2016

Modeling Reading Growth in Grades 3 to 5 with an Alternate Assessment. Modeling growth for students with significant cognitive disabilities (SWSCD) is difficult due to a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, missing data, test scaling, group heterogeneity, and small sample sizes. These challenges may account for the paucity of previous research exploring the academic growth of SWSCD. Our study represents a unique context in which a reading assessment, calibrated to a common scale, was administered statewide to…
Read more

NAEYC (November 2-5, 2016, Los Angeles, CA) The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is a professional membership organization that works to promote high-quality early learning for all young children, birth through age 8, by connecting early childhood practice, policy, and research. They advance a diverse, dynamic early childhood profession and support all who care for, educate, and work on behalf of young children. Examining the Feasibility of a Tablet-Administered Learning Receptiveness Assessment (LRA). Sáez, L., &…
Read more

      BRT Annual Meeting and Yearly Review_2016        

BRT Researcher, Leilani Sáez, Promoted to Research Assistant Professor September, 2016 The University of Oregon recently recognized Dr. Leilani Sáez’s contributions to research and practice with a promotion to the Research Professor ranks. “The promotion marks an important milestone for Dr. Sáez here at UO in that it moves her to the most prestigious of trajectories available for career NTTF research faculty,” explains BRT Co-Director Julie Alonzo. “Leilani’s work as Principal Investigator on Project Iceberg and the pivotal role she has…
Read more

Achievement Gaps for Students with Disabilities: Stable, Widening, or Narrowing on a State-wide Reading Comprehension Test? Reading comprehension growth trajectories from 3rd to 7th grade were estimated for 99,919 students on a state reading comprehension assessment. We examined whether differences between students in general education (GE) and groups of students identified as exceptional learners were best characterized as stable, widening, or narrowing. The groups included students with disabilities (SWD) from 8 exceptionality groups and 2 groups of academically gifted students…
Read more

Influence of Opportunity to Learn Indices and Education Status on Students’ Mathematics Achievement Growth. We examined instructional processes in classrooms where students with and without disabilities received mathematics instruction to understand the relationship among key instructional process variables and achievement as measured by interim and end-of-year summative assessments. Elliott, S. N., Kurz, A., Tindal, G. & Yel, N. (2016). Influence of opportunity to learn indices and education status on students’ mathematics achievement growth. Remedial and Special Education. Published online before print August…
Read more

OSEP (Aug. 1-3, 2016, Washington DC) The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) is dedicated to improving results for infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities ages birth through 21 by providing leadership and financial support to assist states and local districts. Achievement Growth and Gaps for Students with Disabilities. Schulte, A. C., Stevens, J. J., Tindal, G., & Elliott, S. N. MthAchievementGrowthGaps_Stevens_Nese

COSA Summer Assessment Institute (August 3rd – 5th, 2016, Eugene, OR) The Confederation of Oregon School Administrators (COSA) serves and represents more than 2,000 school administrators, managers and executives. COSA was founded in 1974 to give Oregon’s education leaders a united voice in helping to shape public policy, advocate for schools and speak on behalf of students. Accessibility to Grade-Level Content for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities. Lenhardt, B., Reeve, V., Tindal, G., & Farley, D.     AccssbltyGrLevelContent_Lenhardt_Reeve_ETAL

Using Explicit and Systematic Instruction to Support Working Memory. Differences in working-memory capacity affect how students learn new skills and complete activities. Students with learning disabilities often experience challenges associated with limited working-memory capacity. This article offers strategies both for recognizing and supporting working-memory processing constraints and to facilitate working-memory processing during reading and math instruction. Smith, J. L. M., Sáez, L., & Doabler, C. T. (2016). Using explicit and systematic instruction to support working memory. Teaching Exceptional Children, 48, 6,…
Read more

The Relation Between Smarter Balanced and easyCBM Mathematics and Reading Assessments. This study investigated the relation between the easyCBM Benchmark Assessments in both mathematics and reading and the Smarter Balanced assessment, widely adopted across the United States Alonzo,  J.  (2016).  The relation between Smarter Balanced and easyCBM mathematics and reading assessments. Journal of School Administration Research and Development, 1, 17-35.    Access article through http://www.jsard.org/