TELPAS Alternate
Texas is leading the nation in developing one of the first English language proficiency assessments for English learners with the most significant cognitive disabilities. The Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System
(TELPAS) Alternate is designed as a holistic
inventory based on language arts standards. As part of the test development process, the Texas Education Agency (TEA)
is conducting a pilot that will be administered from
April 23 to May 4, 2018, to students in grades 3 through 12 who meet the
eligibility criteria. In addition, TEA staff will be conducting cognitive labs to
gather feedback from teachers on this new assessment. Results from the pilot
test and cognitive labs will provide TEA with valuable information that will
drive improvements in TELPAS Alternate. Please contact the Student Assessment Division to participate in this exciting pilot.
More Information
From Deb’s Desk
In January, a few team members, vendor staff, and I took to the
roadways and airways for an assessment road show. We visited 10 regions from Beaumont
to El Paso and Edinburg to Amarillo to conduct training and answer questions
about the 2018 assessment administrations. Superintendents, chief academic
officers, district testing coordinators, technology coordinators, and campus
staff attended the trainings. These training opportunities were supplemental to
our annual Education Service Center training-of-trainers held in Austin. I
met incredible educators, saw some of the beauty of this state, and had some amazing food! It
was a valuable learning experience, and I want to thank everyone for their
warmth and support!
I also want to thank the many students, campuses, and districts
who participated in the 2018 pilot administration of the STAAR Interim
Assessments. When the testing window closed on March 23, there were 378 districts, 1,081
campuses, and 423,455 students who had used this new tool with remarkable success! Districts
participating in the pilot will be asked to provide feedback through a
post-administration survey. Results of the survey, as well as on-site visits,
will inform improvements to the interim assessment tool before the full launch
in the 2018–2019 school year.
Finally, please help me congratulate José Ríos who has been
promoted to Director of Test Administration for Student Assessment. José has
worked in the Student Assessment Division for 12 years on the State of Texas
Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) Spanish,
TELPAS, and accommodations.
Hurricane Harvey Update
Given the
impact of Hurricane Harvey, Commissioner Mike Morath removed some Student Success Initiative
(SSI) requirements for districts in the 47 county Presidential Disaster
Declaration. The district testing coordinator must provide written
notification to ETS by May 4, 2018 indicating that his or her district does not
wish to participate in the June 2018 STAAR grades 5 and 8 retest
administration.
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SSI Requirements for
Students Receiving Special Education Services
The 85th Texas Legislature passed
House Bill (HB) 657, making changes to the SSI requirements
for students receiving special education services. If
a student receiving special education services fails STAAR the first time he or
she takes it, an admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee meeting* must
be held before the student is administered STAAR for the second time.
*IDEA allows that “When
conducting [ARD committee] meetings...the parent of a child with a disability
and a public agency may agree to use alternative means of meeting
participation, such as video conferences and conference calls.” (34 CFR §300.328). NOTE:
the meeting required after the first time a student takes and fails
STAAR, may not consist of an agreement to amend the IEP.
New Webpage for TEC and
TAC References for the Texas Assessment Program
To
provide better access to statutory and regulatory information, the Student
Assessment Division has created a new webpage. The webpage contains links to
the specific sections of the Texas Education Code (TEC) and the Texas
Administrative Code (TAC) that support and guide the Texas assessment program.
View the Webpage
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New Medical Exemptions
for STAAR
With
the implementation of the new accountability system in 2018, TEA will more
closely monitor participation rates for schools and districts. To ensure that
students who have experienced a significant medical event do not impact
participation rates, a new process has been developed for a medical exemption
from STAAR.
Transcribing Student
Responses
Student responses recorded in the test
booklet may be transcribed onto a blank answer document. Please note that this
change is a departure from previous years, as well as information in current
test administration materials.
Updated STAAR Tutorials
for Online Testing
It is expected that all students participating in an online test
administration complete the tutorials prior to taking the assessment. Updated
STAAR tutorials and help videos are available in the STAAR Online Testing
Platform (SOTP). This includes a practice option that allows students to
interact with the new features for 2018. One of the new features is a sticky notes tool. This accessibility feature is
available to all students taking STAAR online and allows students to make annotations in selections and items
throughout the test.
New Spelling Assistance
Tool
Students who meet eligibility for
the designated support of spelling assistance will be able to use this new
personal needs and preferences (PNP) option for the writing prompt during online
administrations of STAAR grades 4 and 7 writing, English I, and English II. The
spelling assistance tool will alert students when a typed word is not found in
the Merriam-Webster dictionary source list. It will then offer up to five
suggestions for replacement words from which students may choose. The tool evaluates
words independent of the context. It’s important to have eligible students
practice using this new tool to determine if it meets their needs. This is a new option available for students who meet eligibility requirements; however, students may use any allowable types of spelling assistance listed in the designated support policy document in lieu of, or in addition to, this new support.
Technology Use Guidelines
Presentation
A
new resource for districts, Technology Use Guidelines Presentation, has been
posted to the TEA Accommodation Resources webpage. This presentation is
intended to expand on the Technology Guidelines document posted in fall 2017
and includes clarifications and examples about the use of technology-based
accessibility features and designated supports for state assessments.
Technology Enhanced Item Pilot
TEA is working to improve the STAAR testing
experience for students. One way of doing this is by introducing
technology-enhanced items (TEI) that create more engaging content and allow for
demonstration of higher order thinking skills. TEA is piloting a few TEI items during
the spring 2018 STAAR online administrations for grades 3–8 mathematics and
reading. The TEI pilot is only available for students testing online and is
optional for the students. The TEI pilot, which will include up to five TEI
sample questions, will be displayed after the student completes and submits the
STAAR online assessment and will not affect the student’s score on STAAR.
Enhancements to STAAR Alternate 2
There are several enhancements to STAAR Alternate 2 materials for the 2018 administration.
- Test materials will be
shipped in kits. Each kit includes a student booklet, a set of image cards, and
a test administrator manual.
- New image cards contain
the same images that appear in the student test booklet and may be used in
conjunction with the student booklet if the student needs this type of
assistance. The image cards must be returned with nonscorable materials.
- Color images have been
added to some questions in the student test booklets.
- Large-print student test
booklets are now available. The large-print booklets are shipped separately
from the kits; however, districts will need to use the test administrator manual and
image cards within the kit.
TEA is conducting a
post-administration survey to request feedback regarding the effectiveness of
these enhancements.
STAAR Report Card Reminder
Districts will not receive printed
copies of STAAR Report Cards for the April 2018 administrations. Electronic
versions of STAAR Report Cards will be posted in the STAAR Assessment
Management System in accordance with the dates listed in the 2018 Calendar of
Events. Printed copies of the STAAR Report Cards for spring 2018
administrations will be sent in June as listed in the 2018 Calendar of Events.
Technology Updates
From ETS:
-
Prior
to testing, districts should launch the SOTP on all testing devices and verify
the updated SOTP is installed and functional on ALL testing devices. A Quick
Guide to Online Testing has
been posted to identify preparation activities for administering STAAR online.
-
Districts
may enable access for campus-level staff to view their campus standard
reports. By default, access to campus staff (campus testing coordinators
and principals) will be closed.
From Pearson:
-
An interactive calendar
with important TELPAS, STAAR Alternate 2, and TELPAS Alternate dates is
available under Calendar on Avocet at
http://avocet.pearson.com/TX/Home. This calendar can be imported into users’ calendars.
-
An Infrastructure Trial
is now available in the PearsonAccess Next Training Site. The form should be
used to test system configurations and practice test setup. Infrastructure
Trial Instructions are available on Avocet at http://avocet.pearson.com/TX/Home.
-
The Customer Service
Center now offers a chat feature and an online support form. Both features can
be accessed at https://tx.pearsonaccessnext.com.
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Below is a list of information that has been posted to the Student
Assessment website: http://tea.texas.gov/student.assessment/.
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Below
is a list of events coming up in the next few months.
Assessments:
- STAAR
Alternate 2, April 2–20
- TELPAS
Alternate Pilot, April 23–May 4
- STAAR
grades 4 and 7 writing, grades 5 and 8 mathematics and reading, English I, and
English II, April 10–13
- STAAR
Algebra I, biology, and U.S. history, May 7–11
- STAAR
grades 3, 4, 6 and 7 mathematics and reading, grades 5 and 8 science, grade 8
social studies, Algebra II, and English III, May 14–18
- STAAR
grades 5 and 8 mathematics and reading retests, May 14–18
Training—Save
the Date:
- ESC
Training for the 2018–2019 school year, October 3
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To
reduce the number of email communications sent to districts by assessment
contractors while continuing to provide necessary, helpful information, TEA has
established a bi-weekly email system that alternates between ETS and
Pearson. Districts now receive a STAAR update email from ETS and a STAAR
Alternate 2 and TELPAS update email from Pearson every two weeks, as needed.
Other emails may also be sent for specific topics. In addition, ETS has begun posting reminders of deadlines
for STAAR as announcements in the Assessment Management System.
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