Case
SPED Testing

Mr. Oster has an inclusion class for U.S. History where he must differentiate the assessments. Hid SPED students take an exam that has reduced answer choices. Many of the students could actually take the on-level exam and if they studied could perform at mastery level. However, since the students know they are taking an exam that is in fact easier, they do not apply themselves to study on participate in class. The lack of academic challenge is actually hindering their overall growth as a student. Mt. Oster would like to change this, but he is required to differentiate their assessments according to their IEPs. How should Mr. Oster approach this problem with assessment?

Posted on: 10/16/14 | Views: 777
Solution #1
Reducing answer choices is not the only way to differentiate assessment. Just taking students out of the regular class room for small group testing is differentiated. These students could be asked to explain orally answers or written. All would meet the IEP requirement.
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Solution #2
If a student's IEP includes testing accommodation, the teacher is required to follow it. Testing accomodations do not have to include adapting the test to include fewer answer choices. An accommodation could be something as simple as testing in a small group or reading the test questions and answers aloud to the student. If the students are able to perform at a mastery level it is also possible for their IEP's to be amended. The teacher could give them the regular test and just test them in a different setting.
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Solution #3
If the student has an IEP the teacher has to follow it, however, differentiating test doesn't mean it has to be a completely different test. The way I differentiate my assessments is reading the test, more time to take the test, explaining vocabulary. It really depends on what the IEP states.
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Solution #4
If the students can perform at mastery without differentiating the exam, maybe their IEP's need to be amended to make sure they are getting the proper accommodations. Every students IEP should not look the same. I know sometimes IEP's can be repetitive, meaning they all look the same, instead of individualized. Taking a look at the accommodations and comparing them to the students strengths and weaknesses may help fix this assessment problem.
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