Essential Assessment Then & Now

1. Essential AssessmentThen & Now Karen E. Blankenship Karen.blankenship@vaderbilt.edu

2. Review • RTI • Eligibility • ECC

3. Preview • Once eligibility as visually impaired has been certified by an eye health report then we verify the impact on the educational program or entitlement through • Essential Assessments (1 & 2 required initially and every 3 years, 3 required yearly for instruction)- • FVA- accommodations needed to access general education • LMA- accommodations needed to access general education • ECC

4. Eligibility • 300.306 (a) Upon completion of the administration of assessments and other evaluation measures (1) a group of qualified professionals and the parent of the child determines whether the child has a disability • School district provides a copy of the assessment report and documentation of determination • May not be a result of poor instruction in reading/math or limited English proficiency • Re-evaluation every 3 years unless team deems unnecessary

5. Instructional Continuum ASSESSMENT

6. IDEA A full and individual initial evaluation must be conducted in accordance with 34 CFR Secs. 300.532 & 300.533. A variety of strategies must be used in the evaluation process to gather relevant functional and developmental information about a child.

7. Assessment vs. Evaluation • Assessment: what a student knows or can do (guides programming & instruction) • Evaluation: compares a student’s achievement with a set of standards such as curriculum based measures (did I make a difference?)

8. Assessment • Process of documenting, usually in measureable terms, knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs

9. Effective Assessment • Is a continuous process, effective assessment and evaluation are integrated into all aspects of the curriculum, providing both teachers and students with relevant and useful data to gauge progress and determine the effectiveness of materials and procedures

10. Essential Assessments • Functional Vision Assessment (FVA) • Learning Media Assessment (LMA) • ECC priority area assessments

11. Tools

12. RIOT Model • R- review of records • I- interviews with families, students, teachers, and other related service providers • O- observations in a variety of environments, educational, home and community • T- testing both informal and formal

13. Rubrics • Rubrics have been shown to improve professional practice and allow administrators to make a quantitative judgment about assessments. • Earubric.com

14. EA Rubric

15. Key Points to Remember • Everything begins with assessment • Assessment for program planning & instruction • Always include families • Adhere to RIOT model • Different protocols, tools and strategies for varying age, acuity, and ability levels

16. Report Writing • Keep protocols in your locked file they are NOT public domain • Think about your audience • Families • Other professionals • Discuss with families prior to IEP team meeting

17. EA Template • Easy to fill in and print off • Use your protocols, observations, interviews, and notes to develop • Tried to align with the rubric in order to score a 4.

18. Review