Accessible Test

Collaborative Assessment DVD Series

(Discontinued)

Purpose

To fill the need for teacher-training materials on the topic of assessment and to provide a series of DVDs to accompany and support use of the book from American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) Press, entitled Collaborative Assessment: Working with Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired Including Those with Additional Disabilities

Project Staff

Barbara W. Henderson, Project Leader

Michael Sell, Accessible Test Editor, Co Project-Leader

California School for the Blind Assessment Team, Project Consultants

Background

The project leader determined that a new and updated assessment video or DVD would be an appropriate addition to our product line. In the meantime, requests increased from the field for teacher-training materials in all areas of assessment. The Collaborative Assessment DVD series was selected because it will provide materials for that area of college study, as well as promote the collaborative approach to assessment of visually impaired students in existing K-12 programs.

In the second quarter of FY 2005, the project leader met with project consultants from California School for the Blind (CSB) and AFB Press staff in San Francisco, California, during the California Transcribers and Educators of the Visually Handicapped (CTEVH) Conference. Product development schedules and other details were discussed for the introductory DVD.
The project was not removed from the PARCing Lot in the second quarter of FY 2006 as planned. Work schedules of CSB staff prevented their involvement until at least January of 2006. No further work was undertaken on this project during FY 2006, with the exception of a teleconference between CSB staff and APH project staff in August 2006 to discuss reviving the project and next steps.
It was decided that the project leaders would travel to CSB in the fourth quarter of FY 2007 to meet with the assessment team, hold a planning meeting, and to meet the students who would be filmed for the DVDs. Outlines for scripting were developed and time lines documented. In this same period, RFPs went out to several videographers in Kentucky and California.
In early 2008 a videographer was selected. Two teleconferences were held with CSB staff to discuss next steps. Due to scheduling problems and illness of a staff member at CSB, it was decided that the project would be put on hold until the summer. However, plans for scripting and videotaping during the summer and into the Fall semester fell through.
Work during FY 2009

In the first quarter of FY 2009, CSB staff contacted APH with their decision to halt work on the project entirely. The PL contacted PaTTan to inquire about gaining permission to reproduce the 2005 Teleconference on Collaborative Assessment. Original presenters denied PaTTan permission to allow reproduction of the materials, so the idea was abandoned.

Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement (KTEA-II) Large Print Edition and Braille Adaptation

(returned to the PARCing Lot)
Purpose

To make a widely used individualized academic achievement test available in

braille/tactile and large print formats
Project Staff

Barbara W. Henderson, Project Leader

Cindy Adair, Hardin Co., KY, Schools, Project Consultant

Bill Greenlee, Ph.D., Kentucky School for the Blind (ret.), Project Advisor

Dena Garrett, Accessible Media Editor, Project Advisor
Background

KTEA-II has a broad scope and is targeted towards students ages 5 through 25. Students performing at lower than expected levels, such as students with multiple disabilities, can successfully demonstrate some of the straight-forward, skill-specific tasks presented in this test. Key academic skills in reading, math, written and oral language can be assessed and remediated based on age and grade equivalent standards.

Practitioners in the field have expressed need for a test which requires less time to administer than some of the other popular achievement tests, and enables them to get baselines and information for immediate intervention. In 2005 the project leader proposed KTEA-II as a product. It was approved and placed on the PARCing lot to await further development. At the suggestion of staff at Kentucky School for the Blind, who needed to use the test with several students, this project was moved onto the active timeline in the third quarter of FY 2007.
In FY 2008 work began with discussions of formatting considerations for both braille and large print editions. The project consultants were identified and project leader met with them in January to plan work for the remainder of the fiscal year. The consultants agreed to work on the project at no charge to APH. A second working meeting with the project consultants was held in March in Elizabethtown, during which decisions were made on design of tactile graphics and print materials for braille readers on half of the subtests.
A third working meeting at APH in July was very productive. The remaining subtests were edited for braille and tactile presentation. The consultants supplied the project leader with extensive notes which will be used to produce markups for braille translation and large print formatting; these activities will begin in the last quarter of FY 2008 and will result in prototypes for field testing and expert review in early FY 2009.

Work during FY 2009

Due to the fact that copyright permissions have not been acquired, work on the project was halted until an agreement can be made with the publisher, Pearson Assessment.

KeyMath – 3: Braille / Tactile Adaptation

(returned to the PARCing Lot)
Purpose

In keeping with a long-time collaborative tradition between AGS/Pearson Assessment and APH, another braille/tactile adaptation of KeyMath will be developed.

Project Staff

Barbara W. Henderson, Project Leader

Debbie Willis, Project Advisor

Dena Garrett, Project Advisor

Background

Continuing a long tradition of working with AGS Publishing to develop the original KeyMath and KeyMath Revised, in braille/tactile formats, APH arranged with the new publisher, Pearson Assessment, to develop KeyMath-3. Field testing by Pearson was completed in 2007 and publication of the print battery occurred in the first quarter of FY 2008. Pre-publication copy and verbal copyright permissions were secured from the publisher in the last quarter of FY 2008. At the request of Pearson, by way of a special contract, the project leader and project advisors reviewed all test items for bias and for color vision deficit considerations.

In FY 2008, several follow-up requests for written copyright permissions were sent to the publisher. No response came.
Work during FY 2009

Due to the fact that copyright permissions have not been acquired from the publisher, work on the project has been halted until an agreement can be reached with the publisher, Pearson Assessment.