Question of the Week
Q: What is the process for requesting AKSA Visual Impairment (VI) materials?
A: The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) will provide tactically enhanced supplemental materials (e.g., maps, graphs) for some grades on the Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment (AKSA) Attainment Tasks (AT) to students who have visual impairments. KDE must verify that the student has VI marked on their IEP. If a student qualifies for these materials, please complete the following tasks: Verify a visual impairment has been clearly marked in the current IEP and the student is identified as participating in Kentucky’s Alternate Assessment. Once completed move to the next step.
- Locate and download your District Spreadsheet using this link: Window 1 VI Orders
- Open the Google Sheet
- Select File>Download>Microsoft Excel
- Edit the spreadsheet with your district’s data.
- Once you have completed this spreadsheet, please save it as “DistrictName_Window1.XLSX and submit a copy to this Google Form.
- This needs to be completed by the close of business Sept. 6, 2023.
- Only one list containing all students who qualify for this accommodation should be provided per district.
All submissions must be made no later than Wednesday, Sept. 6, to receive these VI materials for the first Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment Attainment Task window. Districts who submit late information or do not follow the above instructions may not receive these materials for Test Window 1 (Nov. 13 – Dec. 15) on time. For any additional questions or concerns please contact Krista Mullins or by phone at (502) 564-4394.
ACT Fall 2023 State Senior (Optional) Administration: Select Test Dates Deadline
For the fall 2023 ACT state senior (optional) administration, ACT needs to know what the testing plans for schools within your district are. Please ask your schools to sign into ACT’s PAN system and complete the Test Date Selection task by Aug. 25. Schools will make selections that will notify ACT if schools are testing or not and provide verification that the shipping address is correct. Step 1 of the ACT hosted State Testing Website contains comprehensive information about this task and includes helpful resources, such as the PAN User Guide and step-by-step training tutorials.
Please ensure testing staff involved with selecting test dates, choosing shipping dates, verifying shipping addresses, and managing testing staff user accounts are aware that this task should be completed by this date. For questions and assistance, please contact Shara Savage.
ACT/OAA State Fall 2023 State Senior (Optional) Administration Testing: Office Hour August 22 -Reminder
OAA and ACT will be hosting an office hour session focused on the Select Test Dates task on Tuesday, Aug. 22 at 11 a.m. ET. The session will be hosted via a Microsoft Teams meeting. While the content will be focused on this specific task, 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 August 22 Teams Meeting Link for next week’s session. For questions and assistance, please contact Shara Savage.
Sept. 1 Deadline to Add Pathway in TEDS for 2023-2024 School Year
On Sept. 1, the Technical Education Data System (TEDS) 2022-2023 data will be locked to begin the rollover for 2023-2024. Schools must add any new pathways in TEDS, if applicable, by Sept. 1 for the pathway to be available in TEDS during the 2023-2024 school year. Students are not required to be enrolled in the new pathway by Sept. 1, but schools must add the pathway if the pathway does not already exist in TEDS for their school. Work with your TEDS Coordinator at your school to verify all applicable pathways already exist in TEDS or have been properly added by Sept 1. Refer to the TEDS instructions Request to ADD or REMOVE a Pathway for more details.
CTE End-of-Program (EOP) Assessment and Tech Ready Apprentices for Careers in Kentucky (TRACK) Pre-Apprenticeship Assessment test tickets will be generated using TEDS data. Schools should ensure all applicable pathways already exist or have been added in TEDS by the Sept. 1 deadline in preparation for 2024 spring testing. Refer to the CTE EOP Assessment webpage for more information.
Contact Claude Christian, Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTE), for assistance related to TEDS, and contact Sherri Craig, OCTE, for questions related to CTE EOP Assessment.
August 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, Aug. 10, from 11 a.m. – 12 noon ET.
The meeting was hosted by Jennifer Stafford, Director, in the Division of Assessment and Accountability Support. She was joined by Shara Savage and Lisa Jett who provided important assessment and accountability topics. The agenda topics included:
- Fall 2023 Senior (Optional) ACT State Administration Reminders
- K Screen Updates
- Data Quality Control Process
The August 2023 DAC Webcast PowerPoint and DAC Webcast Video are available on the right-hand side of the Meetings and Trainings webpage. The recorded session is posted on the KDE Media Portal. Future DAC Webcasts are scheduled for the second Thursday of each month.
District Assessment Coordinator/Building Assessment Coordinator Nominations (Reminder)
Does your school or district have a Building or District Assessment Coordinator who demonstrates leadership in assessment and commitment to student learning that goes above and beyond the call of duty? If you have a BAC or DAC that deserves special recognition for their daily efforts, please fill out a BAC or DAC of the Year nomination. Recipients will be announced, and awards will be presented at the 2023 Scott Trimble Workshop on Assessment.
BAC of the Year Nominations
DAC of the Year Nominations
2023 “Don’t Stop Believing” Scott Trimble Workshop on Assessment and Instruction (Reminder)
The “Don’t Stop Believing” 2023 Scott Trimble Workshop on Assessment and Instruction will be held at the Crowne Plaza Louisville Airport Expo Center from October 26-27, 2023. You can find all the information regarding the Workshop Schedule, Hotel Accommodations, and Registration information by going to www.kaac.org. Use the 2023 Scott Trimble Workshop Proposal Google Form if you would like to submit a conference presentation proposal for the upcoming conference.
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