Special Education

Research Report: Special Education

April 30, 1997 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Testing the educational progress of students with disabilities has long been a source of confusion for states, and in the past many excluded those students from assessments entirely.

New research, though, shows that states appear to be struggling to develop guidelines to determine which students should be tested, and how the tests should be administered.

A close look at the guidelines that already have been issued shows that policies on participation, accommodations, and test result reporting vary widely. That needs to change, the author of the research says.

Using data from the National Center on Educational Outcomes,-- a University of Minnesota-based organization that monitors testing and outcomes for disabled students--the center’s co-director, Martha L. Thurlow, concludes that many states are modifying their testing policies to include more disabled students. She presented her findings at the American Educational Research Association’s national conference in Chicago last month.

At least 11 states seek to include as many disabled students as possible, and that number is increasing quickly, making the issue a tough one to study, Ms. Thurlow noted. “Most states are attempting to modify what they’re doing to be more inclusive,” she said.

Previous NCEO research found an increasing number of states with guidelines. But strategies one state might recommend, another might prohibit.

“Most participation and accommodations policies were based on opinions about what is best, with little evidence of research to back up these opinions,” Ms. Thurlow writes.

She found that while some states have guidelines in place, letting disabled students take the tests, most of those states haven’t figured out how to report such students’ results.

The reauthorization of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act could change the situation. Drafts of reauthorization bills included language that would require states to test disabled students and report the results, and create alternative tests for severely disabled students.

With each disabled student’s individualized-education-program team now making most decisions about whether the student should take a test, Ms. Thurlow believes more research-based state guidelines would be a big help.

For now, she suggests that teams base their testing decisions on what a student is studying, rather than his or her disability.

--JOETTA L. SACK jsack@epe.org

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Special Education Video Inside an Inclusive Classroom: How Two Teachers Work Together
This model for inclusive education benefits students of all abilities, and the teachers instructing them.
1 min read
Special Education Using Technology for Students in Special Education: What the Feds Want Schools to Know
Assistive technology can improve outcomes for students in special education, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
4 min read
Black students using laptop in the lab with white female teacher- including a female student with special needs.
E+/Getty
Special Education Q&A Schools Should Boost Inclusion of Students With Disabilities, Special Olympics Leader Says
Schools have work to do to ensure students with intellectual and developmental disabilities feel a sense of belonging, Tim Shriver said.
6 min read
Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver greets a child at one of the organization’s events.
Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver greets a child at one of the organization’s events.
Courtesy of Special Olympics
Special Education Spotlight Spotlight on the Science of Reading for Students with Disabilities
This Spotlight will empower you with strategies to apply the science of reading to support students with learning differences and more.