2011-2012 APR Snapshot #9:
Yi-Chen Wu, Martha Thurlow, and Miong Vang June 2016 All rights reserved. Any or all portions of this document may be reproduced and distributed without prior permission, provided the source is cited as: Wu, Y.-C., Thurlow, M., & Vang, M. (2016). 2011-2012 APR snapshot #9: AA-AAS participation and performance. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes. Table of ContentsBackgroundAn Alternate Assessment based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) has been developed by each state to measure the academic achievement of students with significant cognitive disabilities. This brief summarizes AA-AAS data used for Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) accountability. Using federally submitted data from the 2011-2012 school year, we present information on the number of students participating in the AA-AAS and the performance of those students. Figures displaying statewide AA-AAS assessment data for other grades are provided in this report following each figure. Data tables for all grade levels are available from NCEO at https://nceo.info/Resources/publications/APRsnapshot/data. Throughout this report, we use the term "students with disabilities" to refer to students receiving special education services. Thus, students on 504 accommodation plans are not included in these analyses. Top of page | Table of Contents FindingsParticipationOverall statewide participation in the grade 8 reading AA-AAS, based on the number of students with IEPs, in all 50 regular states is presented in Figure 1. For the majority of states (n=36), less than 10% of all students with disabilities took the AA-AAS in 2011-2012. Similar participation rates existed for grade 8 mathematics AA-AAS (n = 35). Figure 1. Participation Rates for Grade 8 Reading AA-AAS (Based on Students with Disabilities)
Participation rates in unique states that reported data for reading AA-AAS (n = 10) varied from 0.6% to 17.9% of students with disabilities. The unique states are not included in Figure 1, but are included in data tables available at www.nceo/info/APRbriefs/data. Grades 3 - 7 and High School Reading. Click the images to enlarge.
Grades 3 - High School Math. Click images to enlarge.
States varied in their rates of students receiving special education services, from 8.3% to 16.9% of the total student population, so it is important to look at participation rates based on the total student population as well. (The percentage of students in special education was calculated by dividing the number of students with disabilities ages 6-21 [from IDEA Part B Child Count and Educational Environments table, http://www2.ed.gov/programs/osepidea/618-data/state-level-data-files/part-b-data/child-count-and-educational-environments/bchildcountandedenvironments2012.csv] by the number of students in K-12 enrollment from ELSi [https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/elsi/tableGenerator.aspx].) Information on the total number of students used to represent the total population of tested students at each grade level in 2011-2012 (the denominator used here for calculation) is from ELSi table generator (https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/elsi/tableGenerator.aspx). For high school, the average number of students across grades 9-12 from ELSi was used to represent the number of students tested at high school. The rates of all enrolled students participating in the grade 8 reading AA-AAS in all 50 regular states are presented in Figure 2. States typically assessed less than 2 percent of their total student population (including both students with disabilities and students without disabilities) using the reading AA-AAS. Similar participation rates existed for grade 8 mathematics AA-AAS when viewed in terms of the total student population. Figure 2. Participation Rates for Grade 8 Reading AA-AAS (Based on All Grade 8 Students)
Although 10 unique states reported the number of students participating in the grade 8 reading AA-AAS, only five of them have total enrolled information from the ELSi. These five unique states reported participation rates (based on total population of students), ranging from as high as 1.6% to as low as 0.8%. The unique states are not included in Figure 2, but are included in data tables available at www.nceo/info/APRbriefs/data. Grades 3 - 7 and High School Reading. Click the images to enlarge.
Grades 3 - High School Math. Click images to enlarge.
Figure 3 shows reading AA-AAS participation rates (based on the total population of all students) for grade 4 and grade 8 in all 50 regular states. Across all the states, an average of one percent of the total population of students participated in the AA-AAS in each grade. Fewer than one-half of the states (n = 15) reported higher rates in grade 8 than in grade 4, whereas more than one-half (n = 35) reported higher rates in grade 4 than in grade 8. Similar results were found for the mathematics AA-AAS. Figure 3. Participation Rates for Reading AA-AAS (Based on All Students) in Grades 4 and 8
The five unique states that reported reading AA-AAS data showed a slightly higher participation rate in grade 4 than in grade 8. Although the unique states are not shown in Figure 3, their data are available at www.nceo/info/APRbriefs/data. Grades 4 & 8 vs. High School Reading. Click the images to enlarge.
Grades 4 vs. 8, 4 &8 vs. High School Math. Click images to enlarge.
ProficiencyFigure 4 shows the rates of students proficient or above on the grade 8 reading AA-AAS for the 49 regular states reporting proficiency data; one state did not report proficiency data for the AA-AAS for 2011-12. The denominators are the number of students who participated in the AA-AAS and the numerators are the number of students who participated in the AA-AAS and scored at or above proficient. Proficiency rates ranged from 20% to 97% of students participating in the AA-AAS. In eight states, more than 90% of the students in the AA-AAS were proficient or above. In only four states were less than 30% of students in the AA-AAS considered proficient. Figure 4. Proficiency Rates for Grade 8 Reading AA-AAS
Only three of the unique states reported proficiency rates on the grade 8 reading AA-AAS. The rates of students proficient or above varied from 26.3% to 47.1%. Proficiency data for the unique states are available at www.nceo/info/APRbriefs/data. Grades 3 - 7 and High School Reading. Click the images to enlarge.
Grades 3 - High School Math. Click images to enlarge.
Figure 5 provides a comparison of the percentage of students proficient on the AA-AAS in grade 8 for reading and mathematics in 49 regular states. A majority of states (n=31) reported higher proficiency rates for the reading AA-AAS compared to the mathematics AA-AAS; 16 states had higher rates of proficiency on the mathematics AA-AAS. Two states showed no differences. One state did not report proficiency data for either its reading AA-AAS or its mathematics AA-AAS. Figure 5. Proficiency Rates for Grade 8 Reading and Math AA-AAS
Only two unique states reported AA-AAS proficiency data for both reading and mathematics in grade 8. These two unique states showed a higher proficiency rate for reading compared to math. The unique states are not included in Figure 4, but their data are available at www.nceo/info/APRbriefs/data. Grades 3 - 7 and High School. Click the images to enlarge.
Top of page | Table of Contents ConclusionsThe data presented in this report represent a snapshot of the participation and performance of students with disabilities who participate in the Alternate Assessment based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS). To some extent, variability in the participation and performance rates reflects the differences in the states’ AA-AAS themselves, including where the proficient cuts were set. The participation rates described in this report are fairly consistent across states, with a few exceptions. This is generally true regardless of the grade level or whether the content area is reading or mathematics. In general, participation rates were less than 10% of students with disabilities, but in half the states this represented more than 1% of the total student population. The percentages of students deemed proficient or above on the AA-AAS are extremely variable across states, with a preponderance of states having quite high rates of students considered proficient or above. According to the U.S. Department of Education (Quenemoen & Thurlow, 2007), holding students who qualify for the AA-AAS to high expectations greatly increases the learning opportunities provided to those students. It is important to keep these expectations in mind when examining proficiency rates of students with significant cognitive disabilities. The fact that the rates of students proficient or above on the AA-AAS were considerably higher than for students with disabilities in the regular assessment (see Vang, & Thurlow, 2014) is a concern, and suggests that the achievement standards to which students with significant cognitive disabilities are held may not be rigorous enough. Top of page | Table of Contents ResourcesKearns, J.F., Towles-Reeves, E, Kleinert, H.L, Kleinert, J.O., & Thomas, M.K. (2011). Characteristics of and implications for students participating in alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards. Journal of Special Education,45(1), 3-14 Quenemoen, R. (2008). A brief history of alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (Synthesis Report 68). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes. Quenemoen, R., & Thurlow, M. (2007). Learning opportunities for your child through alternate assessments. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Thurlow, M. L., Wu, Y., Quenemoen, R. F., & Towles, E. (2016). Characteristics of students with significant cognitive disabilities (NCSC Brief #8). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center and State Collaborative. U.S. Department of Education. (2014). 35th annual report to Congress on the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 2013. Washington, DC: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department of Education. Vang, M., & Thurlow, M. (2014). 2010-2011 APR snapshot #7: State assessment participation and performance of students receiving special education services. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes. Available at: http://www.cehd.umn.edu/NCEO/APRsnapshot/brief4/default.html |
