Alternate Assessment for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities : An Educator's Guide

by Kleinert, Harold L.

• ISBN13: 9781598570762
• ISBN10: 1598570765
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-08-31
• Publisher: Brookes Pub
• More Book Details

Summary

To support K¿12 students with significant disabilities and get an accurate picture of their skills and knowledge, schools need to implement effective alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). This is the guidebook every team should have¿not only to develop successful AA-AAS linked with grade-level content standards, but also to ensure the kind of quality instruction that leads to higher achievement. The follow-up to Kleinert and Kearns¿s pioneering Alternate Assessment, this cutting-edge book synthesizes current research on AA-AAS and gives education professionals strategies for implementing assessments and improving instruction. With a focus on practical classroom application, the authors show readers how to understand the key principles of alternate assessment, align instruction with assessment across major academic content areas: reading, math, science, and social studies, and implement a clear four-step process to improve student access to the general curriculum. To help educators ensure a high-quality inclusive education for students with disabilities, the authors include detailed, step-by-step examples of modified lessons in math, reading, science, and social studies. Readers will see how instruction and assessment can be adapted for students of all ages with a wide range of abilities and communication needs.

Author Biography

Harold L. Kleinert, Ed.D., is Executive Director of the Human Development Institute, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Jacqui Farmer Kearns, Ed.D., is Principal Investigator of the National Alternate Assessment Center, a federally funded project within the Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky in Lexington.

Table of Contents

About the Authors	p. vii
About the Contributors	p. ix
Foreword	p. xvii
Preface	p. xix
Acknowledgments	p. xxiii
An Overview of Alternate Assessment
An Introduction to Alternate Assessments: Historical Foundations, Essential Parameters, and Guiding Principles	p. 3
Principles and Practices for Achievement Assessments in School Accountability Systems	p. 19
Students in the AA-AAS and the Importance of Communicative Competence	p. 41
Aligning Curriculum with Grade-Specific Content Standards: Using Eight Criteria to Create Access	p. 75
Teaching and Assessing Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities
Ensuring Access: A Four-Step Process for Accessing the General Curriculum	p. 109
Reading Instruction and Assessment Linked to Grade-Level Standards	p. 149
Math Instruction and Assessment Linked to Grade-Level Standards Lou-Ann Land	p. 173
Science Instruction and Assessment Linked to Grade-Level Standards	p. 203
Social Studies and the Arts Instruction and Assessment Linked to Grade-Level Standards	p. 235
Enhancing Student Outcomes: The Role of Students and Families and Directions for Future Research
Embedding Life Skills, Self-Determination, Social Relationships, and Other Evidence-Based Practices	p. 267
Alternate Assessments, Families, and the Individualized Education Program	p. 291
What We Have Learned from Alternate Assessment Research and What We Still Need to Know	p. 303
Appendix Blank Forms	p. 319
Index	p. 333
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.