Question of the Week
Q: Has the U.S. Department of Education (USED) affirmed its commitment to state testing and school accountability?
A: Yes. USED has affirmed its commitment to state testing and school accountability for the 2021-2022 school year. However, it has released some limited flexibility on the method to determine federal accountability and school identification. Accountability may not be completely waived like it was in 2020 and 2021 and the full administration of assessments is required. Please see press release below and the linked template for specific information.
Note: Kentucky is not applying to amend the school accountability indicators in order to meet the legislative requirements of state law (i.e. Senate Bill 158 (2020)). Kentucky is preparing for full testing in spring 2022 and accountability reporting in fall 2022.
KDE seeking public comment on waiver request for federal accountability and school identification
(FRANKFORT, KY) – The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is seeking public comment on the state’s waiver request for temporary changes to accountability, school identification and reporting requirements in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) for the 2022-2023 school year.
The public comment period on the 2021-2022 COVID-19 Addendum Template to Kentucky’s state plan will be held from Monday, Feb. 28, to Friday, March 4. Public comments must be received by 5 p.m. ET on March 4.
The request for the waiver, which will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Education (USED), is meant to address the extraordinary situation stemming from the extended and widespread school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It also supports the advancement of student academic achievement by maintaining the integrity of Kentucky’s accountability system.
Through the waiver, KDE is seeking to:
- Shift the timeline for its long-term goals by two years;
- Temporarily adjust the state’s methodology for identifying Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) schools to reflect gaps in available testing data;
- Exempt the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years from the regulatory timelines for exiting Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) and Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI) status; and
- Temporarily modify the exit criteria for schools currently identified with CSI or ATSI status.
The full waiver can be accessed online on KDE’s website.
The full waiver can be accessed online on KDE’s website. To request an accessible version, please contact Meredith Brewer, director of education policy for KDE, at Meredith.Brewer@education.ky.gov.
Assessment Scores in Infinite Campus (IC)
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) strives to publish student results data in IC as it becomes available. KDE will publish KYOTE scores to districts beginning on Tuesday, March 1.
Please email KDE data services inbox with any questions on this matter.
ACT State Testing Window 1 Opening Soon – Updates and Reminders
With the first test date and corresponding online and accommodations windows approaching, KDE and ACT want to remind testing staff of key information and resources. School and district testing staff will receive an email from ACT on March 1 that will have additional information and resources to help prepare for testing during Test Window 1.
Customer Care Phone Number, (319) 337-1577
New this spring, there is a Kentucky-specific ACT Customer Care phone number. If you call this number during test dates and during test windows, your call will be prioritized. Testing staff should consider using this number should they have questions or needs during testing. The number is (319) 337-1577. Please note: this number is not a toll-free phone number.
Site Readiness
As a reminder, the Kentucky ACT is beginning a transition to online testing this spring. To ensure you can successfully administer the exam online it is vital that testing staff conduct online site readiness activities and that your systems and devices meet minimum technical requirements. Additional resources can be found in the Configuration section of your ACT State testing webpage.
After verifying that your network and devices can be configured to administer the exam online, testing staff must create test sessions and add students to those sessions. The window during which testing staff can create online test sessions, and add students to those sessions, for online test window 1 opened Jan. 31. Detailed instructions for creating online test sessions can be found on step two, Configuration, of the ACT, hosted website. The published deadline to complete this activity for the first test window is the final day of the online test window. ACT recommends you create sessions and add students to those sessions at least one day prior to the planned administration date.
**Important Note** iPads and/or touch screen devices are not approved devices for ACT testing. Be sure to review the Technical Manual for detailed technical requirements for the systems and devices that will be used to test online this spring. If these devices are used, it will lead to a misadministration and exams will not be scored.
MyACT/Non-test Activity
The window to conduct the non-test activity in MyACT is now open. Students should be provided with a copy of their personalized non-test instructions document, and a copy of the Taking the ACT booklet. All students, whether testing online or paper, are expected to complete the non-test in MyACT. Students who do not have parental consent should be monitored during the non-test activity to ensure they do not opt into EOS or select score recipients. Students without parental consent should still be directed to conduct the non-test activity.
ACT State Testing Office Hour March 3
OAA and ACT will be hosting an office hour session this Thursday, March 3, at 11 a.m. ET, focusing on the test window 1 preparedness. Although the test window 1 preparedness, all questions related to the ACT state administration are welcome. The session will be hosted via a Microsoft Teams meeting. While the content will be focused on this policy, KDE and ACT encourage testing staff to attend and ask any questions they may have at this time. Please be sure to provide testing staff with this March 3 Teams Meeting Link for this week's session.
March ACCESS for ELLs Q&A Webinars
Please join World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) and Data Recognition Corporation (DRC) to learn about the following ACCESS for ELLs topics:
More information and login details can be found in the WIDA Secure Portal on the Webinars page.
Can’t make it? The recordings for WIDA Q&A Webinars are posted to the WIDA Secure Portal on the Webinars page within a week of the presentation.
WIDA Illustrated Guiding Principles- Now Available in 14 Languages
The WIDA Illustrated Guiding Principles of Language Development are now available in 13 additional languages. This colorful booklet of 10 principles exemplifies the WIDA Can Do Philosophy and is core to what WIDA does. The Illustrated Guiding Principles guide educators as they have conversations with parents, families, and community members. Read more about the Illustrated Guiding Principles in our news article and download the translated booklets from the Resource Library.
Call for WIDA Fellows Nominations
Calling all exemplary educators! Nominations are open for the fourth class of WIDA Fellows. In establishing these fellowships, WIDA acknowledges the invaluable role teachers have in the collaboration with professional development and research partners advancing the field of education. All nominees must be exceptional teachers of bilingual and/or multilingual learners.
Learn more about the program, nomination process, and the form on the WIDA Fellows webpage. All nominations are due by April 30. No self-nominations, please.
DAC Spotlight
The DAC spotlight may resume at a later date.
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