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Special
Education student achievement on the rise
State assessment scores up at all levels
Within a division as diverse as Capital Region BOCES' Special Education, teaching
students is by no means “one size fits all,” and
assessing each students' learning accomplishments can be
equally difficult.
The success of the division’s programs comes from the
ability of its teachers and support staff to hone in on what
each child or teen needs most to achieve individual
academic, physical, social and emotional goals.
The efforts of BOCES Special Education staff appears to be
working: In the past year, students' achievements on state
assessments have increased at all levels, and Special
Education teachers and administrators have adopted goals to
continue that progress this school year.
Special Education Assessment Highlights:
In each of the Special Education regions, a variety of
assessment tools are used to determine what instructional
strategies are most effective in producing student growth
and learning.
Elementary Regular Assessment
Over a four-year period, English Language Arts (ELA) tests
results have gained steadily. State ELA tests results for
2008-09 show (see box for score explanation):
The following scores are used on the New
York State exams:
Level 1 = not meeting standards
Level 2 = partially meeting standards
Level 3 = meeting standards
Level 4 = meeting standards with
distinction |
•
Grade 3: 11% fewer scored at level 1, 7% more at level 2 and
4% more at level 3.
•
Grade 4: 4% fewer scored at level 1, 17% more at level 2 and
17% more at level 3.
•
Grade 5: 42% fewer scored at level 1, 19% more at level 2
and 17% more at level 3.
Elementary Principal Leo DiPierro believes this is a sign
that new and creative approaches to teaching and assessment
are working well to boost student’s understanding and
success with reading and writing—two important core
subjects.
“Over the past few years we have rolled out a number of
programs to help
students become better readers and writers and help teachers
improve skills in these areas,” explains DiPierro. He says
further expanding students’ literacy learning and success
will be an important goal for the students and teachers in
the elementary special education classes during the 2009-10
school year.
Middle School Regular Assessment
Increased reading and writing achievement is also the good
news in the middle school programs, where Principal Barbara
Catalano reports an “upward trend” over the past four years
in students’ New York State ELA test scores.
Catalano is encouraged by these trends and is hopeful that
during the 2009-10 school year students will make even more
progress in these important areas.
To this end, teachers have begun using middle school
versions of tools with proven success record at the
elementary level, such as MindWing, to develop writing
skills. Too, teachers, along with BOCES reading specialist
Donna Lamkin, have created a lending library of
high-quality, high-interests books that will be used to help
spark greater interest in reading for pleasure and
proficiency. Additionally, expanded opportunities with
computer-based programs are being woven into all of the core
subject areas to help boost interest and proficiency for
reading and writing.
Over a four-year period, English Language Arts (ELA) tests
results have gained steadily. State tests results for
2008-09 show (see box for score explanation):
•
Grade 6: 35% fewer students scored at level 1, 33% more
students scored at level 2 and 17% more students scored at
level 3.
•
Grade 7: 24% fewer students scored at level 1, 21% more
students scored at level 2 and 9% more students scored at
level 3.
•
Grade 8: 28% fewer students scored at level 1, 26% more
students scored at level 2, and 8% more students scored at
level 3.
High School Regular Assessment
Like their peers in other high school programs, each January and/or June, students in the Special
Education high school programs are required to take and pass
a series of New York State Regents or Regents Competency
Tests (RCT) in the core subjects of English Language Arts
(ELA), math, Global History, U.S. History and science.
Student results on these tests reflect personal achievement
and help educators create better approaches to learning.
Highlights from the 2008-09 school year include:
• a significant increase in the number of students in Region
5 high school Special Education classes who passed their
required New York State Regents and Regent Competency Tests
(RCT). Principal Maureen Gushlaw credits strategies such as
project-based learning, in place since last year at the
Maywood school, and greater collaboration among teachers for
the overall improvement in student scores and subject area
knowledge.
• all students in Region 6 high school Special Education
classes passed their New York State Regents exams in Math B,
Geometry, Living Environments, Earth Science, Chemistry and
Physics. Ninety-five percent received passing grades with
the English Language Arts (ELA) exam. Principal Carol
d’Estienne attributes these test gains, in part, to greater
focus by teachers on content area instruction and greater
familiarity with the exams.
• all 25 seniors in Region 6 Special Education high school
classes graduated in 2009 — almost half with a Regents
diploma.
Based on data, both high school principals and their
teaching staff will continue to work with their professional
learning community to address the following during the
2009-10 school year:
• quarterly monitoring of report card grades with the goal
of increasing coursework passing rates;
• ways to encourage more regular school attendance;
• increasing RCT scores in subjects such as Global and U.S.
History;
• the development of a survey and method for teachers and
staff to track students’ success with their post-secondary
plans.
Alternate Assessment
For many students with significant special needs, the New
York State Alternate Assessment (NYSAA) datafolio assessment
is the preferred way for them to show how they are meeting
learning standards. According to Jaime Covington and Terry
Orlando, principals for alternate assessment special
education programs, using a variety of assessment tools, as
reflected in student’s NYSAA datafolios, creates a more
varied and accurate picture of what students are
accomplishing, beyond grade-level academics.
“It is a balancing act trying to achieve state standards and
move kids with many different needs toward higher learning
while giving them the practical life skill they’ll need to
live in the world,” says Covington. “What we are doing in
all of our programs is designed to help them succeed now and
down the road.”
Elementary alternate assessment highlights:
• in 2008-09, all students eligible for review through the
New York State Alternate Assessment* achieved level 4
status**.
Middle and high school alternate assessment highlights:
• in 2008-09, all students eligible for New York State
Alternate Assessment* reached level 3 or 4 on preliminary
assessment results**.
* NYS Alternate Assessments scores are based on data
collected in a number of ways, over time.
** Alternate Assessment level 4 indicates that a student has
independently and accurately performed skills based on at
least two learning standards and four alternate performance
indicators.
This information first appeared in the fall 2009 issue
of Great Expectations newsletter for special education
families.
Download the newsletter as a PDF.
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