ACCESS for ELLs

EL Assessment Update: 2023 Test Window Extension and Other Important Announcements

Greetings and thank you for all you continue to do for multilingual students each day. Included in this update are important announcements and reminders regarding ACCESS for ELLs and the K W-APT screener.

ACCESS Pre-Reporting Data Validation: April 11–19, 2022

The pre-reporting data validation window provides an opportunity for schools to correct any demographic errors for students who participated in the recently completed 2022 ACCESS test administration. This will be the only opportunity to correct the information listed below before ACCESS results are released in WIDA AMS on May 19. School Test Coordinators should review and correct (if needed) the following information between April 11–19:

• First and last names (look for incorrect spelling, hyphens, or multiple names for the same student)
• SASID (ensure that district ID or temporary numbers are not listed in place of the state-assigned student ID)
• School
• Birthdate
• Enrolled grade
• Accommodations (correct any missing or incorrect accommodations)
• Test results/"Do Not Score" codes (correct any codes or remove codes incorrectly applied)

Also please ensure that any changes are also corrected in your June SIMS report.

ACCESS Score Reports Available in WIDA AMS: May 19

District- and school-level reports will be available in WIDA AMS on May 19, including:

• District Frequency Distribution Reports — Number of students and percentage of total tested at each proficiency level for each language domain, and four composite proficiency levels, for grades within the district.
• School Frequency Distribution Reports — Number of students and percentage of total tested at each proficiency level for each language domain, and four composite proficiency levels, within a school.
• School Roster Reports — Scale scores and language proficiency levels for each language domain, and four composite proficiency levels by grade, student, and grade-level cluster within a school.
• Individual Student Reports — Individual student scale scores and language proficiency levels for each language domain and four composite proficiency levels. A pdf file is provided with multiple student reports, available in Spanish or English.
• Student Response Files — District — Individual Student test data, including various test scores for the district.

Make Your Voice Heard! Take the 2023 ACCESS Testing Window Survey — Deadline April 15

The Department requests that EL program directors please take the 2023 ACCESS Testing Window Survey and express your district's preference for either maintaining the 2023 ACCESS for ELLs testing window as before (5 weeks) or extending the window to 7 weeks.

An extended testing window will likely include more students in ACCESS testing. However, results will likely arrive in schools between one and two weeks later than in previous years. More information is provided below.

• Option #1: January 5, 2023 – February 9, 2023 (five weeks of testing). Electronic results anticipated around May 5; print results delivered to schools around May 16.

• Option #2: January 5, 2023 – March 3, 2023 (seven weeks of testing). Electronic results anticipated between May 18–23 and print results delivered to schools sometime between May 31–June 3, 2023.

Please complete the ACCESS 2023 Testing Window Survey by April 15, 2022 to indicate your preference for the 2023 ACCESS for ELLs testing window.

WIDA Will Retire the K W-APT in June 2022

As of June 30, 2022, the K W-APT materials will be removed from the WIDA Secure Portal and will no longer be available nor will K W-APT be supported. However, districts will be allowed to use the K W-APT between July 1, 2022 – January 1, 2023, but must download the files of K W-APT materials from the WIDA Secure Portal before June 30. Be aware that the K W-APT will no longer be authorized to screen Massachusetts students after January 1, 2023, after which all districts will be required to use the WIDA Screener for Kindergarten for their incoming kindergarten and first-semester grade 1 students. More details will be provided later this spring.

The WIDA Screener for Kindergarten (i.e., the "K Screener") has been available for use by districts since March 1, provided that staff have been trained in its use and are certified in its administration. Please continue to prepare your staff for the transition to the K Screener. K Screener training modules and certification quizzes are available in the WIDA Secure Portal.

Cut Scores for the WIDA Screener for Kindergarten

Cut scores for the K Screener (and modified cut scores for K MODEL) were announced in the February 16 EL Assessment Update, as well as in the Initial Identification of ELs publication on the Department's English Learner Education web page.

Contact Student Assessment Services with any questions about ACCESS for ELLs testing at ACCESS@mass.gov or by phone at 781-338-3625.

Thank you for your attention to this information.