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614 SCHOOL DISTRICT TESTING PLAN AND PROCEDURE

Mabel Canton Schools
Adopted 2000
Revised:

614 SCHOOL DISTRICT TESTING PLAN AND PROCEDURE

I. PURPOSE
It is the purpose of this policy to set forth the school district’s testing plan and procedure.

II. GENERAL STATEMENT OF POLICY
It is the policy of the school district to implement procedures for testing, test security, reporting, and documentation, notification to students and parents and student recordkeeping in accordance with Minnesota law.

III. DUTIES OF SCHOOL DISTRICT TEST ADMINISTRATOR
The school district test administrator as named in Policy 613, Graduation Requirements, shall be responsible for preparing and presenting annually to the school board for approval, and overseeing the publishing of, the basic standards test administration plan. The school district test administrator shall file the plan with the Department and deliver the plan to all households in the school district by October 15 of each year. The plan shall include, at a minimum, the following:

A. The graduation requirements;
B. The number of opportunities a student shall have to retake tests of basic standards during each year;
C. The opportunities for remediation for a student who has not passed tests of basic standards;
D. The process for requesting an additional testing opportunity and accommodations for a senior who has met all other graduation requirements but has not passed one or more basic standards;
E. The process for appealing the school district's response to requests in item D;
F. The method to report breaches in test security procedures to the school district and the Department; and
H. Procedures for meeting the needs of Limited English Proficient students, students who require an IEP or students who require Section 504 Accommodation.
IV. TEST SECURITY

A. Security Requirements. When administering tests for the basic standards, the school district shall observe the following test security measures:

1. All test booklets, answer sheets, and test materials shall be placed in locked storage before and after the test administration;
2. The tests, testing materials, and answer sheets are nonpublic data under Minn. Stat. 13.34;
3. No copies of test booklets or answer sheets shall be made; and
4. The school district shall report any violations of test security to the Department. The Department shall receive reports of violations of test security from anyone with knowledge of such an incident.

B. Security Violations. The Department shall investigate any reported incidents of breaches in test security. The consequences of a violation of test security may include:

1. the invalidation of test scores if a violation is found to justify serious questions about the integrity of the results of the test administration; or
2. other reasonable sanctions that are necessary to preserve the security and confidentiality of future tests and test administrations.

V. SCHOOL DISTRICT REPORTING TO THE DEPARTMENT AND PUBLIC

A. The school district shall report the information specified below to the Department annually by October 15 in a format to be determined by the Department.
B. The school district shall prepare and disseminate annually by October 15 a public report of the information specified below through the official newspaper or through publications sent to all households in the school district.
C. The reports required above shall include:

1. the number of students enrolled at each grade level 9 through 12 according to the end of the year Minnesota Automated Reporting Student System (MARSS) report;
2. the number of students at each grade level 9 through 12 passing each basic standard at the state standards level;
3. the number of students at each grade level 9 through 12 passing each basic standard at an individualized level under an IEP or a Section 504 Accommodation plan;
4. the number of students at each grade level 9 through 12 passing tests in each basic standard with tests that have been translated into a language other than English;
5. the number of students at each grade level 9 through 12 exempt from testing in each basic standard; and
6. for grade 12 of the previous year only, the number of students currently denied a high school diploma because of not passing the state standard for a basic standard when all other graduation requirements have been met.

D. The superintendent shall submit reports identifying expenditures related to basic standards testing, to the Department as required by law.

VI. REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION FOR PROGRAM AUDIT
The school district shall maintain records necessary for program audits conducted by the Department. The records must include documentation that:

A. required notifications to parents and students meet the requirements of Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0120;
B. required student records meet the requirements of Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0130;
C. the school district's process for additional testing of students meets the requirements of Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0050.
D. test security procedures comply with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0150;
E. the school district’s decisions regarding testing accommodations, modifications, and granting exemptions are in compliance with Minnesota Rules, parts 3501.0090 and 3501.0100;
F. the school district's curriculum and instruction provides appropriate learning opportunities in the basic standards in compliance with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0110;
G. remediation plans for students are on file consistent with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0110;
H. the basic standards test administration plan complies with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0140, subpart 2;
I. the documentation for students granted accommodations or exempted from testing complies with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0090;
J. the assessments and documentation of performance for students granted modifications of statewide standards comply with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0090, subpart 2, item C; and
K. the school district's process for testing considerations for LEP students complies with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0100.

VII. REQUIRED NOTIFICATION TO PARENTS AND STUDENTS

A. Written Notice. The school district shall establish and maintain a system to provide written notice to parents and students about graduation requirements.
B. Notice of Graduation Requirements. No later than thirty (30) working days after the date of the entrance into the 9th grade or transfer of a student into the school district during or after 9th grade, the school district shall provide to the parents and the student written notice of:

1. the graduation requirements; and
2. the grade in which the student shall have the first opportunity to take a test in basic standards.

C. Notice of Test Results and Remediation Opportunities. The school district shall provide no later than ninety (90) days after a student takes a test of basic standards, written notice to the parents and the student of:

1. basic standards test results; and
2. consistent with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0050, subpart 3, if the student is in the graduating year:

a. the process by which a parent or student can request additional testing and testing accommodations after April 1; and
b. the process by which a parent or student can appeal the school district's decision if additional testing or testing accommodation is denied.

VIII. STUDENT RECORDKEEPING

A. Test Results. The school district shall keep a record on each student that includes:
1. the basic standards tests taken; and
2. the results of the most recent basic standards tests given.

B. Student Progress. Individual student progress shall be reported on a student record as described in items 1 to 6 below.

1. Pass-state level shall be noted on the record of a student who passes a basic standards test under standard conditions or with an accommodation. The records for students passing with an accommodation shall not be different from the records of students passing the test under standard conditions.
2. Pass-individual level shall be noted on the record of a student who passes a basic standards test with a modification established in the IEP or Section 504 Accommodation plan in accordance with Minnesota Rules, part 3501.0090.
3. Pass-translate shall be noted on the record of a student who passes a basic standards test that has been translated into a language other than English and has not been validated by the state as a state test with a set passing score.
4. Exempt shall be noted on the record of a student who has been exempted from a basic standards test.
5. Pass-translation shall be the designation for reporting individual student passing scores in tests of written composition when test prompts are translated into a language other than English for the student and the student’s response is written in English without the use of any prohibited materials.
6. Pass-limited English proficiency shall be recorded on the student record for written composition, at the request of the student or parent, when an analytic review, conducted by the state contracted vendor of a twelfth grade LEP student’s test concludes that the failing score has resulted solely from inadequate demonstration of language conventions as described in Minnesota Rules, part 3501.6230, subpart 2, item E. In no case, however, shall the pass-limited English proficiency designation be assigned to a composition completed primarily in a language other than English. No Limited English Proficient (LEP) student or parent shall be required to accept this designation to replace further instruction and further opportunities to achieve a pass-state level designation as defined in part 3501.0130, subpart 2, item 4.

Legal References: Minn. Rule Parts 3501.0010 to 3501.0180; Minn. Rule Parts 3501.0200 to 3501.0290; Minn. Stat. 120B.11 School District Process); Minn. Stat. 123B.143, Subd. 1 (Superintendent)

Cross References: MSBA/MASA Model Policy 601 (School District Curriculum and Instruction Goals); MSBA/MASA Model Policy 613 (Graduation Requirements); MSBA/MASA Model Policy 615 (Basic Standards Testing, Accommodations, Modifications, and Exemptions for IEP, Section 504 Accommodation and LEP Students); MSBA/MASA Model Policy 616 (School District System Accountability)

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