New Testing Approach Shows Promise For Students With Disabilities

June 10, 2009

  http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2009/06/08/portfolio-test/3555/

By Shaun Heasley, Disability Scoop

 

With a heavy emphasis on testing, laws like No Child Left Behind make life difficult for special education students and teachers alike. But a new method of measuring student achievement is gaining ground to help those capable of learning, but struggling with Scantrons.

Rather than rely on multiple choice examinations administered in one or two days, which are often difficult for students with disabilities, so-called "portfolio" tests compile a whole school year's worth of worksheets, quizzes and other assignments. Then, evaluators spend hours assessing the work and transferring results onto Scantrons.

Supporters of the portfolio method say it's a better measure of a student's knowledge than a one-shot multiple choice exam can ever be because it measures a whole year's worth of work. Further, they say it yields more comprehensive instruction since teachers are not just teaching to a test.

Pass rates are high for students who are evaluated this way. That leads some parents to suggest that the method is merely a way for school districts to prop up students who are not at grade level in all areas, reports The Washington Post. To read more click here.