Effective Assessment for Students With Special Needs

About A Practical Approach to Special Education for Every Teacher Acknowledgements About the Authors Self-Assessment I Introduction to Effective Assessment for Students With Special Needs 1. What Should Every Teacher Know About Assessment for Decision-Making Purposes? Screening Decisions Decisions to Provide Special Help or Enrichment Referral to an Intervention Assistance Team Decisions to Provide Intervention Assistance Decisions to Refer for Evaluation Exceptionality Decisions Decisions About Special Learning Needs Decisions About Eligibility or Entitlement Instructional Planning Decisions Progress Evaluation Decisions Program Evaluation Decisions Accountability Decisions 2. What Are the Most Common Assessment Practices? Curriculum-Based Assessment Curriculum-Based Measurement Instructional Diagnosis Academic Time Analysis Assessment of Instructional Environments Outcomes-Based Accountability Performance Assessment 3. How Is Assessment Data Collected? Methods for Collecting Data Tests Observations Interviews Work Portfolios 4. Which Methods of Assessment Should Be Use to Sample Certain Behaviors and Abilities? Intellectual Ability Academic Achievement Sensory Acuity Adaptive Behavior Language Development Psychological Development Perceptual-Motor Development 5. What Standards Must Be Met To Ensure the Accuracy of an Assessment? Reliability: Is Performance Consistent? Representativeness: Does the Instrument Adequately Sample the Behavior? Validity: Does a Procedure Measure What it is Supposed to Measure? 6. What Concerns Do Parents, Students, and the General Public Have About Assessments? Test Fairness Acceptability Consequences 7. What Are the Assumptions Underlying Assessment Practices? The Examiner is Skilled Future Behavior Can Be Inferred From Present Behavior Assessment Is Relatively Free From Error Students Have Comparable Acculturation 8. What Guidelines Should Be Followed for Appropriate Assessment? There Is No One Way To Do It Right There Is No One Cause of School Problems Assessment Must Do More Than Describe Problems Assessment Must Be Directed At Improving Instruction Assessment Should Occur Often During Teaching Assessment Should Concentrate on Relevant Variables Assessment Should Occur Where The Behavior Occurs Tests Should Be Adapted To Accommodate Students 9. Assessment in Perspective Assessment in the Classroom The Effects of Assessment 10. What Have We Learned? Key Points Key Vocabulary Self-Assessment II Answer Key for Self-Assessments On Your Own Resources Books Journals & Articles Organizations References Index