Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its Impact on Assessment

Kia Mottley Edu 722 Carole Smith Module 7: Assignment 4

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the federal law dealing with the education of children with disabilities. Congress first passed IDEA in 1975,

recognizing the need to provide a federal law to help ensure that local schools would serve the educational needs of students with disabilities. The law originally passed was titled the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. That first special education law has undergone several updates over the past 30 years. In 1990 the law got a new name the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. Congress passed the most recent version of IDEA in 2004. It can be referred to as either IDEA 2004 or IDEA. (National Center on Educational Outcomes) The IDEA impacts students assessment well before the student is even labeled. The actual process enabling students to receive the assistance that the IDEA affords them comes by way of assessment. Which can be a lengthy, but highly effective process when the students are finished and properly identified. Then the IDEA can take effect and provide proper assistance to the students. Conducting assessments are necessary to classify students and plan specific instruction to help them learn. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) states that all children are entitled to a Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE). How children receive that education is for the school to determine. Conducting assessments does this. Assessments involve several processes including the screening of students to detect those who need further assistance. Parents are normally the first ones suspect that their child has a learning disability. They will then contact their local school district for guidance, referrals, and intervention. Initially teachers will meet with parents to try interventions before an assessment takes place. Most schools typically begin to screen children when they first enter kindergarten and continue until the third grade. This is to determine whether or not a student has a

disability and are at risk for failure. Children who fail the first screening are red flagged for further inquiry. The majority of child with disabilities are identified by the third grade. In some cases accidents occur causing traumatic injury that leads to a disability. In that instance a student may be classified later than the third grade. In addition to school screenings parents or caregivers may be suspicious of their childs ability and ask for their child to be screened. Typically, a child who is having academic or behavioral problems in the classroom may be referred for further testing to determine if a disability is present. Before testing for diagnosis begins, however, the school must obtain consent from the child's parents to do the evaluation. (De La Paz & Graham) It is important to understand that there is no standard or uniform battery of tests, checklists, or procedures that follow the identification of most students with disabilities. While schools follow certain protocol and guidelines, there are a variety of ways to come to a conclusion. Some may say that since there is no fool proof standardized way to classify children, it is leading to the over and under classification of students with disabilities (De La Paz & Graham) Learning disabilities account for the highest population of classified students thus leading to over identification. Students with behavioral disorders tend to be under classified. Reasons for this include forms of non-aggressive disorders that can be easily masked or compensated for. New approaches are being made to better advance the screening process so assessment can be more effective. Once such step to lower the over classification of children is to reduce the number of referrals. The teacher must work with the questionable child, and make proper modifications. If all else fails referral for special education testing will take place.

The referral process begins when a child is referred for testing to determine if he or he qualifies for services under the umbrella of special education. This is the first step in special education process. There are many steps in the referral process they include:

At the time of referral, the school district must notify the parents in writing about the process it will follow to determine whether a student has a disability and needs special education services.

Information gathered during the referral process is used to determine whether the school will test a student to determine if he/she has a disability and needs special education.

If the school decides to test the child, the school is to notify the parents in writing about the assessment process and get written consent from the parent before the assessment begins.

If the school decides not to test the child for special education eligibility, the school must notify the parents about this decision. Parents may challenge the school districts refusal to assess the child.

Eligibility is based on the results of the assessments by Child Study Team (CST) members and other specialists, as well as any reports or evaluations provided by the parents. A copy of the evaluation report(s) and documentation of eligibility must be given to the parent If the team finds that the child is eligible for special education, the team will then classify the child as: Learning Disabled (LD), Speech Impaired (SI), Visually Impaired (VI), Traumatic Brain Injured (TBI), Mentally Retarded (MR), Emotionally Disturbed (ED), Hearing Impaired (HI), Orthopedically Impaired (OI), Autistic, Other

Health Impaired (OHI). Next for the students is the instructional planning process. While the educational goals for children are the same, how each individual achieves these goals is different. It is important for educators to map out an educational program for disabled students. Finally, the monitoring of the student is implemented. This is a scientifically based practice that is used to assess students' academic performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. Progress monitoring can be implemented with individual students or an entire class. No Child Left Behind of 2001 (NCLB) states that all school must give highquality student assessments that are aligned with the state's academic standards and provide coherent information about students' attainment of such standards. According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), students with special needs must be given the same opportunity to acquire and demonstrate their academic performance as students without special needs. IDEA also stipulates children with disabilities are included in general State and district-wide assessment programs with accommodations, where necessary. Providing alternate assessment for children who are classified with a disability does this. Before assessing any student with a disability, information on the extent and severity of the students disability should be acquired by the assessor. This information will help guide the assessor in making the correct judgments for the student to provide equal opportunity to demonstrate his or hers skills and knowledge. It is also important for the assessor to be qualified in the type alternative assessment given. It would not be beneficial for students to be given an alternative assessment in brail, if his or her assessor

was unfamiliar with brail, the assessor would be unable to give the student the proper support. Alternative assessments or performance based assessment are deemed as anything other than standardized, multiple-choice questions. Alternative assessment uses activities that reveal what students can do with language, emphasizing their strengths instead of their weaknesses. When taking an Alternative assessment students are able to create a response to a question or task. Types of alternative assessments include: short-answer questions, essays, performance assessment, oral presentations, demonstrations, exhibitions, and portfolios. The purpose of alternative assessment is minimize the impact of the student's disability upon assessment performance. It is designed to place such students on a more equal footing with non-disabled students, not to give them any additional advantage. Alternative assessments are also scored differently than standardized tests. Portfolio assessments are a collection of work, usually drawn from children's classroom work, which, when subjected to objective analysis, become an assessment tool. This occurs when (1) the assessment purpose is defined; (2) criteria or methods are made clear for determining what is put into the portfolio, by whom, and when; and (3) criteria for assessing either the collection or individual pieces of work are identified and used to make judgments about children's learning. Items in the portfolio may be such items as photographs, work products of various types, interviews, emergent writing, art products, among other things. All students are allowed accommodations during assessments if they qualify under a 504 plan. The Americans with Disabilities Act states that no one with a disability can

be excluded from participating in federally funded programs or activities, including elementary, secondary or postsecondary schooling. A 504 plan gives and all modifications and accommodations that will be needed for these students to have an opportunity perform at the same level as their peers, and might include such things as wheelchair ramps, blood sugar monitoring, an extra set of textbooks, a peanut-free lunch environment, home instruction, or a tape recorder or keyboard for taking notes.(Mauro) Accommodations during presentation include how the directions and content are delivered to the students. Students will perform better when it is delivered to them in a way in which they can understand If a students is hearing impaired, a verbal question and answer test will not be given, under a 504 plan one in sign language would be given instead. Other examples include; large print written information, Braille, Tactile graphics, manipulative for math purposes, and so on. Test accommodations under a 504 plan include: open book exams, exams given orally, test given at home, more objectives terms (less essay), allowing students to relay test answers on a tape recorder, giving frequent short quizzes rather than long exams, extra time, and reading test questions to students. Self-assessment is an innovative way to assess student learning. Self assessment is a process where students are involved in and are responsible for assessing their own piece of work. It encourages students to become independent learners and can increase their motivation. There are many reasons to give your students self-assessments. It is often used to help develop in students the ability to examine and think critically about their learning. And it also helps students determine what criteria should be used in judging their work and to apply these objectively to their own work in order to facilitate their continuing

learning. There are many benefits to self-assessment. It teaches students how to selfmonitor and self correct. The successful use of student self assessment depends of three key things, goal setting, guided practice with assessments tools, and portfolios. Goal setting is essential because students can evaluate their progress more clearly when they have targets against which to measure their performance. When students are able to self-define their own goals for learning it increases their performances and motivation. Teacher helps students set up manageable goals. One way to begin the process of introducing students to self-assessment is to create student-teacher contracts. Contracts are written agreements between students and instructors, which commonly involve determining the number and type of assignments that are required for particular grades. For example, a student may agree to work toward the grade of "B" by completing a specific number of assignments at a level of quality described by the instructor. Students do not learn to monitor or assess their learning on their own; they need to be taught strategies for self monitoring and self assessment. This is done through guided practice with assessment tools. When teaching these self-assessment techniques teachers will demonstrate how to use a rubric and checklists when reviewing work. Upon trying these new techniques students use trial and error, and discuss what they liked and didnt like while using these techniques. Students are also encouraged to share self-assessment goals with teachers and small groups of peers. As well as discuss and assess their progress, core content, and teacher instruction. As discussed early portfolios are purposeful, organized, systematic collections of student work that tell the story of a student's efforts, progress, and achievement in specific areas. Students discuss with teachers the materials to be presented in their portfolio. It is

important to get children involved when they can in all aspects of the assessment process. Portfolio assessment emphasizes evaluation of students' progress, processes, and performance over time. There are two basic types of portfolios: A process portfolio serves the purpose of classroom-level assessment on the part of both the instructor and the student. It most often reflects formative assessment, although it may be assigned a grade at the end of the semester or academic year. It may also include summative types of assignments that were awarded grades. A product portfolio is more summative in nature. It is intended for a major evaluation of some sort and is often accompanied by an oral presentation of its contents. For example, it may be used as an evaluation tool for graduation from a program or for the purpose of seeking employment. Peer assessments allow students to evaluate others quality of work. A clear understanding of the evaluation process must be made. Students are to provide classmates with encouraging feedback when performing peer assessments. Students should practice giving peer assessments on sample work before evaluating others actual work. This is so students become familiar the guidelines of peer assessment. Students benefit from peer assessment when the the learning environment in the classroom must be supportive. Students must feel comfortable and trust one another in order to provide honest and constructive feedback. Instructors who use group work and peer assessment frequently can help students develop trust by forming them into small groups early in the semester and having them work in the same groups throughout the term. This allows them to become

more comfortable with each other and leads to better peer feedback.

REFERENCES Alternate Achievement Standards For Students With The Most Significant Cognitive Disabilities Non-Regulatory Guidance, U.S. Department of Education (August 2005). Available at www.ED.gov Cobb, S. (2004). History of assessment practices in the United States. http://learn.midsouthcc.edu/LearningObjects/facDev/history_of_assessment.pdf Salvia, J., Ysseldyke, J., & Bolt, S. (2010). Assessment in Special and Inclusive Education. Belmont, California: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

De La Paz, S. & Graham, S. (1995). Screening for Special Diagnoses. Greensboro: Eric Digest Hargett, G., Martinez, R., Navarete, C., Nelson, C., and Wilde, J, (1990). Informal Assessment in Education Evaluation. NCBE Program Information Guide Series, Number 3

Walsh, M. (2002, March 6). Court Declines Case Challenging PromotionAssessment Ties. Retrieved December 5, 2011, from http://www.edweek.org/login.html National Center on Student Progress Monitoring (2007) Retrieved November 1, 2011, from http://www.studentprogress.org/ Sattler, J. (2008) Assessment of Children: Cognitive Foundations. La Mesa. Jerome Sattler Publishing Inc. Logsdon, A. (2008) Norm-Referenced Tests - What are Norm Referenced Tests? Retrieved December 3, 2011, from http://learningdisabilities.about.com/od/mo/g/normreferenced.htm McConnell, S.R. (2000) Assessment in Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education: Building on the Past to Project Into Our Future. Sage Journal Online, Vol. 20, No. 1, 43-48. Logsdon, A. (2007) Observations in Tests-Observations Provide Academic and Behavior Data. Retrieved December 10, 2011, from http://learningdisabilities.about.com/od/glossar1/p/observations.htm Alternative Assessments For Students with Disabilities. (1993). Retrieved December 1, 2011, fromhttp://www62.gu.edu.au/policylibrary.nsf/binders/9e8bed147c45d9ae4a256db00063de 07?opendocument Mauro, T. (2004) Functional Behavioral Assessment. Retrieved December 8, 2011, from http://specialchildren.about.com/od/fba/g/FBA.htm EducationWorld. Retrieved November 29, 2011, from http://educationworld.com/ Peer and Self-Assessment. (2004) Retrieved December 5, 2011, from http://www.nclrc.org/essentials/assessing/peereval.htm Determining Appropriate Assessment Accommodations for Students with Disabilities, National Center for Learning Disabilities. Available at www.LD.org/NCLB No Child Left Behind: Understanding Assessment Options for IDEA-eligible Students, National Center for Learning Disabilities. Available at www.LD.org/NCLB Working Together For Students With Disabilities: Individuals With Disabilities

Education Act (IDEA) And No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) Frequently Asked Questions, U.S. Department of Education (December 2005). Available at www.ED.gov