IASEP, IASEP: EC, and DIAS:
An Innovative, Electronic System To Assess
Individual Abilities
Crossroads Conference on Communicative Disorders - 8th Biennial Regional
Augmentative and Alternative Communication Conference
October 23, 2001 – Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
Helen H. Arvidson, Ph.D.; Deborah E. Bennett, Ph.D., and Mary Jo Sparrow, Ph.D.
Purdue University – West Lafayette, Indiana
Indiana Assessment System of Educational Proficiencies
The Indiana Assessment System of Educational Proficiencies (IASEP) is a computerbased alternate assessment system developed by Purdue University and the Indiana Department
of Education, Division of Special Education (Bennett, Davis, Cunningham, & Arvidson, 1999),
to meet the mandate of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Amendments of
1997 (Public Law 105-17, 1997) that all students be included in assessment and accountability
systems. In the past, many students with moderate to severe disabilities were excluded from
large-scale assessment and accountability systems. Large-scale assessments were typically not
appropriate for students with significant cognitive impairments and physical disabilities whose
curricula differed from the curricula of general education students. IASEP is an alternate
assessment designed to meet the assessment and accountability needs of special education
students whose curricula are broader than the academic curricula of students who participate in
the Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress (ISTEP+). IASEP was piloted by special
education teachers at eight sites around the state during the 1998-1999 academic school year. It
went into full implementation during the 1999-2000 school year.
Belief Statements
A group of stakeholders including administrators, parents, special education teachers,
staff from the Indiana Department of Education, and university personnel began meeting in the
fall of 1997 to develop an alternate assessment system that would assess the abilities of students
who have the most significant disabilities. A number of belief statements guided the
development of IASEP. Stakeholders determined that IASEP should do the following.
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Honor the belief that all children have value, can learn with appropriate supports, and can
be expected to make measurable gains.
Reflect high standards for attaining proficiencies relevant to independent living and
learning in the school and community.
Promote a coordinated and inclusive educational system (including parents, general
educators, special educators, administrators, and school boards).
Be used to improve the content and quality of education.
Clearly reflect an accurate picture of a student’s attainment of proficiencies and be
relevant to a student’s education.
Reflect shared responsibility for the accomplishments of all students within
accountability systems.
Provide meaningful assessment results that are easily communicated and understood.
Include continuous documentation of student performance from multiple sources,
environments, and domains.
Measure the progress of students whose needs focus on functional and life skills as
extensions of the general course of study.
Domains
IASEP is based on an extension of content standards in the general education areas of
language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. These academic areas are included in the
domain of Information Acquisition and Use. Domains of Personal Adjustment, Social
Adjustment, Recreation and Leisure, and Vocational Experience are included in IASEP to meet
the assessment and accountability needs of students receiving instruction in broader curricula.
Stakeholders involved in the initial stages of development engaged in extensive review of special
education curricula , adaptive behavior instruments, and state alternate assessment models when
developing proficiencies and skills to be included in the functional domains.
IASEP is both formative and summative. Teachers rate levels of performance on skills
and support these ratings with documentation from multiple environments on an ongoing basis.
IASEP ratings and documentation identify strengths and needs. They reflect progress toward
curriculum goals and state standards. IASEP presents a comprehensive picture of student
learning over time.
Rating Rubric
Teachers rate skills using the rubric described below. The rubric is based on four skill
parameters: Frequency or Amount, Amount of Support, Generalizability, and Quality of
Performance.
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Independent - The student shows the ability to apply the knowledge or perform the skill
accurately in several contexts without instructional support.
Functional - The student frequently shows the ability to apply the knowledge or perform
the skill in more than one context with little instructional support. The student performs
the skill accurately in most instances but makes occasional errors
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Supported - The student occasionally shows understanding or use of the knowledge or
skill in one or more contexts with moderate instructional support. The student makes
errors but occasionally performs one or more portions of the skill accurately.
Emergent - The student is just beginning to show understanding or use of the knowledge
or skill in one context with extensive instructional support. The student is unable to
perform the skill accurately without teacher assistance.
Participation - The student participates in instructional activities that utilize this
essential skill, but demonstrates no measurable understanding of the skill.
Essential skills at the Participation Level are rated further according to the three levels of
the Participation Index.
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Full Participation – The student clearly demonstrates awareness of participation in an
activity or skill. This may include, but is not limited to, verbal expressions, physical
reactions, or forms of nonverbal communication (e.g., gestures, facial expressions). The
student may be receiving maximal instructional support including assistance from
educational personnel and/or technology, but the skill is not considered to be emerging.
Partial Participation – The student demonstrates some awareness of participation in an
activity or skill. The student may be receiving some instructional support to enhance
participation.
Included Participation – The student demonstrates little or no awareness of
participation in an activity or skill. The student is physically included in an activity or
skill as part of implementation of the individualized education program (IEP).
Skills are rated No Opportunity if there has been no opportunity for observation and Not
Applicable if they are not applicable to a student’s educational program.
Documentation
Ratings are supported by electronic documentation in the form of multimedia document
files. Teachers input audio clips, scanned/digital images, and video clips to illustrate levels of
achievement. Parents are encouraged to contribute documentation of student performance on
skills outside of the school setting for inclusion in the assessment system. Documentation is
linked to educational goals and standards and stored within the system for viewing by authorized
personnel.
System Features
In addition to skill ratings and multimedia documentation, IASEP provides for the entry
of a variety of personal and educational information. Teachers can enter information related to
medical status, the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and assistive
technology (AT), and educational programming. Teachers can also create a portfolio from
multimedia documentation and print a variety of reports.
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AAC/AT Profile
The speech-language pathologist can play a major role in developing the AAC/AT
profile. Information entered in the AAC/AT profile documents a student’s use of AAC/AT
devices over time. The AAC/AT Screen displays a list of devices used by an individual student
along with two general questions related to AAC/AT. Figure 1 provides a summary of devices
used by a student who has spastic cerebral palsy and little or no functional speech.
Figure 1 Student Demographic Information Screen (AAC/AT).
The information that appears on the Student Demographic Information Screen (AAC/AT)
is entered on the Students Technology Usage Items Screens. There are separate screens for each
of nine areas: No-Tech AAC, Low-Tech AAC, High-Tech AAC, Positioning, Mobility, Hearing,
Vision, Environmental, and Educational. Different questions related to these areas appear on
each of the screens. Figure 2 relates to Low-Tech AAC.
Figure 2 Students Technology Usage Items Screen (Low-Tech AAC).
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A pick list containing the names of a wide variety of AAC/AT devices appears on the
AAC/AT Devices Screen. Many of the items on the pick list come from the Partnerships for
Assistive Technology with Indiana Schools (PATINS) Assistive Technology Reference
(PATINS, 1999). Figure 3 shows highlighting of a low-tech AAC device.
Figure 3 AAC/AT Devices Screen.
Detailed information about each device appears on Devices Information Screens. A
description and, in some cases, an illustration of a highlighted device appears along with the
name of the vendor and approximate price. Service providers can use these screens as a catalog
to learn more about specific devices. Figure 4 shows an image of the Mid-size Communication
Book.
Figure 4 Devices Information Screen.
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Confidentiality and Data Security
Maintaining the confidentiality of student information within the system is paramount to
the integrity of IASEP. School personnel are reminded of confidentiality fundamentals that apply
to conventional educational records. A team of data security specialists from the Purdue
University Center for Education and Research Information Assurance and Security (CERIAS)
has worked with others on the development of an Electronic Educational Data Security Protocol
to comply with state and federal laws and serve as a general prototype for the management of
electronic educational data. The team outlined threats that can compromise the integrity and
security of data including threats due to physical security in the classroom, vulnerability in
application, vulnerability in the operating system, user error, network access, and data transfer.
Indiana Assessment System of Educational Proficiencies: Early Childhood
The Indiana Assessment System of Educational Proficiencies: Early Childhood (IASEP:
EC) is an integrated, computer-based, assessment system that assesses and documents the
educational progress of young learners. It was developed in response to interest generated from
the implementation of IASEP. Educators recognized that IASEP’s broad-based model provided a
solid foundation for assessing not only the performance of students with the most significant
disabilities, but also for assessing the performance of young learners with a wide range of
abilities and disabilities. Purdue University and the Indiana Department of Education, Division
of Special Education worked with stakeholders during the 1999-2000 school year to define belief
statements, determine domains, and select skills to be included in IASEP: EC.
IASEP: EC honors the belief that all children have value, can learn with appropriate
supports, and can be expected to make measurable gains. The system is based on the assessment
of student performance on skills in five domains: Cognitive, Communication, Self-Help, Sensory
Motor, and Social. Stakeholders reviewed early childhood assessment instruments and engaged
in content validation to determine the skills currently in the system. IASEP: EC has the same
basic structure and general features as IASEP including the provision for the documentation of
AAC/AT. The rating rubric for IASEP: EC is the same as that used for IASEP, and supporting
documentation is entered in the same way. The specific domains and skills account for most of
the differences between IASEP and IASEP: EC.
Pilot Project
A total of 40 teachers and speech-language pathologists in early childhood education
programs piloted IASEP: EC at eight sites around the state of Indiana during the 2000-2001
school year. Pilot teachers and speech-language pathologists attended two-day training sessions
to become familiar with the development of IASEP: EC and its potential for assessing and
accounting for the achievement of young learners. Teachers engaged in individual and group
practice entering demographic information, rating the performance of skills, and creating and
entering supporting documentation.
Each teacher was asked to identify children both with and without disabilities to be
included in the pilot. Teacher trainers from Purdue provided ongoing support to pilot teachers.
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They met with groups of teachers at dedicated in-services to answer questions and help work
through the system. They also visited teachers individually in their classrooms to help create and
enter documentation. A technology administrator provided additional technical support. A parent
liaison organized meetings with parents to introduce them to the system and discuss how they
could be involved in the assessment process. CERIAS provided expertise regarding
confidentiality and data security.
Data collected on the nearly 400 skills included in the pilot program are being analyzed
to determine how skills will be included in IASEP: EC. Ten skills will serve as a core set of skills
for each domain. The remaining skills will be divided into sets of required and optional skills
organized in hierarchies of developmental levels. Stakeholders continue to provide input and
feedback in an advisory capacity in preparation for wider distribution of IASEP: EC in the fall.
Documentation of Indiana Academic Standards
The Documentation of Indiana Academic Standards (DIAS) project is an initiative of the
Indiana Department of Education, Division of Special Education that began in the fall of 1999.
During the first year of the project, 10 special education planning districts agreed to participate in
a two-year pilot. During the second year, three more planning districts were added. A group of
stakeholders from the planning districts provided guidance, expertise, and direction to the pilot
project. Stakeholders included school administrators, curriculum specialists, general education
and special education teachers.
Initially, Stakeholders determined that the pilot should focus on the needs of high school
students who had not been successful with the Graduation Qualifying Exam (GQE).
Stakeholders began conceptualizing an electronic systems designed to gather and organize
student achievement as it related to the newly-adopted 1999 academic standards. By indicating
which standards a student had mastered, as evidenced by ISTEP+ results, it was possible to focus
instruction and rate progress on non-mastered standards. A small group of teachers from each of
the pilot sites was trained on the use of the newly-developed DIAS program.
Stakeholders, however, were also concerned about the need for an alternate assessment
that would be appropriate for students with mild disabilities. By the end of the first pilot year it
became clear that the computer program being developed had potential to be used as an alternate
assessment. Much of the work during the second year focused on DIAS as an alternate
assessment.
Belief, Purpose, and Goals
The DIAS pilot project is grounded in the belief that all students have value, can learn
with appropriate accommodations and can be expected to make measurable gains. The purpose
of the project is to develop an electronic portfolio system that can be used to gather and organize
student achievement on Indiana’s Academic Standards. DIAS is based upon the standards of the
general education curriculum and provides an additional means of measuring a student’s
progress as required by
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300.347(a)(1)(i)
300.347(a)(2)(i)
300.347(a)(3)(II)
300.347(a)(7)(i)
300.343(c)(2)(i)
Present levels of performance
Measurable annual goals
Statement of services to be provided
How progress will be measured
Review and revision of IEPs
DIAS provides an additional means of reporting a student’s progress as required by
300.347(a)(7)(ii)
Regular reports to parents
For a student who has not yet attained the Indiana Academic Standards, as measured by
ISTEP+, DIAS provides a means of determining the focus of instruction needed to master the
identified standards.
For a student who is unable to demonstrate full skills and knowledge on ISTEP+, DIAS
provides an additional method of measuring achievement in the general curriculum.
For a student who will not participate in ISTEP+, as determined by the case conference
committee, DIAS may be used as an alternate assessment. The DIAS Alternate Assessment
includes the Indiana Academic Standards.
DIAS with ISTEP+ Rating Rubric
Teachers rate standards and skills using the rubric described below for DIAS with
ISTEP+.
Standards
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Mastery - The student meets or exceeds the ISTEP+ Passing Skill Score.
DIAS Mastery - The student demonstrates achievement of 75% of skills within each
academic standard.
Non-Mastery - The student has not demonstrated mastery of skills as indicated by
ISTEP+ Passing Skill Score or DIAS.
Skills
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Achieved - The student demonstrates the ability to apply the knowledge or perform the
skill accurately and independently in several contexts.
Progressing - The student demonstrates understanding or use of the knowledge or skill
with instructional support in one or more contexts.
Introduced - The student has been exposed to the knowledge or skill as part of the
instructional curriculum.
No Opportunity - The student has had no opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge or
skill.
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DIAS Alternate Assessment Rating Rubric
Teachers rate standards and skills using the rubric described below for DIAS Alternate
Assessment.
Standards
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DIAS Mastery - The student demonstrates achievement of 75% of the skills within the
Indiana Academic Standard.
Non-Mastery - The student does not demonstrate achievement of 75% of the skills
within the Indiana Academic Standard.
Skills
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Achieved - The student demonstrates the ability to apply the knowledge or perform the
skill accurately and independently in several contexts.
Progressing - The student demonstrates understanding or use of the knowledge or skill
with instructional support in one or more contexts.
Introduced - The student has been exposed to the knowledge or skill as part of the
instructional curriculum.
No Opportunity - The student has had no opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge or
skill.
Electronic Portfolio
DIAS provides for the creation of an electronic portfolio. Stakeholders determined that the
electronic portfolio should be designed to do the following:
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Support high expectations for student mastery of academic standards.
Accurately reflect the student’s strengths as well as the degree of support needed as the
student progresses toward the attainment of academic standards.
Include continuous documentation of student performance from a variety of sources
across the curriculum.
Provide meaningful assessment opportunities resulting in information that can be easily
communicated and used to make informed instructional decisions.
Reflect shared responsibility for the accomplishments of all students within the
accountability system.
Provide information that can be used to improve the content and quality of a student’s
education.
Be available as a documentation system to all students who have not been successful with
ISTEP+.
Meet state reporting requirements.
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Current Development Work
The 2001-2002 school year begins the third year of work on the DIAS project. Plans
include development of a web-based computer program that will allow teachers to rate student
progress on the 2000 Indiana Academic Standards for English/language arts, math, science and
social studies. Primary users will be private and public school teachers of first grade through
high school students. Teachers will be able to document student progress by electronically
linking examples of student work to specific academic skills. Student work can be represented
through scanned images, digital video, and digital audio or maintained in a paper portfolio.
DIAS 2000, as the assessment will be called, will include two major modules: DIAS with
ISTEP+ and DIAS Alternate Assessment. DIAS with ISTEP+ will be designed for students who
are working at or near grade level who participate in the ISTEP+ assessment in grades 3, 6, 8,
and 10. DIAS Alternate Assessment will be designed for students who have mild disabilities
whose case conference committees have determined that the ISTEP+ assessment is not
appropriate.
System features will include the following:
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Student demographic information
Standards and skills databases for four curriculum areas
Pick lists of rating rubrics
Goals and objectives database
Linking of evidence (student work) to skills and objectives
Progress report printing capability
State report function for alternate assessment
Security issues (password protection and encryption)
Archive function for teacher review
Additional database capabilities
A small group of teachers from Tippecanoe School Corporation in Lafayette, Indiana will
serve as consultants on the development of the web-based application. Teachers and their
students at Klondike Elementary School, Klondike Middle School, and Harrison High School
will also assist in the development of teacher training materials applicable to the new program.
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References
Bennett, D. E., Davis, M. A., Cunningham, J. N., & Arvidson, H. (1999). Indiana
Assessment System of Education Proficiencies: Computer-Based Rating and Documentation
System (software system, software manual, training videos, training manual, case studies)
(IASEP). West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University, Purdue Research Foundation.
PATINS Assistive Technology Reference [CD-ROM]. (1999). Indianapolis, IN:
Partnerships for Assistive Technology with Indiana Schools.
Public Law 105-17. (1997). Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of
1997. Washington, DC: U. S. Congress.
Information in the figures does not pertain to a real student. Any resemblance is unintentional. Additional
information on IASEP, IASEP: EC, or DIAS may be obtained by contacting Helen Arvidson ([email protected]),
Deborah Bennett ([email protected]), or Mary Jo Sparrow ([email protected]). Information is also
available on the Web site >http://iasep.soe.purdue.edu<.
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