What is ACCESS?

1. What ACCESS, the New Virginia Test for LEP Students, Means for School DistrictsLEP Caucus PresentationJuly 2008

2. What is ACCESS? Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State to State for English Language Learners (ACCESS for ELLs) Developed by World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) Consortium: • Grade Level Clusters • Performance Definitions • English Language Proficiency Standards • Model Performance Indicators (MPI) • Tiered Test Assesses English language proficiency for Annual Measurable Objective (AMO) requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), NOT for determining Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

3. Note that some Monitored students are exempted from ELP Assessment if they have passed their most recent Reading SOL. Those not exempted take only the Reading and Writing subtests. Note that all LEP students who have been in the US for more than a year must take the Reading SOL or VGLA. The ELP assessment cannot be used for the purposes of AYP. NCLB Assessment 2007-2008 English Language Proficiency Assessment (Grades K-12)1 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) SOLs – Reading3 and Math(Grades 3-8) Monitored Students Status 1 and 4 Students Levels 1, 2, 3, & 4 Monitored Students2(Year 1 & Year 2) SELP or state-approved local assessments SELP or state-approved local assessments Levels 1-2 Levels 3-4 Math SOL Reading SOL Math SOL Plain English Math SOL4 Reading SOL or VGLA Reading SOL Writing Reading Speaking Writing Listening Reading 1. Students in K-2 may be assessed using a local body of evidence. 2. Monitored students in grades 4-8 who have passed their most recent Reading SOL are exempted from the ELP assessment. 3. Students who have been enrolled in a U.S. school for less than 12 months receive a one-time exemption from the Reading SOL. 4. LEP students who are first year enrollees in U.S. schools are also eligible to take the PEM.

4. Consideration is being given to testing Monitored students even if they have passed their most recent Reading SOL. Monitored students may also have to take the Speaking and Listening subtests. ACCESS for ELLs will not be used for the purposes of AYP. NCLB Assessment 2008-2009 Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives (AMAOs) English Language ProficiencyAssessment (Grades K-12)1 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) SOLs – Reading2 and Math(Grades 3-8) Monitored Students Status 1 and 4 Students Status 1 and 4 Students Levels 1, 2, 3, & 4 Monitored Students (Year 1 & Year 2) Levels 1-2 Levels 3-4 ACCESS for ELLs Math SOL Reading SOL Writing Listening Speaking Reading Math SOL Plain English Math SOL3 Reading SOL or VGLA Reading SOL 1. Students in K-2 may be assessed using a local body of evidence. 2. Students who have been enrolled in a U.S. school for less than 12 months receive a one-time exemption from the Reading SOL. 3. LEP students who are first year enrollees in U.S. schools are also eligible to take the PEM.

5. 5 Challenges to Implementing ACCESS Under current conditions, the following are the key challenges to implementation of ACCESS for ELLs: • Testing Monitored students: the USDOE is proposing new regulations requiring that we test monitored students for English proficiency, even when they have passed Reading SOLs • Funding: ACCESS is expensive (~$23 a test) and, unlike every other state mandated test, not funded by the Commonwealth • Recruitment, training, and coordination of testing staff, particularly if Monitored students are not exempted. • Timeframe to test and receive results • Statewide Model Performance Indicators (MPI)

6. 5 Components of ACCESS • Grade Level Clusters • SELP: Allowed for more whole class administration • Performance Definitions (6 Proficiency Levels) • SELP: 4 performance level narratives • English Language Proficiency Standards from WIDA • SELP: Aligned with Virginia’s ELP Standards • Model Performance Indicators (MPI) for 4 Core Subject Areas and Language Arts from WIDA • SELP: Used Virginia’s ELP Standards for Language Arts • Tiered Tests within Grade Level by Ability • SELP: Did not have tiers within grades

7. The 2007 WIDA ELP Standards are clustered: PreK−K Grades 1−2 Grades 3−5 Grades 6−8 Grades 9−12 Grade Level Clusters

8. Performance Definitions

9. Performance Definitions

10. English language learners communicate for Social and Instructional purposes within the school setting. English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of Language Arts. …in the content area of Mathematics. …in the content area of Science. …in the content area of Social Studies. English Language Proficiency Standards

11. More than 1000 MPIs, i.e. examples of assessable language skills, are contained in the WIDA ELP Standards Form developmental strands (across the 5 levels of language proficiency) that reflect the second language acquisition process Describe how students can use the language associated with a given standard and language proficiency level within a language domain Model Performance Indicators

12. 6 1 2 3 4 5 REACHING ENTERING BEGINNING DEVELOPING EXPANDING BRIDGING Tier A Tier B Tier C THERE ARE 3 VERSIONS OF THE TEST TO ADMINISTER DEPENDING ON THE LEVEL OF THE STUDENT Tiered Test

13. Each item represents a certain level, scorer decides if a student’s response meets criteria for that level – with SELP, scorer assigns level to each response Differences from SELP • Key differences between ACCESS for ELLs and SELP is that ACCESS: • Is a tiered test • Tests language of content • Has items written by teachers • Assesses speaking in a different way, increasing the training burden for that subtest

14. Needs Short-Term: • Alignment of 5 WIDA levels to Virginia’s current 4 ELP levels • Maintenance of current rules regarding LEP testing (for example, exempting Monitored students if they have passed their most recent Reading SOL) • Funding Long-Term: • Development of Statewide Model Performance Indicators (MPIs) • Funding • Evaluation: To what extent does the ACCESS meet the needs of Virginia’s LEP students while meeting the requirements of NCLB?

15. Possible Next Steps • Testing Monitored students: the USDOE is proposing new regulations requiring that we test monitored students for English proficiency, even when they have passed Reading SOLs Contact Congressmen and Senators • Funding: ACCESS is expensive (~$23 a test) and, unlike every other state mandated test, not funded by the Commonwealth Lobby State legislators • Recruitment, training, and coordination of testing staff, particularly if Monitored students are not exempted Support districts in developing schedules that minimize disruption to the children’s education • Timeframe to test and receive results Work with State • Statewide Model Performance Indicators (MPI) Work with State, realize that to do it this year simply is not feasible

16. What ACCESS, the New Virginia Test for LEP Students, Means for School DistrictsQuestions? Comments? Suggestions? Volunteers?LEP Caucus PresentationJuly 2008