Laserfiche WebLink
Breadcrumb Navigation:
46 <br />8. Appendix <br />ß°°»²¼·¨ïæߺ®¿³»©±®µº±®¼»ª»´±°·²¹½®·¬»®·¿ <br />Nationally, there are no universally accepted criteria. Best practice models are based on two types of <br />criteria 1) nationally normed tests and 2) classroom based measures. <br />A disability, as measured by nearly all special education test instruments and as embraced by IDEA, is <br />based on a relative measure of ability – is the student typical to their grade level peers, above average, or <br />below average? A disability exists when a student is below average compared to students nationwide. <br />Federal law does not set a definition as to how far below average indicates a disability. Some states have <br />weighed in on this question, but Massachusetts has not. <br />The normal distribution curve provides a visual to understand standardized test scores. The curve depicts <br />the concept that the largest number of scores will cluster near the average. There will be fewer children <br />the further away you move from average. <br />A standard deviation (SD) is a widely used measure of test score results. It shows how much variation <br />there is from the "average" (mean). A low standard deviation, such as 1.0, indicates that the results are <br />very close to the mean, whereas a high standard deviation such as 2.0 indicates that the results are not at <br />all typical. This concept can be used to help create criteria to determine whether a student has a <br />disability, i.e. is not like most of their peers nationwide. <br />Some states and districts designate a specific threshold the student must meet on a comprehensive test. <br />A comprehensive test covers a wide range of related skills such reading, or speech and language. These <br />tests can be distinguished from more narrowly focused skill tests (subtests) such as decoding nonsense <br />words or retelling a story. Typically struggling in a narrow skill will not be sufficient to indicate a <br />disability. Options for defining a disability include the following: <br />The District Management Council <br />7 Harcourt Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116 <br />- <br />Tel:1877-DMC-3500 | Fax:617-491-5266 |www.dmcouncil.org <br /> <br />