Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach

This most recent revision of Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach includes thorough explanations of the IDEA 2004 Regulations including RTI (response to intervention) and Early Intervening Services. Moreover, this text includes more applied exercises within the textbook. To address the increasing importance of accurate assessment of students with pervasive developmental disorders such as autism, the most widely researched diagnostic instruments are included.   Students using this textbook will be able to understand progress monitoring through applied exercises in which they monitor their own progress in the course, plot a goal line, and chart their progress across the semester. Students and instructors are provided with chapter-by-chapter CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards. This allows students to see the skills they are expected to master when they complete coursework that is aligned for CEC Accreditation and provides the students with an understanding of the knowledge base expected of today’s highly qualified teachers.   All complex concepts are included in the culminating chapter exercises on educational assessment report writing. In these exercises, students will apply their knowledge and skills needed for understanding and making data-based decisions for educational planning using both formal and informal assessment methods.   Highlights of the New Edition: Emphasis on progress monitoring, including progress monitoring applied to the acquisition of knowledge and skills presented in this text. Changes within the assessment process according to the regulations of IDEA 2004. Increased number of case studies throughout the text and inclusion of exercises in the text. Expanded chapter on special considerations including assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Increased emphasis and coverage of curriculum-based assessment. Increased consideration of students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in the assessment process.

Table of Contents:
PART 1        INTRODUCTION TO ASSESSMENT   Chapter 1               An Introduction CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Assessment: A Necessary Part of Teaching Monitor Your Progress Historical and Contemporary Models of Assessment Contemporary Model of Assessment Evaluating Student Progress in the Classroom Designing an Assessment Plan Assessing the Whole Child: Cultural Considerations Chapter 2               Law, Ethics, and Issues CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards The Law: Public Law 94-142 and IDEA IDEA and Assessment Evaluating Children with Specific Learning Disabilities Meeting the Needs of Persons with Attention Disorders IEP Team Evaluation Determining Eligibility Parent Participation Developing the Individualized Education Program Transition Services Due Process Impartial Due Process Hearing Section 504 Research and Issues Concerning IDEA Issues of Nondiscriminatory Assessment Disproportionality The Multidisciplinary Team and the Decision-Making Process Least Restrictive Environment Impartial Hearings Ethics and Standards PART 2        TECHNICAL PREREQUISITES OF UNDERSTANDING ASSESSMENT   Chapter 3               Descriptive Statistics   CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Why Is Measurement Important? Getting Meaning from Numbers Review of Numerical Scales Descriptive Statistics Measures of Central Tendency Average Performance Measures of Dispersion Mean Differences Skewed Distributions Types of Scores Chapter 4               Reliability and Validity   CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Reliability and Validity in Assessment Correlation Methods of Measuring Reliability Which Type of Reliability Is the Best? Standard Error of Measurement Estimated True Scores Test Validity Reliability versus Validity Chapter 5               Introduction to Norm-Referenced Assessment CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards How Norm-Referenced Tests are Constructed Basic Steps in Test Administration Types of Scores Groups Testing: High-Stakes Assessment Part II Progress Monitoring Assessment PART 3        ASSESSING STUDENTS   Chapter 6               Curriculum-Based Assessment and Other Informal Measures CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Curriculum-Based Measurement Criterion-Referenced Assessment Task Analysis and Error Analysis Teacher-Made Tests Other Informal Methods of Academic Assessment Informal and Formal Assessment Methods Problems of Norm-Referenced Assessment Chapter 7               Academic Assessment   CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Achievement Tests Review of Achievement Tests Selecting Academic Achievement Tests Diagnostic Testing Review of Diagnostic Tests Other Diagnostic Tests Assessing Other Language Areas Selecting Diagnostic Instruments Research and Issues Chapter 8               Assessment of Behavior   CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Behavior and RTI Requirements of the 1997 IDEA Amendments Functional Behavioral Assessments Structured Classroom Observations Other Techniques for Assessing Behavior Projective Assessment Techniques Computerized Assessment of Attention Disorders Research and Issues Chapter 9               Measures of Intelligence and Adaptive Behavior   CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Measuring Intelligence The Meaning of Intelligence Testing Alternative Views of Intellectual Assessment Litigation and Intelligence Testing Use of Intelligence Tests Review of Intelligence Tests Research on Intelligence Measures Assessing Adaptive Behavior Review of Adaptive Behavior Scales Intelligence and Adaptive Behavior: Concluding Remarks Chapter 10             Special Considerations of Assessment in Early Childhood and Transition    CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Legal Guidelines of Early Childhood Education Infants, Toddlers, and Young Children Evaluation and Assessment Procedures Issues and Questions About Serving Infants and Toddlers Methods of Early Childhood Assessment Assessment of Infants Assessments of Toddlers and Young Children Techniques and Trends in Infant and Early Childhood Assessment Other Considerations in Assessing Very Young Children Phonemic Awareness Assessment for Assistive Technology Transition and Postsecondary Considerations Assessing Functional Academics Research and Issues Related to Transition Planning and Assessment Part III Progress Monitoring Assessment PART 4        INTERPRETATION OF ASSESSMENT RESULTS   Chapter  11            Interpreting Assessment for Educational Intervention CEC Knowledge and Skills Standards Interpreting Test Results for Educational Decisions The Art of Interpreting Test Results Writing Test Results Writing Educational Objectives Reevaluations   Appendix    Key to End-of-Chapter Exercises