ACCESS for ELLs

EL Assessment Update: Release of ACCESS for ELLs Test Results

Please review the following information carefully.

ACCESS for ELLs Test Results

ACCESS for ELLs and Alternate ACCESS test results will be available electronically in WIDA AMS on Thursday, August 5th. Printed reports will be mailed to schools on September 8th. On July 29, District and School ACCESS Test Coordinators will receive an email from DRC explaining which school and district reports will be available and where to find them.

English Learners without 2021 ACCESS for ELLs Scores

Thank you again for your efforts in getting students tested this year with ACCESS. While a significant majority of English learners (ELs) took the ACCESS for ELLs English proficiency assessments this past school year, many ELs did not participate. Districts will need information about the English proficiency of untested students to determine appropriate levels of English language education (ELE) services to provide those students in the coming school year. Therefore, for this year, the Department strongly encourages districts to screen their untested students this summer or fall using either the WIDA Screener or the WIDA MODEL interim assessment to 1) gain information about the current English proficiency levels of students, and 2) inform their decisions about the appropriate levels of ELE services to provide students without 2021 ACCESS results.

Students in grade 1 who did not take ACCESS in 2021 should be screened in all four domains using either the K W-APT, WIDA Screener for Kindergarten, or the WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten. The WIDA Screener for Kindergarten and K W-APT are available free-of-charge on the WIDA Secure Portal and the WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten is available for a fee to districts that have obtained a license. Test administrators are required to complete training to administer each of these tests. The results of the WIDA Screener, WIDA Screener for Kindergarten, K W-APT, WIDA MODEL, and WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten may not be used to exit students from EL status and will not be used for school accountability. In addition, students tested with the WIDA Screener, WIDA Screener for Kindergarten, K W-APT, WIDA MODEL, or WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten will not have progress determinations nor student growth percentiles on ACCESS (SGPA). The ACCESS results of students tested in January–February 2022 will be used to determine progress toward proficiency and exit eligibility for the following school year.

ACCESS for ELLs Reporting Zoom Presentations

Two virtual Zoom presentations will be offered to District ACCESS for ELLs Test Coordinators that provide information on accessing and interpreting student, school, and district-level results in WIDA AMS. Presentations will be held on August 6 from 1:00–2:30 PM and August 9 from 1:00–2:30 PM.

Registration will be limited to one participant log-in per district unless your District ACCESS for ELLs Test Coordinator receives an email indicating a different number. Participants will receive information on how to log in upon completion of registration. Presentation slides will be emailed to registered participants one day prior to the presentation date. Registered participants are encouraged to share the slides and presentation information with others in their district as necessary. Registration is now available.

WIDA Webinar and Other Resources

WIDA has developed a pre-recorded webinar titled "Post-Reporting: Interpreting Score Reports" that provides information on the student reports, frequency reports, and student roster reports available on WIDA AMS and how to access them. The webinar is available in the WIDA Secure Portal Download library. Additionally, WIDA has provided information about ACCESS reports and how each report can be interpreted and applied in the ACCESS for ELLs Interpretive Guide for Score Reports and in the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs Interpretive Guide for Score Reports .

Thank you for your attention to this information.

This EL Assessment Update is also available online. Please contact Student Assessment Services with any questions about ACCESS for ELLs testing at ACCESS@mass.gov or by phone at 781-338-3625.