Question of the Week
Q: When will the Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA) District Test Window Collection Open in the Student Data Review and Rosters (SDRR) Application?
A: School and District level users will see the spring summative testing window dates in the Student Data Review and Rosters (SDRR) application. When SDRR opens on March 12 at 9 a.m. ET, District Assessment Coordinators (DACs) will need to enter the date of the first day of Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA) testing for elementary, middle, and high schools in the district.
Please note that the first day of the spring summative testing window must fall within the last 14 days of the school year. That date range information is pulled from Infinite Campus (IC) calendars. It is crucial that all IC school calendars are checked for accuracy early (prior to March 8 to allow for updates in IC), including preschools/alternative programs that may impact the district calendar. There will only be a few times (Monday, March 18 and 25) that IC will refresh any changes made to school calendars during the KSA District Test Window collection in SDRR.
There can only be one date for each level (elementary, middle, and high). School-level users can view the test window dates provided by the DAC, but they cannot change the information. Only District level users can make changes to these dates. SDRR will close on March 28 at 5 p.m. ET for District Test Window collection for KSA.
If the district’s testing windows change for any reason, SDRR must be updated to reflect the correct dates. The Office of Assessment and Accountability (OAA) uses the testing window dates provided by DACs and student enrollment information in IC to calculate and pre-load 100 days for students whenever possible, for site visits in the spring and for nonparticipations. If the testing dates are incorrect, the pre-loaded 100 days may be incorrect, and school and district users will have to do more work to correct student 100 days during spring rosters, or during the data review period in the fall.
KSA Office Hours
OAA, in collaboration with Pearson, is hosting office hour sessions for the spring 2024 administration of the Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA). Pearson will provide demonstrations and tutorials to assist District Assessment Coordinators (DACs) and Building Assessment Coordinators (BACs) with the tasks required in PearsonAccessnext (PAN). DACs, BACs and all test administrators will be able to ask questions and receive assistance during this time. Questions can be submitted prior to the office hour using the KSA Office Hour Form. A link to the Teams meeting will be provided in an upcoming Monday DAC email. The dates and times for office hours are listed below.
KSA Office Hour Session 1 – Wednesday, March 27, 10-11 a.m. ET
KSA Office Hour Session 2 – Wednesday, April 17, 10-11 a.m. ET
KSA Office Hour Session 3 – Wednesday, May 15, 10-11 a.m. ET
Please note that the questions asked during the office hour sessions should be specific to the KSA administration. For questions, please contact Melissa Chandler.
All KSA Scripts Now Available
OAA and Pearson have released all additional 2024 KSA and Quality of School Climate and Safety Survey (QSCS) scripts for this spring’s summative assessment. Scripts for grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 are currently available on the Resources tab of the KY Portal.
ACT State Testing Office Hour - March 6, 2024
OAA and ACT will host an office hour session on March 6 at 11 a.m. ET, which will focus on highlighting the remaining test preparation activities that staff should consider completing as the Window 1 test date nears. The session will be hosted via a Microsoft Teams meeting. While the content will be focused on highlighting those activities, 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 Microsoft Teams Link for the session. Attendees will not have to register for office hours specifically but will want to mark time on calendars to avoid any scheduling conflicts.
If you have any questions, please contact Christen Roseberry.
ACT Spring 2024 Junior Administration - Accommodations Qualified Exceptions to the Deadline Approaching
The Qualified Exceptions to the Deadline (QED) window closes March 8. The QED is for newly diagnosed or newly enrolled students. Please be sure to review the QED form to determine if the school/district has examinee(s) who are eligible to request accommodations and/or supports during this window. The QED window is not an opportunity to submit or resubmit initial requests for accommodations and/or supports.
Also, please be aware that this year, ACT added a second QED window, which is March 12-15 (see the Schedule of Events, Prepare for Test Window 2). This allows qualified exceptions to the deadline for accommodations/supports for examinees who will be doing makeup testing in Test Window 2.
For questions and assistance, please contact ACT at 800.553.6244, ext. 1788 or email ACTStateAccoms@act.org. Additionally, you may contact Christen Roseberry with any questions, concerns or assistance.
ACT Spring 2024 Junior Administration - Create Online Test Sessions for Window #1
The window during which testing staff can create online test sessions and add students to those sessions for the ACT online test window 1 opened on Feb. 5. ACT recommends schools create sessions and add students to those sessions at least two days prior to the planned administration date. The published deadline to complete this activity is the final day for online testing of window 1.
Step 4 of the ACT hosted testing website contains helpful resources about creating online test sessions. This includes the ACT Administration Online Manual and training tutorial on how to create and assign test sessions. For questions or assistance, please contact Christen Roseberry.
ACT Spring 2024 Junior Administration - Non-secure Materials for Test Window #2
For schools planning to test during window #2, non-secure materials should have arrived at your schools as of March 4, 2024. Testing staff should have inventoried their material to ensure they have what is needed to support the administration and return of materials. If additional material is needed, testing staff can view the Ordering Additional ACT Materials training tutorial or refer to the PearsonAccessnext (PAN) User Guide’s section titled “Requirements for Additional Materials Orders” to obtain information about placing an additional order in PAN.
Please be aware that schools planning to test during window #2 have between March 12 - 15, to request additional materials.
For questions or assistance, please contact Christen Roseberry.
Supported System Requirements for ACCESS for ELLs Online and WIDA Screener Online
Updated supported system requirements for ACCESS for ELLs Online and WIDA Screener Online have been posted to WIDA AMS under My Applications > General Information > Documents. These system requirements are valid for February 2024-June 2024.
Contact DRC Customer Support or phone (855) 787-9615 or TTY: (763) 268-2889 with any questions.
WIDA and DRC Customer Service Hours of Operation
The WIDA Client Services Center will return to its regular hours starting on Monday, March 11.
Monday – Friday: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. CT
As a reminder, DRC Customer Service is available Monday – Friday, 7 a.m.- 6 p.m. CT.
Reminder: Upcoming Assessment Webinar on WIDA Data Validation
Please join WIDA and DRC to learn about the following topic:
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Post Testing: Data Validation Tuesday, March 5 at 1-2 p.m. CT
Learn more and add this upcoming webinar to your calendar on the Webinars page (login required).
Can’t make it? The recordings for WIDA assessment webinars are posted to the WIDA Secure Portal on the Webinars page within a week of the presentation.
Reminder: Upcoming Assessment Webinar on Interpreting Score Reports
Join the WIDA Client Services Center on Tuesday, March 12, at 1-2 p.m. CT to get the questions about ACCESS for ELLs' scores and score reports answered by the experts.
WIDA is trying out a new format with this year’s Interpreting Score Reports Q&A webinar, so before attending, review the ACCESS for ELLs Interpretive Guide for Score Reports and the ACCESS for ELLs Scores and Reports webpage and get the questions ready. Learn more and add this upcoming webinar to the calendar on the Webinars page (login required).
As a reminder, Alternate ACCESS score reports will be released in the fall of 2024. WIDA will conduct a webinar to support district and school staff with these reports later this year. Visit the WIDA Alternate ACCESS Updates webpage to learn more.
Can’t make it? The recordings for WIDA assessment webinars are posted to the WIDA Secure Portal on the Webinars page within a week of the presentation.
2024 February DAC Training FAQ Addendum
OAA has incorporated frequently asked questions from the 2024 February DAC Training Q&A sessions with an addendum section. The addendum section begins on page 25 of the February DAC Training FAQ document. For questions or assistance, please contact dacinfo@education.ky.gov.
Assessment Scores in Infinite Campus
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) strives to publish student results data in Infinite Campus (IC) as it becomes available. KDE will continue publishing 2023-2024 KYOTE scores to districts beginning on Wednesday, March 7.
Please email KDE data services inbox with any questions on this matter.
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