National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Read-Aloud Accommodations Study 2013

Contact the principal
Refer to letter and enclosure
- One-page study description
Describe what’s needed
- 3 intact classrooms randomly assigned to each of the testing conditions
- 135 minutes of testing time for the classroom sessions (to account for reading aloud and potential extended time)
- School Coordinator tasks
- Teacher tasks
Inform principal that other than extended time, no other accommodations will be offered
Inform principal of $200 payment to school for participating
Confirm participation
Set assessment date and time
- Assessment team will arrive 1 hour before assessments begin to finish preparing the testing booklets.
Obtain contact information for selected classroom teachers and school coordinator
Review next steps and timeline
Provide contact information for questions

Appendix B: E-mail to Teachers

Subject: Read-Aloud Special Study

Dear [TEACHER NAME]:

Hello! Recently your school principal, [INSERT NAME], agreed to participate in a special study that the National Center for Education Statistics is undertaking as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The purpose of this research is to explore the impact of reading aloud a reading assessment to students with disabilities (SD) and English language learners (ELL). In some states, students are given this read-aloud accommodation on their state or classroom reading tests. This accommodation is not permitted in NAEP because our reading assessment tests students’ ability to decode words as well as comprehend reading passages, resulting in these students being excluded on NAEP. This study will explore the impact of allowing this accommodation, which would allow many more SDs and ELLs to participate. A one-page study description is attached.

Your [4^th grade/8^th grade science] class has been selected to participate in this special study. There are two phases of the study: preassessment and assessment activities.

Preassessment Activities

Before the assessment, we will send you a brief questionnaire about your background and teaching practices.

Assessment Day Activities

Your assessment date is [DATE] and assessments are scheduled to begin at [TIME]. The assessment team will arrive 1 hour before the assessment to finish preparing the booklets.

We’re very excited to be conducting this important research project with your students. If you have any questions, please contact me either by e-mail or phone using the contact information listed below.

I look forward to seeing you on assessment day!

[Westat Representative]

[E-MAIL ADDRESS]

[TELEPHONE NUMBER]

Attachment

One-page Study Description

Appendix C: E-mail to School Coordinator

Subject: Read-Aloud Special Study

Dear [SCHOOL COORDINATOR NAME]:

Hello! Recently your school principal, [INSERT NAME], agreed to participate in a special study that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is undertaking as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The purpose of this research is to explore the impact of reading aloud a reading assessment to students with disabilities (SD) and English language learners (ELL). In some states, students are given this read-aloud accommodation on their state or classroom reading tests. This accommodation is not permitted in NAEP because our reading assessment tests students’ ability to decode words as well as comprehend reading passages, resulting in these students being excluded on NAEP. This study will explore the impact of allowing this accommodation, which would allow many more SDs and ELLs to participate. A one-page study description is attached.

There are two phases of the study: preassessment and assessment activities.

Preassessment Activities

Before the assessment, we will send you a class roster to complete for each of the three participating classrooms. On the roster, you will be asked to record each student’s disability status, English language learner status, NSLP status, most recent state assessment scores in math and reading, most recent English language proficiency score, gender and race/ethnicity.

In addition, please ensure that parents/guardians are notified that their children have been selected for the assessment, may be excused from participation for any reason, are not required to finish, and may skip any test questions. We will provide a sample parent/guardian notification letter for you to customize and print on your school letterhead.

Assessment Day Activities

Your assessment date is [DATE] and assessments are scheduled to begin at [TIME]. The assessment team will arrive 1 hour before the assessment to finish preparing the booklets by recording the names of the students on the booklet covers using the list of student names and numbers that you have prepared.

I look forward to seeing you on assessment day!

[Westat Representative]

[E-MAIL ADDRESS]

[TELEPHONE NUMBER]

Attachment

One-page Study Description

Appendix D: Read-Aloud Accommodations Study Description

Effectiveness, Validity, Differential Impact, and Feasibility of Read-Aloud Accommodations in the NAEP Reading Assessment

Use of appropriate accommodations for English language learners (ELLs) and students with disabilities (SDs) helps improve the inclusion of these students in NAEP and provides more accessible assessments for them. The goal of this study is to examine the effectiveness, validity, differential impact, and feasibility of read-aloud accommodations for ELLs and SDs in NAEP reading assessments. The results of this study will inform NCES in the refinement of its inclusion and accommodation policies and practices. The study will be conducted at grades 4 and 8 in California. Elementary schools with at least three grade 4 classes and middle schools with at least three grade 8 classes will be selected for this study. Three different accommodation conditions will be randomly assigned to the three classes within a school. The three accommodation conditions are: (1) read-aloud everything (test directions, reading passages, test questions, and answer choices) (2) read-aloud everything except reading passages, (3) standard condition with no read-aloud provision. Two NAEP reading blocks along with the NAEP student background questionnaire and a follow-up accommodations questionnaire will be administered to students in grades 4 and 8. In addition, teachers of the selected classes will be asked to respond to a teacher background questionnaire and to provide some student background data and prior test scores.

The study will examine several sets of hypotheses regarding a read-aloud accommodation in reading:

The effectiveness of read-aloud accommodation. Would a read-aloud accommodation make the NAEP reading assessment more accessible to ELLs and SDs?
The validity of the accommodated outcomes. Could a read-aloud accommodation alter the NAEP reading construct?
Differential impact of read-aloud accommodations. Could a read-aloud accommodation impact individual students with different backgrounds differently?

Data from the NAEP reading test, along with the information from the student background and accommodations follow-up questionnaires, will be analyzed to examine the research hypotheses for this study.

Appendix E: Teacher Instructions

Subject: Read-Aloud Study Instructions

Dear [TEACHER NAME]:

Thank you for participating in this special study that the National Center for Education Statistics is undertaking as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Below is a description of what we need you to do to prepare for the assessment.

Questionnaire

Attached is a short questionnaire for you to complete.

Please return the questionnaire either by mail or by fax by December 21, 2012 to:

[Westat Representative

Street Address

City, State Zip

Fax #]

Assessment Date and Time

Your assessment date is [DATE] and assessments are scheduled to begin at [TIME].

The assessment team will arrive 1 hour before the assessment to finish preparing the booklets. The assessment team will bring in the testing booklets, conduct the assessment using the assigned testing condition, collect the booklets and complete any other study-related activities.

In you have any questions, please contact me either by e-mail or phone using the contact information listed below.

I look forward to seeing you on assessment day!

Westat Representative

[E-MAIL ADDRESS]

[TELEPHONE NUMBER]

Attachment

Questionnaire

Appendix F: School Coordinator Instructions

Subject: Read-Aloud Study Instructions

Dear [SCHOOL COORDINATOR NAME]:

Class Roster

Attached is a class roster for you to complete for the participating [4th grade/8th grade science] classes. To prepare the roster, make a list of the students in the class (first and last names) on a separate sheet of paper and number each student 1 to XX. Then record the number only for each student on the roster. On the roster, record each student’s:

Disability status
English language learner status
Accommodation(s) received on state assessment
National School Lunch Program (NSLP) status
Most recent state assessment score in math
Most recent state assessment score in reading
Most recent English language proficiency score
Gender
Race/Ethnicity

Keep the list of student names and numbers, by class. The assessment team will need that list to finish preparing the test booklets the morning of the assessment.

Return the Class Roster

Please return the class roster either by mail or by fax by December 21, 2012 to:

[Westat Representative

Street Address

City, State Zip

Fax #]

Parent/Guardian Notification Letter

By law, parents/guardians of students selected to participate in NAEP must be informed of their child’s selection prior to the administration of the assessment. Parents must be informed that their child may be excused from participation for any reason, is not required to finish the assessment, and is not required to answer all test questions. Attached is a sample Parent/Guardian Notification Letter for you to customize and print on your school letterhead. Parent notification must be completed prior to the assessment.

Assessment Date and Time

Your assessment date is [DATE] and assessments are scheduled to begin at [TIME].

The assessment team will arrive 1 hour before the assessment to finish preparing the booklets by recording the names of the students on the booklet covers using the list of student names and numbers that you have prepared. The assessment team will bring in the testing booklets, conduct the assessment using the assigned testing condition, collect the booklets and complete any other study-related activities.

In you have any questions, please contact me either by e-mail or phone using the contact information listed below.

I look forward to seeing you on assessment day!

Westat Representative

[E-MAIL ADDRESS]

[TELEPHONE NUMBER]

Attachments

Class Roster
Parent/Guardian Notification Letter

Appendix G: Class Roster

School ID# Session ID# Teacher/Class Name

Directions: Please write each student’s name on a sheet of paper and assign them an ID from 1 to XX. Then write the assigned student ID on the first column of this roster. Please provide all the information for each student listed, using the codes shown on the back of this sheet.

Student ID	Disability Status (see over for codes)	ELL Status 1: ELL, 2: Formerly ELL, 3: Native English speaker	Accommodation on State Test	NSLP Status F: Free lunch, R: Reduced price lunch, N: Neither	Most Recent State Math Score	Most Recent State Reading Score	Most Recent English Proficiency Score	Gender 1: Male 2: Female	Ethnicity 1: Hispanic/ Latino 2: Not Hispanic/ Latino	Race (see over for codes)

See over for the code definitions Page 1

Use these codes to complete the Class Roster on page 1.

Students’ disability status codes:

(1) Autism, (2) Emotional Disturbance, (3) Multiple Disabilities, (4) Specific Learning Disability, (5) Visual Impairment including Blindness, (6) Deaf-Blindness, (7) Intellectual Disability, (8) Orthopedic Impairment, (9) Speech or Language Impairment, (10) Deafness, (11) Hearing Impairment, (12) Other Health Impairment, (13) Traumatic Brain Injury.

ELL (English Language Learner) status codes:

(1) ELL, (2) Formerly ELL (i.e., Redesignated as Fluent-English Proficient [RFEP]), (3) Native English speaker

Accommodation on State Test:

Record the accommodation(s) the student receives on the state assessment. If no accommodations are received, record “None”.

NSLP (National School Lunch Program) status codes:

(F) Receives free lunch, (R) Receives reduced price lunch, (N) Receives neither free nor reduced price lunch

*If you cannot distinguish between free and reduced price lunch, code the students as receiving free lunch (F).

State Math Score:

Record each student’s most recent score on the state assessment.

State Reading Score:

Record each student’s most recent score on the state assessment.

English Language Proficiency Score:

Record each ELL and Formerly ELL student’s most recent score on the English Language Proficiency Assessment.

Gender codes:

(1) Male, (2) Female

Ethnicity codes:

(1) Hispanic/Latino, (2) Not Hispanic/Latino

Race codes:

(1) American Indian or Alaska Native, (2) Asian, (3) Black or African American, (4) Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, (5) White, (6) Two or More Races

Page 2

Appendix H: Parent/Guardian Notification Letter

NAEP 2013 PARENT/GUARDIAN NOTIFICATION LETTER

Grades 4, 8

(School Letterhead)

(Insert Date Here)

Dear Parent or Guardian:

We are pleased to inform you that (school name) has been selected to participate in a special study that the National Center for Education Statistics is undertaking as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The purpose of this research is to explore the impact of reading aloud a reading assessment.

In our school, the NAEP assessment will be given on (date). Your child has been selected to participate in this study. In addition to answering questions in reading, students will be asked some questions about themselves and their educational experience.

It will take about 135 minutes for students to participate in the assessment. All of your child’s answers may only be used for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law (Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, 20 U.S.C §9573).

Your child may be excused from participation for any reason, is not required to finish the assessment, and may skip any test question. While participation in this study is voluntary, we depend on student participation to provide accurate results and preserve the validity of the study. However, if you do not want your child to participate, please notify me in writing by (date).

There is no need to study in preparation for the assessment. We do, however, ask parents to encourage their children to do their best and get plenty of rest the night before the assessment.

If you would like additional information about the assessment or to view sample reading and student questions, please visit http://nationsreportcard.gov/parents.asp. If you have questions, please contact me at (telephone number) or via e-mail at (e-mail address).

We are excited that our school will be participating in this special study, and pleased that your child has been selected.

Sincerely,

School Principal

Appendix I: SD/ELL Survey of Schools E-mail

Reading Read-Aloud Study

SD/ELL Survey of Schools E-mail

Dear [Principal name],

Recently you received a letter from [State coordinator/other state Department of Education representative] describing a special study that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is undertaking as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The purpose of this research is to explore the impact of reading aloud a reading assessment to students with disabilities (SD) and English language learners (ELL). In some states, students are given a read-aloud accommodation on their state or classroom reading tests. However, NAEP does not permit this accommodation because the NAEP reading assessment tests students’ ability to decode words as well as comprehend reading passages. This study will explore the impact of allowing this accommodation for the NAEP reading assessment, which could allow many more SDs and ELLs access to the assessment.

At this point we are collecting information from a number of schools in order to identify eligible schools to participate in the study.

Attached is a brief questionnaire regarding the composition of your [grade 4/grade 8 science] classes. This information will help inform the sample of schools for this special study. Please identify a school coordinator who can provide this necessary information in order for us to complete this research successfully.

You can e-mail these results to [E-mail address]

You can fax these results to [name of Westat representative] at [Fax number].

Please provide a response by [Date].

If you have any questions, please contact [name of Westat representative] at [Phone number] or [E-mail address].

Grade 4

Please list all of your grade 4 classes below and provide the number of students for each category.

SD = Students with disabilities

ELL = English language learners

Teacher name	Subject R=Reading M=Math S=Science SS=Social Studies A=All	# of SD with specific learning disabilities	# of SD with speech/ language impairment	# of SD with intellectual disability (formerly mental retardation)	Total # of SD with other disability classifications	Total # of ELL	Total # of students

What type of school is this? PLEASE CIRCLE ONE ANSWER BELOW:

A regular school
A school designed to serve students with special needs
Other (specify)___________________________________________

Grade 8

Please list all of your grade 8 science classes below and provide the number of students for each category.

SD = Students with disabilities

ELL = English language learners

Teacher name	# of SD with specific learning disabilities	# of SD with speech/ language impairment	# of SD with intellectual disability (formerly mental retardation)	Total # of SD with other disability classifications	Total # of ELL	Total # of students

What type of school is this? PLEASE CIRCLE ONE ANSWER BELOW:

A regular school
A school designed to serve students with special needs
Other (specify)___________________________________________

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