An Overview of the Cases

Throughout the program, we use cases to illustrate and apply concepts. We created three cases --we want educators to create a fourth case to apply what they have learned to a student of interest to them.

Case 1: Patrick Patrick is a 9 year-old 4th grader who has difficulty reading. Patrick is a friendly and outgoing child but has always seemed a bit immature for his age. He has poor work habits and frequently loses his homework or forgets to do it.  Thus, he is considered to be academically at risk but not disabled.	Case 2: Tia Tia is an 8th grader who is classified as learning disabled. Her instructional reading level is 5th grade, but she receives all her instruction in regular classes with some support from a consulting special education teacher. She has good listening and memory skills, and is a highly motivated student. Click here to see Tia's complete case.	Case 3:  Chris Chris is a happy 17-year-old boy in the 11th grade. Chris was diagnosed at birth with Downs Syndrome. He works well with teachers and has academic skills typical of a 2nd or 3rd grade student. He has some difficulty attending, but has been taking medication for several years and seems to be improving.
Case 4:  Make Your Case! As part of the course, you can build your own case. It can be worked on throughout all units of the course. Click here for information on how to create a case.

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  The Course Units

There are three main units, each containing several modules. We recommend that you begin with the unit on Educational Assessment Principles and Practices, then proceed to the Large Scale Assessment unit, and then complete the Accommodations and Alternate Assessment unit. However, your may select a different learning sequence to meet your needs. The units and their modules appear below.

 

Unit 1:    Educational Assessment Principles and Practices

This unit lays the foundation for the principles, practices, and policies that guide educational assessment. Before you begin, be sure to review the three cases we have prepared, and select your own case. All modules will invite you to consider and apply content to our cases and yours. Also, read Chapters 1 and 2 in Assessing One and All. We suggest that you begin with module #1-1 (Introductory Comments), and proceed in order, finishing with module #1-6 (Conclusions and Resources). This unit consists of the following modules:

Module 1-1:	Introductory Comments
Module 1-2:	Key Terms and Concepts
Module 1-3:	Standards-Based Education and Assessment
Module 1-4:	Legal Issues
Module 1-5:	Characteristics of Good Assessment
Module 1-6:	Conclusions and Resources

 

This unit introduces you to the purpose, content, and results of large scale assessment. Before you begin, be sure to review the three cases we have prepared, and select your own case. All modules will invite you to consider and apply content to our cases and yours. Also, read Chapter 3, and the appendix that describes the large scale assessment used in your school district or state, in the book Assessing One and All. We suggest that you begin with module #2-1 (Overview), and then select the module that best matches the large scale assessment used in your school district or state. Then finish with module #2-5 (Conclusions and Resources).

Module 2-1:	Overview
Module 2-2:	TerraNova Content
Module 2-3:	Terra Nova Application & Understanding
Module 2-4:	Stanford-9 Content
Module 2-5	Stanford-9 Application & Understanding
Module 2-5:	Conclusions and Resources

 

Unit 3: Accommodations and Alternate Assessments

This unit describes the principles and practices for accommodating students in large scale assessments, and for providing alternate assessments when accommodations are not appropriate. Before you begin, be sure to review the three cases we have prepared, and select your own case. All modules will invite you to consider and apply content to our cases and yours. Also, read Chapters 4 and 5 in the Assessing One and All book. We suggest that you begin with module #3-1 (Testing Guidelines and Participation Decisions), and proceed in order, finishing with module #3-8 (Conclusions and Resources).

Module 3-1:	Testing Guidelines and Participation Decisions
Module 3-2:	Testing Accommodations: Concepts and Uses
Module 3-3:	Research on Testing Accommodations
Module 3-4:	Alternate Assessments: Assumptions and Uses
Module 3-5:	Examples of Alternate Assessments
Module 3-6:	Issues in Implementing Alternate Assessments
Module 3-7:	Research on Alternate Assessments
Module 3-8:	Conclusions and Resources