Scheduled for Special Populations Symposium—Test Accommodations for Individuals With Disabilities, Friday, April 2, 2004, 8:45 AM - 10:00 AM, Convention Center: 208


Decision Process and Models for Test Accommodations

Miyoung Lee, University Of Illinois At Urba, Urbana, IL and Weimo Zhu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL

To accommodate a test for the needs of students with disabilities while maintaining its validity is a real challenge in practice. Employing a tested decision-making procedure could make test accommodation appropriate and convenient. According to a literature search, there are several decision-making procedures for test accommodation (e.g., Casey, 1987; Salzberg, Hardman, Price, & Morgan, 2002; Smith, 2002; Thurlow, Elliott, & Ysseldyke, 1998). Among them, Smith's procedure (2000) appears to be the most promising. The procedure provides specific information that includes the following major steps: (a) examining the examinee's receptive and expressive skills; (b) determining the construct being measured and the purpose of assessment, (c) deciding tests to be used, (d) using professional judges who can judge accurately and who are familiar with test accommodation, (e) conciliating if needed for the better test results, (f) changing the methods or construct of the test if the accommodation is not sufficient to evaluate the examinees, and finally, (g) describing any cautions or limitations in interpreting test results. This presentation will provide a comprehensive review of the research in decision-making procedures for test accommodation; followed by a detailed description of the Smith's procedure. Using the assessment of abdominal strength of individuals with disabilities as an example, the Smith procedure for accommodation will be applied and illustrated.
Keyword(s): adapted physical activity, assessment, measurement/evaluation

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