The Impact of Teachers’ Instructional Decisions and Beliefs About Alternate Assessments on Student Achievement

• In Event: Evaluating Assessments Used in Special Education

Abstract

In the decade since alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS) were first required, teachers have developed skills in teaching academics to students with significant cognitive disabilities. As academic instruction for this population becomes less of an innovation and more of a norm, how do instructional practices impact student achievement? The purpose of this study is to examine the impact that teachers' instructional decisions and beliefs about alternate assessment have on the academic achievement of students with significant cognitive disabilities. A survey of nearly 400 teachers across four states provided evidence of teachers' beliefs, as well as their instructional planning processes for pre-identified students. Those responses were analyzed in conjunction with students' 2010-11 scores on their statewide AA-AAS.

Authors

• Meagan Karvonen, Western Carolina University

• Shawnee Wakeman, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Shauna Moody, Western Carolina University

• Claudia P. Flowers, University of North Carolina - Charlotte