SPED data and accessibility

A new report from the National Center for Educational Outcomes analyzes whether states publicly report data for students with disabilities with the same frequency, and in the same detail, as it reports on the assessment of nondisabled children, as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It also assesses reporting of performance gaps across years, and ease of access to public reporting of participation and performance for ELLs with disabilities. In 2012-13, 48 regular states and four (Bureau of Indian Education, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands) of 11 unique states reported participation and performance of students with disabilities for all general assessments and alternate assessments used for Title I accountability. Fifty-two of 61 states reported participation and performance for all general assessments; 52 reported similar data for alternates. Of the 16 states with general assessments not used for Title I, only six reported participation and performance, three fewer than in 2011-12. The report recommends states be required to publish participation and performance results of students with disabilities for each assessment, content area, and grade level, clearly labeling preliminary and final data with dates posted. They should also report accommodations, and participation percentages disaggregated by grade. Data must be publicly accessible through user-friendly formats, easily found, with clear language, rather than solely through technical tracts. More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

Published by LEAP

Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.