Assessment Participation Requirements
Student Performance (State Accountability)
Standard 1-C.1.1 Each public school shall assess at least ninety-five percent (95%) of its students on the annual statewide student assessment (S/C). Failure of a school to adhere to this rule may result in a Standards for Accreditation Citation or Corrective Action by the Arkansas State Board of Education.
Annual Measurement of Achievement (Federal Accountability)
If a school does not meet the 95 percent participation requirement for all students or for any subgroup of students, 95 percent will be used for the denominator for purposes of measuring, calculating, and reporting. All calculations will be conducted both for the all students group and for each student group meeting minimum group size requirements (N=15). This explains the Weighted Achievement adjustment which impacts the overall ESSA School Index Score.
For schools that do not meet the 95 percent participation requirement for two consecutive years, the ADE will require each school to submit a Participation Plan of Support with the School Performance Unit that includes strategies for meeting participation requirements. For schools that do not meet the participation requirement for multiple years or that do not show sustained improvement in meeting the 95 percent participation rate, the ADE will implement additional actions and interventions as appropriate.
Assessment Correction Engine (ACE)
The Assessment Correction Engine (ACE) typically opens in August each year and gives Arkansas LEAs and their Superintendents the ability to review, attempt corrections, and certify their Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) assessment data. The School Performance Unit processes corrections for the following assessments annually:
- Statewide Summative Assessment ‐ ELA, Math, and Science (Grades 3‐10)
- Statewide Alternate Assessment ‐ ELA, Math, and Science (Grades 3‐11)
Students who were expected to test in a particular subject but failed to do so may have Reason Not Tested (RNT) codes assigned indicating why the student did not test. Some RNT codes will negate the student’s test expectation, thus improving the participation rate or percent tested for the associated subject in the school.
Expected to Test
All students are expected to test including full-academic year and highly mobile students.
Not Expected to Test
For more information on reasons why a student may be excluded from a school’s expectation to test and the required documentation needed to remove that student from the school’s enrollment, refer to the 2022-2023 ACE Corrections & Required Documentation Guide.
Resources:
For more information, please contact:
Tiffani Grayer, Coordinator of School Performance and Monitoring
Arkansas Department of Education
Division of Elementary and Secondary Education
Office of Public School Accountability
Four Capitol Mall, Box 26
Little Rock, AR 72201
Phone: 501-683-1024
Cell: 501-580-9764
Email: Tiffani.Grayer@ade.arkansas.gov
Kevin Ward, Systems Analyst
Arkansas Department of Education
Division of Elementary and Secondary Education
Office of Public School Accountability
Four Capitol Mall, Box 26
Little Rock, AR 72201
Phone: 501-682-0689
Email: Kevin.Ward@ade.arkansas.gov
