Situated in the context of U.S. educational outcomes, education policy in California, and UNESCO's definition of inclusive education, we examine how schools have addressed student diversity. Methods of identifying students with disabilities are not adequately designed to identify English learners with disabilities. In part to address that problem,…

A broader understanding of the importance of student behaviors and school climate as drivers of academic performance and the wider acceptance that schools have a role in nurturing the "whole child" have increased attention to indicators that go beyond traditional metrics focused on proficiency in math and reading. The 2015 passage of the…

Appropriate assignment of accommodations is predicated on a clear distinction between target skills and access skills. In this study, we examine the agreement between test developer/researchers' and educators' classification of target and access skills as a possible explanatory mechanism for assigning accommodations. Findings indicate that…

The Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), asked the Council of the Great City Schools to review the district's services for students with disabilities and provide recommendations to improve performance and narrow the achievement gap between these students and their nondisabled peers. This report was designed to help SCUSD achieve its…

This report has been provided to the Legislature on an annual basis since the year 2000. This report is issued in the context of a change in focus for the U.S. Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), the federal agency which oversees the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) implementation in each state. OSEP's new accountability…

This report has been provided to the Legislature on an annual basis since 2000 when the legislature amended the language of G.L. c. 71B to align Massachusetts special education terminology with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This year reports the context of a major change in the way state systems of special…

Opportunity to Learn (OTL) stems from the basic premise that there is an important relationship between the quality and intensity of classroom instruction and students' levels of academic success. For many students with disabilities, an emphasis on OTL has become national priority, yet measuring its impact is a complex challenge. The first purpose…

Accommodations play a key role in enabling individuals with disabilities to participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and other large-scale assessments. However, it can be difficult to know how accommodations affect the validity of results, thus making it difficult to determine which accommodations should be allowed.…

This report discusses the outcomes of a study that investigated the effects of modifications to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 1996 assessment designed to encourage the participation of more students with disabilities. Modifications included revising the inclusion criteria with the intention of making them clearer, more…