student
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Example Reading Item (grade 5-6) Student Test
Book Read by Student
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Social Studies and Language Arts

• Social Studies and Language Arts/Writing
• Can be done before October test window save the
  score to record on WAA-SwD student answer
  document
• Document score on back of WAA-SwD student answer
  document
• Rating Scale Format (checklist)
• No evidence collected
• Only one rater (no second rater needed)
• Items do not need to be IEP-aligned
• Download from the WAA-SwD (Special Education)
  website
• http//dpi.wi.gov/sped/assmt-waa.html

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Accommodations

• Braille orders and/or picture descriptions
  contact Jeremiah Holiday at DPI
• jeremiah.holiday_at_dpi.wi.gov, 608-266-3522 or
  800-441-4563
• http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/doc/WAA-0001.doc
• Assistive technology
• Allowed, as long as it is recorded in the
  students current IEP and it does not alter what
  a particular test item measures
• Not allowed
• Paraphrasing, rewording, explaining, etc. stick
  to the script to keep the results of the test
  valid
• Returning to a test item after it has already
  been administered
• Calculators
• Accommodations on WAA-SwD
• Must be allowable on WSAS Assessment
  Accommodations Matrix (http//www.dpi.wi.gov/oea/p
  df/accom08.pdf)

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Accommodations Manipulatives

• Allowable manipulatives
• Manipulative Guide
• http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/pdf/maniguide.pdf
• It is important for test administrators to review
  the test ahead of time to prepare manipulatives
  for each individual student
• Remember only use manipulatives that your
  student uses regularly in class do not introduce
  new manipulatives during test administration
• Ruler required for grade 10 Mathematics Test
• Use the ruler that your student uses in class

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Student Answer Document

• Only answers bubbled onto student answer document
  will be scored
• Answers recorded in the Student Test Book will
  not be scored
• If answers are not bubbled correctly on the
  student answer document, AYP can be affected
• Test administrators may choose initially to
  document answers in the Teacher Test Book and
  then to transfer answers onto the student answer
  document (bubble sheet) after administration

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WAA-SwD Test Security

• Teachers will be utilizing the test in their
  classrooms and will be able to have access to the
  test before testing begins
• Teachers administering the WAA-SwD are able to
  maintain possession of individual student tests
  and administration guides until all content areas
  are complete
• All tests must remain in locked storage when not
  in use
• After test administration, test books must be
  collected, counted, and returned to the School
  Assessment Coordinator (SAC) for storage in a
  secured-and-locked room and/or cabinet
• ALL test booklets and answer documents must be
  returned. Districts CANNOT keep a copy or copies
  of the WAA-SwD
• Each CESA and the DPI will retain one copy for
  reference
• This policy is different than the WKCE

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Distribution

• Receiving test materials
• Districts will be sent WAA-SwD materials based on
  the number of students in each district who
  participated in the WAA-SwD last year.
• Student labels
• Two labels with WKCE shipment
• Dates http//dpi.state.wi.us/oea/calendar.html

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Scoring and Reporting

• RES window will include WKCE and WAA-SwD
• Reporting of WAA-SwD scores is similar to WKCE
• Student Answer Document information
• Student answers must be bubbled in for
  Mathematics, Reading, and Science
• Student label (or bubble in all student info)
• SS and LA/Writing Performance Levels
• Accommodations
• WAA-SwD Student Performance Level Survey
• Important that test administrators review
  Performance Level Descriptors before completing
  survey on the student answer document

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Questions?
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For More Information

• Visit the WAA-SwD pages on the DPI website
• http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/waa.html (OEA page)
• http//dpi.wi.gov/sped/assmt-waa.html (Special
  Education page)
• Watch the Webcast of this presentation
• will include answers to frequently-asked
  questions
• will be available in late Sept. 2008
• http//dpi.wi.gov/oea/webcasts.html
• Call us
• DPI Office of Educational Accountability
• 608-267-1072
• DPI Special Education Team
• 608-266-1781