Question of the Week
Q: When will the KSA and QSCS Survey Scripts be released?
A: The Office of Assessment and Accountability (OAA) and Pearson have started the release of the 2023 Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA) and Quality of School Climate and Safety Survey (QSCS) Scripts for this spring’s summative assessment. Grade 3 script is currently available on the KY Portal under Resources: Test Administration Scripts. Scripts for other tested grades will be posted in the portal as they become available. DACs and BACs should check back into the portal for updates and look for announcements in future Monday DAC Emails.
ACT Spring 2023 Junior Administration: Resolving Online Testing Interruptions and Unfinished Initial Test Window Test Sessions for Students
KDE has partnered with ACT to allow examinee(s) who experienced technical issues during test window 1 the option to retest. Schools may offer students the opportunity to retake the ACT if the student experienced interruptions. Students who experienced the testing disruption may request to retest during the makeup (test window 2) online window. Testing staff may follow the directions below to provide the retest option.
Schools that have online sessions from the now completed initial or window 1 test dates and have not yet progressed to a status of ‘complete’ in PearsonAccessNext (PAN), should be aware of the following recommendations:
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If a student successfully completed testing but had not submitted their assessment for scoring, testing staff should follow the process outlined on page 57 of the Online Administration Manual to mark an examinee’s test complete.
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If a student was unable to resume and complete testing within window 1 or wishes to retest within test window 2 due to a technical testing interruption, testing staff should email ACT at statetesting@operations.act.org to request that students be reregistered to test during a later test window. In the email, include the following:
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The word “Reregister” in the email subject line
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The requested later test window (test window 2) in the email body
Please note, students who choose to reregister will have the exam from Window 1 deleted and replaced with the new exam.
For questions or assistance, please contact ACT at 800.553.6244, ext. 2800.
ACT Spring 2023 Junior Administration: Initial Testing Prescheduled Material Pickup
Schools who administered exams within the initial test window, or test window 1, will have a material pickup attempted today, Monday, March 20. If schools were unable to compile material for return to ACT on today’s initial material pickup attempt, FedEx will attempt two additional pickup attempts on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Testing staff is encouraged to review the resources within step 6 of the ACT-hosted website to ensure the appropriate material is returned to ACT for processing. testing staff may find value in reviewing the Returning Online Test Materials training tutorial. Finally, testing staff should be aware that the receipt deadline for initial test materials is Friday, March 27. For questions or assistance, please contact Shara Savage.
ACT Spring 2023 Junior Administration: Makeup Testing (Test Window 2) Opening Soon
Schools who have students participating within the makeup, or test window 2, should be aware that online testing will begin on Tuesday, March 21. Online test sessions can be created, and students can be added to those sessions at this time. Testing staff who have outstanding questions about online test preparation and/or online test session creation should review the documents and resources within step 2 of the ACT-hosted website. Testing staff who have questions about online test delivery are encouraged to review the documents and resources within step 5 of the ACT-hosted website.
Finally, as with the initial test window, or test window 1, once testing has concluded, ACT has arranged a prescheduled material pick-up, which will occur on Monday, April 3. For questions or assistance, please contact Shara Savage.
2023 February DAC Training FAQ Addendum
OAA has incorporated frequently asked questions from the 2023 February DAC Training Q&A sessions with an addendum section. The addendum section begins on page 24 of the February DAC Training FAQ document. For questions or assistance, please contact dacinfo@education.ky.gov.
Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment Window 2 Materials Shipping Dates
Shipping dates for Window 2 Materials for Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment (AKSA) will be the week of March 27-31 or April 3-7. If a district did not make a selection, the default for shipping materials is the week of March 27-31, 2023.
Transition Attainment Record (TAR) Training Closes March 24
The TAR training quiz will close on March 24, 2023, in the Online Training System (OTS). The TAR is one of the two assessment pieces (Alternate KSA) that make up the academic assessment portion of the AKSA. It is for students in grade 11 and can be administered to students in grades 12 and 14 who did not previously meet benchmark. The quiz must be successfully completed by a certified staff member of the student’s instructional team before the document can be downloaded and rated.
2023 KSA and AKSA Spring Testing Site Visits
Staff from the Office of Assessment and Accountability (OAA) will be conducting virtual and in-person assessment site visits to selected schools across Kentucky during the upcoming KSA and AKSA testing windows.
The 2023 Site Visit Survey Questions are available for review prior to the spring administration. Additional details about site visits will be shared in a Monday DAC closer to the opening of testing windows.
Caveon Core System Attention Required
District Assessment Coordinators (DACs) need to sign in to the Caveon Core system as soon as possible to ensure access to the secure investigation hubs to file incident reports for testing allegations. Please do not wait until the busiest time(s) of the testing season to attempt to log in to Caveon Core for the first time. The instructions for logging onto Caveon Core can be found here: https://education.ky.gov/AA/distsupp/Pages/Allegation-Reporting.aspx
Please note: DACs must provide a valid telephone number to receive login codes and enable two-factor authentication to access the Caveon Core secure investigation hubs to file incident reports for testing allegations.
If DACs are unable to log in to Caveon Core after following the instructions above, please get in touch with Caveon support at support@caveon.com
ACCESS for ELLs Data Validation in WIDA AMS
The ACCESS for ELLs (ACCESS-online and paper, Alternate ACCESS, Kindergarten, Accommodated -Large Print and Braille) Data Validation window for English Learners (ELs) is March 22-April 5. Data Recognition Corporation (DRC) has communicated instructions for logging into the WIDA Assessment Management System (AMS) and completing this process to District Assessment Coordinators (DACs) on March 15. This is the last opportunity with DRC to correct any student demographics prior to districts receiving the ACCESS for ELLs reports online in WIDA AMS on April 28 and printed reports in the districts starting on May 10. Resource on ACCESS for ELLs Data Validation (March 7) recording can be found on the webinars page under the WIDA Secure Portal.
Districts will need to make sure the following tasks have been completed so that the ACCESS for ELLs reports will be accurate:
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Verify that all student demographics are correct.
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Fix all duplicate student records. To do this, the following fields must be the same and have no blanks for both records:
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Student’s Last Name and First Name
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Birthdate
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SSID
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Grade
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District
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School
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Student records needing invalidated (do not score code), contact Chris Williams.
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Save all changes.
For assistance or any questions with the ACCESS for ELLs Data Validation process, please contact Chris Williams.
Revised ACCESS for ELLs Project Webpage
WIDA has a new webpage, Revised ACCESS for ELLs is Coming in 2025-2026, that outlines the multi-year project to integrate the WIDA ELD Standards Framework, 2020 Edition into ACCESS Online, ACCESS Paper and Kindergarten ACCESS. Browse the webpage to get more information on the project itself, a timeline of project activities, and how educators can get involved in test development work.
March Monthly DAC Webcast
The Office of Assessment and Accountability (OAA), Division of Assessment and Accountability Support (DAAS) hosted its live monthly DAC Webcast virtually on Thursday, March 9.
The meeting was hosted by Jennifer Stafford, Director, in the Division of Assessment and Accountability Support. She was joined by Shara Savage, Melissa Chandler and Helen Jones. Beth Engle also joined the Webcast to provide updates from the Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTE). The agenda topics included:
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Career and Technical Education (CTE) Updates
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ACT Updates
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Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA) Office Hours
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Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment (AKSA) Windows Update
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Recruitment for Upcoming Projects
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703 KAR 5:270 Accountability System Public Hearing
Save The Date Train the Trainers
KDE and Curriculum Associates will be hosting the Kindergarten Screen Train the Trainers (TtT) on April 26.
This training, usually required in a face-to-face setting, will be virtual and is required for new K Screen coordinators who will need to provide the three-hour training to teachers and district staff. The TtT is only required for new K Screen coordinators.
Attendees will receive 6 hours of Effective Instructional Leadership Act credit. KDE and CA also will be hosting the TtT on two other occasions throughout the spring and summer if you cannot attend in April, an in person training in July and a virtual option in August.
Details for the April 26 Train the Trainers will be provided as the training approaches. If you have questions concerning the training, please contact Lisa Jett.
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