In general, all children with disabilities are included in all general State and districtwide assessment programs, including assessments described under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), with appropriate accommodations and alternate assessments where necessary and as indicated in their respective individualized education programs (IEPs).
If the district administers any optional districtwide assessments of achievement, the admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on such assessment:
The statement must be consistent with accommodation guidelines that the State or the local educational agency (LEA) developed for the provision of appropriate accommodations.
If the ARD committee determines that the child must take an alternate assessment on a particular districtwide assessment of achievement, provide a statement of:
If the district administers an early reading assessment as part of the Texas Reading Initiative, the ARD committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on such assessment:
If the ARD committee determines that the child must take an alternate assessment on a particular State or districtwide assessment of achievement, provide a statement of:
The ARD committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on any statewide assessment:
If the ARD committee determines that the child must take an alternate assessment on a particular State or districtwide assessment of achievement, provide a statement of:
The ARD committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on any statewide assessment:
For entry of a child into a bilingual education or English as a second language (ESL) program, if the tests approved by the commissioner of education would be inappropriate as part of the child's IEP, the child with a disability must be identified as limited English proficient using the following criteria:
The ARD committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on any Statewide assessment:
Provide for each child with a disability appropriate accommodations that the child's ARD committee determines are necessary to measure the academic achievement of the child relative to the State's academic content and academic achievement standards for the grade in which the child is enrolled.
Develop, disseminate information on, and promote the use of appropriate accommodations to increase the number of children with disabilities who are tested against academic achievement standards for the grade in which the child is enrolled; and
Ensure that regular and special education teachers and other appropriate staff know how to administer assessments, including making appropriate use of accommodations, for children with disabilities.
The ARD committee must provide a statement of any individualized appropriate and allowable accommodations that are necessary to measure the academic achievement and functional performance of the child on the assessment.
A PERSONAL GRADUATION PLAN must be developed for any middle school, junior high, or high school child who does not perform satisfactorily on a Statewide assessment.
TAKS (ACCOMMODATED) STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
The State's academic assessment system must provide for one or more alternate assessments for a child with a disability whose ARD committee determines that the child cannot participate in all or part of the TAKS, even with appropriate accommodations.
For children with disabilities who cannot participate in the TAKS with accommodations as indicated in their respective IEPs, the State has the TAKS (Accommodated) that is aligned with the State's challenging academic content standards and challenging academic achievement standards.
A PERSONAL GRADUATION PLAN must be developed for any middle school, junior high, or high school child who does not perform satisfactorily on a Statewide assessment.
TAKS-MODIFIED (TAKS-M) STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
The State's academic assessment system must provide for one or more alternate assessments for a child with a disability whose ARD committee determines that the child cannot participate in all or part of the TAKS, even with appropriate accommodations.
Yields results that measure the achievement of those children separately in reading/language arts and mathematics relative to the modified academic achievement standards;
The State must establish and monitor implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for ARD committees to apply in determining which children with disabilities are eligible to participate in an alternate assessment based on modified academic achievement standards using the TAKS-M.
Children eligible to be assessed using the TAKS-M may be from any of the disability categories listed in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
The LEA must inform parents of children selected to be assessed with the TAKS-M under the State's guidelines that their child's achievement will be measured based on modified academic achievement standards.
Children receiving special education services who have a disability that significantly affects academic progress in the grade-level curriculum and precludes the achievement of grade-level proficiency within a school year will be assessed with TAKS-M if they meet all of the participation criteria established by the State.
The child needs extensive modifications and accommodations to classroom instruction, assignments, and assessments to access and demonstrate progress in the grade-level Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS);
The child demonstrates academic progress in such a way that even if significant growth occurs during the school year, the ARD committee is reasonably certain that the child will not achieve grade-level proficiency as demonstrated by multiple valid measures of evidence;
The child requires an alternate form of TAKS which is more closely aligned with instructional modifications in order to demonstrate knowledge of the grade-level TEKS.
A PERSONAL GRADUATION PLAN must be developed for any middle school, junior high, or high school child who does not perform satisfactorily on a Statewide assessment.
TAKS-ALTERNATE (TAKS-ALT) STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
The State's academic assessment system must provide for one or more alternate assessments for a child with a disability whose ARD committee determines that the child cannot participate in all or part of the TAKS, even with appropriate accommodations.
For children with the most significant cognitive disabilities, the State defined, through a documented and validated standards-setting process, alternate academic achievement standards that meet the following criteria:
The State must establish and monitor implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for ARD committees to apply in determining children with the most significant cognitive disabilities who will be assessed on alternate academic achievement standards using the TAKS-Alt.
The LEA must inform parents of children selected to be assessed with TAKS-Alt under the State's guidelines that their child's achievement will be measured based on alternate achievement standards.
Children receiving special education services who have the most significant cognitive disabilities and are unable to participate in the other statewide assessments even with substantial accommodations and/or modifications will be assessed with TAKS-Alt if the State's participation criteria are met.
The child requires supports to access the general curriculum that may include assistance involving communication, response style, physical access, or daily living skills;
The child requires direct, intensive, individualized instruction in a variety of settings to accomplish the acquisition, maintenance and generalization of skills;
The child demonstrates performance objectives that may include real-life applications of the grade-level TEKS as appropriate to the child's abilities and needs.
A PERSONAL GRADUATION PLAN must be developed for any middle school, junior high, or high school child who does not perform satisfactorily on a Statewide assessment.
For a child who does not perform satisfactorily on the TAKS, TAKS (Accommodated), TAKS-M, or TAKS-Alt, the LEA must comply with the requirements of the STUDENT SUCCESS INITIATIVE framework.
