Assessments for students with disabilites

Hi all,

New attention is being paid to assessment of adults with disabilities across not only our LINCS CoP but many others.  I find the discussion interesting and some what  different than the ones of the past. For us ‘old folks” in adult ed and in the AWD field we have been discussing the assessment  issue from the perspective of adult ed “entrance or placement” tests such as TABE , CASAS or other tests used to determine starting or non-starting points for adults in their post-secondary lives.  The new discussion seems to be fueled by workforce needs ( Adults in Adult Day Treatment, Community Based Organizations, and other  setting  have been significantly unsuccessful in attempts to participate in the workforce) and transition ( attempts to avoid younger adults from becoming members of the above mentioned group).  

 I think we, as a CoP and AWD practitioners have some unique and practical wisdom to contribute to the process. I would encourage our group to become involved in the discussion in our LINCS community and in other appropriate CoPs .

Here is an interesting question for adult educators. Let’s assume, at some point, the assessment issue is improved and more adults have an appropriate assessment and road map to participating in workforce and adult education.  Think about, new groups of individuals with identifiable workforce and adult ed goals and training needs that have been realistically defined.  Do we have  appropriate adult ed and CTE/vocational training offerings  that  can meet those needs? In some areas, more and more of those needs are being met outside of adult ed. What do you think?

Comments

Could you direct some of us who are newer to these discussions about assessment to which you've referred?

I have been in the adult ed. (ABE) field for 5 years and am quite frustrated with the lack of options for diagnostic testing for our students.  Some are simply stuck without the extra help, and it's very difficult for us to help move them ahead.  I, for one, would like to see AWD (and industry) getting more involved in this discussion because I see a definite relationship between a better, stronger workforce and finding every way to educate our students who truly want to be a part of it.

Susan,

I agree lack of appropriate testing options significantly limit our student’s ability to succeed and that that lack of success is directly related to workforce issues.  One of the main reasons for diagnostic testing in adult education is to satisfy the law that states a student must provide diagnostic information to be considered for the provision of accommodations.  The implication is that the diagnostic testing results will inform instruction. The problem is most testing done for diagnostic purposes does not necessarily give us the practical information we need to inform instruction.  So if diagnostic testing is done, it is not necessarily helpful to teachers.

The new assessments, or at least new to applications in adult ed, are assessments or systems designed  not to exclusively  provide a diagnosis but to provide practical career, employment and educational options that can  inform instruction and workforce systems.  There are multiple commercially available products that you can research. ( I feel somewhat uncomfortable discussing specific names of products. I am additionally somewhat new to these products and would not be able to provide detailed information)  You might additionally talk to local school district ESE and adult ed departments about what they use and see if you can utilize their resources. Many of the developers of k-12 products also have products and resources for the new emerging adult ed market. Some of them maybe interested in adult ed practitioners using their products on extended trials to assist with development and/or marketing. We were able to make those arrangements for a local community based organization recently.

  There are practical products that can be used by employers and educators to test and guide instruction in gaining literacy skills necessary for work. Some of them have been designed to assist with and or correlated to GED attainment.  Some states have purchased the systems for workforce. You can check with your local workforce provider.  If your students have some traditional diagnostics, you may want, with permission, to discuss the testing with the provider to gain insight into what would be helpful for instruction. If State VR provided the diagnostics, they can assist you or even pay the psychologist to provide an addendum with information specific to the instructional needs of the student. If your students do not have a relationship with VR they can refer themselves and connect you with their counselors

You could also use the resource mentioned in the transition discussion by Margaret and myself to help you and the student come up with some practical accommodations that can help with instruction. Here is the link: http://das.kucrl.org/materials

I totally feel the frustration in your post.  Check out the resources mentioned above. Good Luck!

Susan,

My apologies for not being more direct in my discussion about assessments. I have spoken to Rochelle about the mention of for profit material on the LINCS site and her suggestions was that it was ok to discuss the products as long as I have no financial interest or will profit from them. I assure you I do not have any interest in them beyond their ability to work for adult students with disabilities and their instructors. There are two products that I am exploring now . One is the system offered by Conover and one is Discovery.  I have also heard GED success stories from providers who had used Ready to Work. I would encourage all of our CoP members to contribute information on what they use either formally or informally to assist them in providing instruction and career guidance to their students. There are webinars available from the producers of most products and many will let you have access to try them on a trial basis.  

Rochelle,

Adults with disabilities have been successful in many adult ed and CTE programs. The basis for the success is almost always appropriate accommodation and specialized training opportunities.  Broward County Public Schools has an excellent track record in that area. They are also the one that I am currently most familiar with. During my time on a state committee, I interview adult ed programs around the country and found several that were also successful based on a good accommodation process.  Their accommodation process was designed to drive instruction in the classroom settings. That approach was also successful in the vocational environment as well.

CTE and the need for higher basic skills to support it, have heightened the need for providing accommodations.  Adults with disabilities who have limited formal skills training are finding it harder to get even the most entry level jobs.  More and more jobs require some training.  In my opinion, having a flexible system that allows for full adult ed and CTE programming and vocational certification training is optimal. Allowing some courses to be designed around industry specific skill attainment without having to full fill the entire requirements of a full CTE framework seems to work the best.  The ‘trick” is to assure that the skills completed, in addition to being industry driven, are part of the larger CTE offering as much as possible. That creates a true “career pathway” for students with disabilities who may need more than accommodations in a traditional program to be successfull. Some programs around the country have built these types of informal offerings just because they were the natural result of trying to meet the needs of employers. The State of Florida, again the one I am most familiar with, has a formal system built into their curriculum frameworks. Here is the vocational frame work:

http://www.fldoe.org/workforce/dwdframe/addl_cte_frames13.asp

see the section titled Instructional Support Services ( Special Needs)  

Here is the adult ed framework:

 http://www.fldoe.org/workforce/dwdframe/ad_frame.asp

see the section titled Adult General Education for Adults with Disabilities.

 I am told the use of the above frameworks are relatively new and have some proven success.  Again, combining a system that is strongly rooted in an accommodation process with the options of specialized training is an adult ed and CTE offering that works for adults with disabilities.