ACCOMMODATIONS AND SUPPORTS¶

Are students in grades 3-5 permitted to use the Text to Speech Accommodation for reading?¶

Students in grades 3-5 are not permitted to use Text to Speech on the reading test because the reading standards for those grades include decoding and word identification. A very limited group of students who, because of a documented disability, cannot access text even with assistive technology, may be granted permission by the AOE. An example of a student who may qualify would be a student who recently lost sight but has not had the opportunity to learn Braille.  

May schools provide accommodations that are not on the list of approved accommodations?¶

Yes, but they need to contact the AOE to obtain permission. Permission is based on the determination that the proposed accommodation does not violate the construct that is being measured (e.g., a student cannot use a calculator for items designed to measure arithmetic skills).