FCPS asks for more time to prepare before new test given to special education students

Frederick County Public Schools has asked the Maryland State Department of Education for more time to prepare before the district administers a new standardized test for special education students.

This spring will mark the county school system’s first full implementation of the new Multi-State Alternate Assessment for students with severe cognitive disabilities. The school district has piloted the test at seven schools.

Until recently, the new test shared a name with the consortium it derives from, the National Center and State Collaborative. The MSAA will test students in the third through eighth grades, as well as 11th grade, replacing the Alternate Maryland School Assessment in mathematics and English.

The state education department recently named a testing window for local school districts, spanning from March 30 to May 13, said Daniel Martz, director of special education and psychological services for the county school system. But the district hopes to delay the start of its window, so it can take a more “thoughtful” approach as it trains staff and prepares to administer the test.

“We are asking for a different timeline to meet the needs of our students and our staff and our families,” Martz said.

For assessments such as the MSAA, the state chooses a testing window and local school districts determine when in that window they will administer the test, said Michael Doerrer, a spokesman for the county school system.

“The window has still not been officially set for Frederick County,” said Gina Wood, a special education teacher specialist for alternate assessment.

The district could be ready to administer the tests in the given timeframe, Martz said, but “it will not be without its challenges.” He pointed to the timing of the school system’s spring break, which starts Monday. Schools reopen on March 29 after the Easter holiday.

William Reinhard, a spokesman for the Maryland State Department of Education, said Friday afternoon that he could not immediately provide a response about the school system’s request for a different timeframe and clarification on a couple aspects of the test.

Martz said the district as of Friday had not yet received answers from the state, but added it has been “very responsive” in the past.

The district is looking for clarification about what types of responses are allowed from nonverbal students as they answer questions on the test. One example could be that a student uses an assistive communication device, such as an iPad, Wood said.

“We just want some standard guidelines to help our teachers identify what a reliable mode of communication, a reliable response is,” Wood said.

Another area the school system asked the state to clarify is whether the test’s complexity would vary based on a specific student’s ability, Martz said.

The state provided the testing window dates about a month ago, said Suzanne Rumpf, a special education coordinator for alternate assessment for the district. Details on the training for the district’s test coordinators and administrators were given Thursday, Wood said.

Rumpf said she thinks other districts have felt similar pressure about the necessary training.

“I think that everyone is feeling the time constraint of when we received the training information and when we have to present the training information,” Rumpf said. “There’s a tight timeline.”

The new computer-based test contrasts with the Alt-MSA, which was a portfolio-based test performed over a roughly six-month period.

The majority of staff training will happen through online modules. Roughly 32 test coordinators, typically assistant principals, and 47 test administrators, who are special education case managers, will be trained before the assessments start. The coordinators will likely take about an hour to complete the training and administrators will likely take about two or three hours.

“Beyond just modules, we want some face time with our employees to ensure that they proactively understand all the nuisances that go with the new assessment,” Martz said.

The seven schools who participated in the pilot are familiar with aspects of the test, Rumpf said. Wood added that other staff members who will be involved in administering the test have been kept in the loop about what has been expected for the test and what the training would look like.

Word will go out Monday to individual schools about the necessary training and preparation, Martz said.

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