Application for Exception to the One Percent Cap on Proficient or Above Scores Based on Alternate Achievement Standards

2006–07

Available in Word or PDF Format
(January 2007)

Application Submission Information

Application for Exception to the One Percent Cap 2006-07

Criteria for NYSED Review and Approval or Disapproval of Exception Requests

Questions and Answers

Background Information:

Federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) regulations limit the number of students in each local educational agency (LEA) who can be counted as proficient using alternate achievement standards to 1.0 percent of the LEA’s enrollment in each testing grade in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics.  In New York State, this means that only 1.0 percent of student scores used to calculate the Performance Index (PI) in ELA or mathematics in grades 3 through 8 combined or for a cohort (at the secondary level) for a LEA can be New York State Alternate Assessment  (NYSAA) Levels 3 or 4.

If a LEA exceeds the cap, one or more student NYSAA score(s) of Level 3 or 4 must be reduced to Level 2 for accountability purposes only.  Individual student information that is reported to parents or included on the report card must continue to reflect the student’s actual score.  The federal regulations also allow LEAs to apply each year for an exception to exceed the 1.0 percent limitation by documenting extraordinary circumstances within the LEA.

LEAs who received an exception for the 2006–07 school year, based on an application submitted in 2003–04, must reapply for an exception for the 2006–07 school year.

Exception Eligibility:

To be eligible for an exception to the 1.0 percent cap in 2006–07, the LEA must document that the incidence of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are eligible for NYSAA at the age equivalent levels for grades 3-8 testing and in the 2003 district accountability cohort exceeds 1.0 percent of all students (with and without disabilities) at those grade levels or in that cohort and either:

1)     provide documentation that the number of Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD) licensed residential programs (e.g., Intermediate Care Facilities, Individualized Residential Alternatives) or other similar community or health organizations located within the district has resulted in a large percentage of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities being in the LEA; or

2)     provide documentation that the LEA has very specialized programs for students with severe cognitive disabilities, resulting in a disproportionate number of families of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities residing in the district.

LEAs with 95 or fewer continuously enrolled tested students at the 3-8 grade levels or 95 or fewer students in the 2003 district accountability cohort at the secondary level are automatically allowed one NYSAA student to be counted as proficient for accountability purposes, even though that one student would put the LEA over the 1.0 percent cap.  These LEAs should not complete this exception application unless the LEA has more than one eligible NYSAA student and has extraordinary circumstances that would cause it to have this greater number of NYSAA students in the LEA.  

Authorization to Grant Exceptions:  34 CFR Section 200.13(c)(2)

Application Submission Information

Eligible Applicants:

A LEA (including a Charter School and a Special Act School District) that is subject to the accountability provisions of NCLB may apply.  This application does not apply to boards of cooperative educational services (BOCES), State-operated programs, State-supported programs, approved private schools, and other State agency educational programs.

Due Date:

Applications must be postmarked or submitted by e-mail or facsimile by April 16, 2007.  Applications received after that date will not be considered.

Applications must be sent to:

New York State Education Department

Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID)

Strategic Evaluation Data Collection, Analysis and Reporting (SEDCAR) Unit

Room 1613 One Commerce Plaza

Albany, NY  12234

ATTN:  Application for Cap Exception

vesidcar@mail.nysed.gov

Fax (518) 408-3363

Applicants will be notified of approval/disapproval of the exception request by June 15, 2007.

Questions regarding the application may be directed to Cynthia Wilson in the Special Education Policy and Partnerships Unit at (518) 473-2878.

Application for Exception to the One Percent Cap

2006–07

LEA Contact Information

Application Narrative (attach additional pages if necessary)

I.  For all applicants:

II.  For applicants who are applying on the basis that the number of Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD) licensed residential programs (e.g., Intermediate Care Facilities, Individualized Residential Alternatives) or other similar community or health organizations located within the LEA have resulted in a large percentage of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, provide the following information, as applicable:

III.  For applicants applying on the basis that the LEA has very specialized programs for students with severe disabilities, resulting in a large number of families of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities residing in the district, provide the following information:

IV.  All applicants:

Indicate the cap exception requested for the 2006–07 school year:

_______ percent

Provide a rationale for requesting the above percentage cap exception. (See Question 4 in the Question and Answer Attachment.)

_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
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V.  Assurances:

All applications must include this statement of assurances signed by the school superintendent, or the chief administrative official in the case of a charter school.  This statement constitutes an assurance that the LEA is fully and effectively addressing the following requirements of 34 CFR Part 200, section 200.6(a)(2)(iii).

      The LEA implements clear and appropriate guidelines, consistent with NYSED guidelines in the August 2006 memorandum entitled, Important Changes Regarding the Administration of the New York State Alternate Assessment for 2006-07 for the CSE to use to determine when a child’s significant cognitive disability justifies the alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards.  See:

http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/alterassessment/changesadmin.htm

      Parents are informed that their child will be assessed based on alternate achievement standards, including information about the implications of participation in the alternate assessment.

      Students with the most significant cognitive disabilities are included, to the extent possible, in the general curriculum and assessments aligned with that curriculum.

      The LEA disseminates information and promotes the use of appropriate accommodations to increase the number of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are tested against grade-level academic achievement standards.

      General and special education teachers and other appropriate staff are knowledgeable about the administration of assessments, including making appropriate use of accommodations for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.

Criteria for NYSED Review and Approval or

Disapproval of Exception Requests

The Department will programmatically review exception requests in consideration of:

      LEA evidence that more than 1.0 percent of its enrolled student population is taking NYSAA.
 

      LEA incidence data, particularly the classification rates of students with mental retardation and multiple disabilities.  (The national incidence of children with mental retardation is 1.13 percent of all students, with approximately 1/3 of that percentage functioning in the severe/profound range.)

      LEA incidence data on other disabilities that may include students with significant cognitive disabilities (e.g., traumatic brain injury, autism, deaf-blind).

      Documentation submitted by the LEA regarding OMRDD licensed facilities, including sufficient verifiable information, such as the names of the facilities and the numbers and descriptions of the students placed in such facilities.

      Documentation submitted by the LEA regarding specialized education programs that attract large numbers of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, ensuring that the documentation is credible and persuasive and describes the characteristics and the numbers of students served in such programs.

      Submission of a complete application, which includes the original or electronic signature of the Superintendent of Schools or Chief Administrative Official of a Charter School.

Questions and Answers

1.     Does the 1.0 percent cap place a limitation on the number of students with disabilities who can take NYSAA?

No.  There is no cap on the number of students who may be assessed using NYSAA. The CSE determines the assessment that is most appropriate for the student with a disability.  All students who are designated as eligible to take NYSAA, whether they attend schools in the district or are placed by the CSE in out-of-district placements (e.g., BOCES programs, approved in-state or out-of-state private schools), must take that assessment at the appropriate age and must be reported as ungraded.

2.     Which students are eligible to take NYSAA?

NYSAA assesses students with the most significant cognitive disabilities to evaluate their mastery of skills and attainment of knowledge. This assessment measures a student's level of performance based on alternate grade level indicators for students with severe cognitive disabilities. The CSE determines whether or not a student is eligible to take NYSAA based on the following criteria:

• The student must have a severe cognitive disability and significant deficits in communication/language and significant deficits in adaptive behavior; and
• The student must require a highly specialized educational program that facilitates the acquisition, application, and transfer of skills across natural environments (home, school, community, and/or workplace); and
• The student must require educational support systems, such as assistive technology, personal care services, health/medical services, or behavioral interventions.

3.     Does the 1.0 percent cap on proficient and advanced scores on NYSAA relate to the school district or to individual schools within a school district?

The 1.0 percent cap pertains to the school district, not to individual schools within that district, but it could affect an individual school if the district exceeds the cap.  For example, in the 2006–07 school year if a school has more than 1.0 percent of its continuously enrolled tested students at age equivalent levels for grades 3–8 combined on NYSAA scoring at a proficient or advanced level on NYSAA in mathematics, but the district as a whole does not exceed the 1.0 percent cap at these grade levels in mathematics, the proficient and advanced scores of all the school’s students will be used when determining adequate yearly progress (AYP). However, if a district has more than 1.0 percent of its continuously enrolled tested students at the combined grades 3–8 levels score at a proficient or advanced level on NYSAA in mathematics, some of those students will be counted as performing at Level 2 when determining AYP for the district. If these students attend in-district schools, the students will also have to be counted as performing at Level 2 when determining AYP for the school they attend. 

4.     How is the calculation made to determine if a school district has exceeded the 1.0 percent cap on proficient and advanced scores on NYSAA for the 2006–07 school year?

To compute if a school district has exceeded the 1.0 percent cap for a particular year, grade levels and subject:

• Grades 3–8 Levels: The denominator is the number of continuously enrolled students (disabled and non-disabled) with a valid score on any of the accountability measures (NYSAA, general assessments, and New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT) when taken in lieu of the general assessment, if applicable^[1]) in the subject (e.g., English language arts or mathematics) in grades 3–8.  The numerator is the number of students from the denominator who achieved a score at Level 3 or 4 on NYSAA.

• Secondary Level: The denominator is the number of students (disabled and non-disabled) in the district accountability cohort. The numerator is the number of students from the denominator who scored at Level 3 or 4 on NYSAA in the subject (e.g., English language arts or mathematics) at the secondary level.  For the 2006–07 school year, the 2003 cohort results will be reported. The 2003 cohort includes graded students who first entered 9^th grade (anywhere) during the 2003–04 school year (July 1, 2003 through June 30, 2004) or, in the case of ungraded students with disabilities, reached their seventeenth birthday during the 2003–04 school year, who meet the criteria for inclusion in the cohort.

5.     If a school district exceeds the 1.0 percent cap on proficient and advanced scores on NYSAA, which scores are reallocated and how?

If a district exceeds the 1.0 percent cap in ELA or mathematics at grade levels 3–8 combined, sufficient numbers of Level 3 or 4 scores must be counted at Level 2 to reduce the percentage of remaining Level 3 and 4 scores to 1.0 percent or less. The reduction will be made by the State Education Department.

The effect on the accountability status of the district and component schools may depend on which students' scores are counted at the lower level. As such, the Department will make every effort to designate students whose scores can be counted at Level 2 without changing the AYP status of the district or a component school. For example, students who are placed out-of-state or students who are attending in-district schools that would not make AYP even with the student counted at the proficient level will be chosen first.

If a district has been granted an exception to exceed the 1.0 percent cap, but exceeds the cap granted under the exception, similar procedures will be used to reduce the percentage of Level 3 and 4 NYSAA scores to the permitted level.

6.     How are the results for students whose NYSAA scores had to be reduced to Level 2 for accountability purposes reported on school report cards?

A student’s earned performance levels are recorded on the student’s permanent record, reported to the student’s parent, and reported in the counts of students taking NYSAA at each grade equivalent level on the school report card.   The performance indices in the accountability report part of the report card reflect the reallocated performance levels when a school district exceeds the 1.0 percent cap or the cap provided through an approved exception.