CMT-CAPT Skills Checklist Technical Manual. - NAAC

jointly decide whether the student’s performance on each item should be scored as a 0, 1,or 2 (as explained in the following section).The goal of this CMT/CAPT Skills Checklist is to provide an accurate picture of thestudent’s achievement at a specific point in time, i.e., during the CMT testing window.The ratings on the Checklist must reflect the student’s current achievement levels. Thismeans that the rater must be confident that the ratings being assigned accurately reflectthe student’s achievement when the Checklist is finalized. In other words the skills beingrated must have been observed during the period immediately prior to the finalizing ofratings in March. To ensure this level of accuracy any Checklist items that have not beenassessed between January 1 st and the close of the March CMT test window must bereassessed prior to finalizing the checklist. Stated differently, beginning in January ofeach school year the student’s special education team should confirm the student’sperformance on all Checklist items so that the ratings submitted during the MarchCMT test window present an accurate record of the student’s achievement at thatpoint in time. If, as recommended, the Checklist is being used as a working document toguide instruction throughout the year this verification of achievement can be incorporatedinto the student’s ongoing instructional program with little disruption.Formatted: Font: 12 pt, Not ItalicFormatted: Font: 12 pt, Not ItalicProfessional development and training programsInitial efforts to establish the reliability of the CMT/CAPT Skills Checklist addressedrater accuracy. Traditional procedures for estimating reliability are not appropriate for thecircumstances under which the Skills Checklist will be used. Rater accuracy, however,depends on the training of raters to an explicit and well-articulated set of criteria. Thus,training efforts begun during the 2005-06 school year planned annually thereafter focusedon the optimal provision of this training within the practical limits of the Skills Checklistas an instrument for large-scale assessment purposes. This approach to establishingreliability for the Skills Checklist was reviewed at the Technical Advisory CommitteeMeeting in August, 2005 and found to be reasonable. For a roster of the TechnicalAdvisory Committee members, please see Appendix C.Special education administratorsEach fall, Special Education Administrators from Connecticut school districts, privateapproved special education facilities, and Regional Education Service Centers (RESCs)participate in a “Back to School Meeting” in which the CSDE provides an update on newregulations, state and/or federal policy directives, and new or changed administrativeprocedures. At the Fall 2005 session, the afternoon session was set aside exclusively toorient the special education administrators to the revised CMT/CAPT Skills Checklist. Inparticular the training addressed:• Specific changes in the CMT/CAPT Skills Checklist;• Theoretical rationale for the changes;xxvi