Synthesis Report 90 - Accommodation Policies for States’ Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS)

Oct 3, 2026

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Synthesis Report 90 examines accommodation policies used by states for alternate assessments aligned to alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). It reviews how states described assessment administration changes, how policies address specific accommodations overall, and how accommodations are handled for English language learners (ELLs). The analysis summarizes results from four content assessment consortia—PARCC, SBAC, DLM, and NCSC—and organizes detailed findings in the report appendices. The report distinguishes “traditional” from “unique” AA-AAS accommodations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages110

Reading Time4 h 37 min

AccessFree to download

Accommodation Terms States Used

Accommodation Policies for AA-AAS

Traditional accommodations

Unique accommodations

Synthesis Report 90 Accommodation Policies for States’Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) N A T I O N A LC E N T E R O N EDUCATIONAL O U T C O M E S In collaboration with: Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) Supported by: U.S. Office of Special Education Programs Synthesis Report 90 Accommodation Policies for States’Alternate Assessments based on Alternate Achievement Standards (AA-AAS) Debra Albus and Martha L. Thurlow July 2013 All rights reserved. Any or all portions ofthis document may be reproduced and distributed without prior permission, provided the source is cited as: Albus, D., & Thurlow, M. L.,(2013). Accommodation policies for states’alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS)(Synthesis Report 90). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota, National Center on Educational Outcomes. N A T I O N A LC E N T E R O NE DUCAT IO NALO U T C O M E S The Center is supported through a Cooperative Agreement (\#H326G110002) with the Research to Practice Division, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education. The Center is affiliated with the Institute on Community Integration at the College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota. Opinions expressed hereindo not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Education or Offices within it. NCEO Core Staff Martha L. Thurlow, Director DebA. Albus Manuel T. Barrera Laurene L. Christensen Linda Goldstone James Hatten Christopher J. Johnstone Jane L. Krentz Sheryl S. Lazarus Kristi K. Liu Ross E. Moen Michael L. Moore Rachel F. Quenemoen Rebekah Rieke Christopher Rogers MiongVang Yi-Chen Wu National Center on Educational Outcomes University of Minnesota • 207 Pattee Hall 150 Pillsbury Dr. SE • Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone 612/626-1530 • Fax 612/624-0879 [http://www.nceo.info](http://www.nceo.info) The University of Minnesota shall provide equal access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability, public assistance status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. This document is available in alternative formats upon request. Removing barriers to enable students to better show what they know on academic assessments has been an important focus of policy and initiatives in assessment design for some time. As states have joined together to focus on common academic standards in English language arts and mathematics ([see www.corestandards.org](see www.corestandards.org)), there is an opportunity to design assessments that incorporate the best of what is known about accommodations in order to allow students to demonstrate their knowledge on these standards. There are four federally funded consortia working on two types of assessments: two that are developing general assessment systems (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers—PARCC, and Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium—SBAC), and two that are developing systems for alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (Dynamic Learning Maps—DLM, and National Center and State Collaborative—NCSC). Current accommodations policies may assist the consortiain thinking through policies for their new assessments. Since 1992, the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) has analyzed participation and accommodation policies for students with disabilities on state administered assessments. This report focuses on accommodation policies for alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). In addition to presenting a national overview of policies, we also address the resultsofour policy analysis by the four content assessment consortia (PARCC, SBAC, DLM, and NCSC) . This summary of the res

FAQs

What is the main purpose of Synthesis Report 90?

It analyzes accommodation policies for alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS), providing a national overview and consortium-based results.

How does the report classify AA-AAS accommodations?

It separates accommodations into “traditional” accommodations and “unique” accommodations, based on how commonly they appear in general assessment policies and what is new or rarely found in AA-AAS policies.

Which consortia’s results are discussed in the report?

The report addresses results from four content assessment consortia: PARCC, SBAC, DLM, and NCSC, and includes detailed information in the appendices.

Oct 3, 2026

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