2021-2022 ELP ANNUAL ASSESSMENT INFORMATION & REMINDERS

The ELP annual assessment window opens January 10, 2022 and will close at the end of the day on March 25, 2022.  

Zoom Call 

The Office of English Language Proficiency will be hosting a webinar on January 6 from 10:00 - 11:00 AM to discuss important updates and reminders related to WIDA Annual testing. 

District Testing Coordinator participation is strongly recommended. 

Please register in advance for this webinar at:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEldu6vqDwiGdLs3XGDZ1SMOje85WVAwpsh

Conflicts

Districts are strongly encouraged to continuously check for EL conflicts in the Accountability Reporting application throughout the ELP annual assessment window. Generally, conflicts are caused when a district has yet to appropriately assign a newly enrolled student the English Learner (EL) status assigned in a previous district. A student who was previously classified as an English Learner must continue to receive EL-specific services until demonstrating English language proficiency even if enrolling in a new district and submitting an “all-English” Home Language Survey.

To address conflicts, complete the following steps: 

• Review any existing EL conflicts in the Accountability Reporting application and assign EL status (e.g., 2349/EL/Limited English Proficient or 1637/LEP/EL Declined LEA EL Services) as appropriate. The following guidance document may be helpful in completing this process. 
  •  Note that assigning a student EL status in the local Student Information System (SIS) is usually all that is required to clear an EL conflict in the Accountability Reporting application.
•  If the district believes that a student is incorrectly generating an EL conflict, please review the EL Misidentification Appeals Process guidance document and supporting webinar. 
  • After review, if the district feels the student qualifies for an appeal, please contact OELP staff to discuss the circumstances of the identification.  
  •  If the district has already discussed the current conflict with OELP staff, submitted the requested documentation, and had the appeal approved, that conflict may be disregarded. Please ensure those students are removed from test sessions in WIDA AMS. 
  • If the district attempted to resolve the conflict without discussing the situation with OELP staff, please review the appeal’s status in the Accountability Reporting application. 
• Once all EL conflicts have been addressed, please ensure that students coded as 2349 English Learner or 1637/EL Declined EL Services after the WIDA Precode are added to appropriate test sessions in WIDA AMS or are ordered appropriate materials. 

Materials 

• Any EL student that was not included in the WIDA Precode file may be manually added to test sessions in WIDA-AMS through the close of the window on March 25, 2022.  
• All students uploaded to WIDA-AMS through the WIDA Precode file are considered online test takers and will have assessment materials automatically sent to the district by DRC.
• Materials include all kindergarten paper materials, grades 1-3 writing booklets, and all physical documents related to test administration. Districts are scheduled to receive automatically ordered materials on January 7, 2022. 

A student uploaded to WIDA-AMS in the WIDA Precode file that will participate in: 

• Alternate ACCESS
• One or more ACCESS domains on paper (due to IEP/504)
• 4th or 5th grade writing on paper (district discretion)

Must be removed from any automatically assigned online test session(s) they will complete with a paper assessment. The additional paper materials necessary for these students to complete their assessment must be ordered in WIDA-AMS, by the district, during Additional Materials Ordering (AMO) window beginning on January 7, 2022. Materials ordered in the AMO window should be received by the district within 48 to 72 hours. 

New Enrollments During the Testing Window

New potential EL student enrolls PRIOR to the final ten instructional days of testing window: 

1. Review students EL specific assessment and identification history in the Accountability Reporting application on Single Sign-on. 
2. If there is not a previous EL specific assessment or identification history: 
   • The student should be administered the appropriate screening assessment  (K Screener, Screener or MODEL).
   • If the student does not demonstrate English language proficiency, they should be assigned EL status in the local Student Information System and be administered the appropriate ELP annual assessment (K ACCESS, ACCESS, ALT ACCESS) prior to the close of the testing window.  

New potential EL student enrolls on the FINAL ten instructional days of testing window:

1. Review students EL specific assessment and identification history in the Accountability Reporting application on Single Sign-on.
2. If there is not a previous EL specific assessment or identification history: 
   • The LEA is responsible only for administering an appropriate screening assessment (K Screener, Screener or MODEL) and assigning the determined language status in the local Student Information System.
   • Ensuring participation in the ELP annual assessment is not required in the current school year but will be expected in the following year(s). 

Identified EL students: 

• If student has not started ACCESS Online:
  • The student should complete ACCESS in the incoming district.
  • Incoming district will need to add student in WIDA AMS or order materials if applicable.
• If student has completed at least one ACCESS Online domain:
  • The sending district will need to complete the student transfer form.
  • DRC will transfer the student record. The receiving district must put the student into test sessions.

2021-2022 ELP Assessment Irregularity Reporting 

To standardize the collection of annual ELP testing irregularities, our office requires that districts report any assessment issues using the Testing Irregularity Form.

A Testing Irregularity Report must be submitted if any of the following situations occur during the ELP annual assessment window:

• Technology outages or network errors
• Unexpected interruptions (e.g., fire alarm, student sickness, etc.)
• Issues that require a new testing ticket to be generated
• Issues that require a new paper assessment
• Instances of cheating
• Student cellphone usage
• Any other event that would call into question the validity of student, site, and/or district-level ELP annual assessment data