A.

mandatory participation by all eligible students as defined by State Board of Education rules;

B.

industry certification examinations, national assessments, and Statewide assessments offered by the District be made available to all Florida Virtual School students in the District;

C.

industry certification examinations, national assessments, and Statewide assessments be taken at the student's regularly assigned school, unless an alternative site is mutually agreed to by the District and the Florida Virtual School or authorized contractor;

The District will notify students of the date and time of the administration of each examination or assessment.

D.

parents be informed of the testing program of the schools and of the Statewide, standardized tests or the local assessments that are to be administered to their children;

E.

data regarding individual test scores on either the Statewide, standardized tests or the local end of course assessments be entered on the student's cumulative record, where it will be subject to the policy of this Board regarding student records;

F.

school and District test results will be reported to the public annually;

G.

the Superintendent shall develop procedures for the annual assessment of first, second, third, and fourth grade students on their reading proficiency and identify those students who are reading below grade level and shall ensure that each student's teacher is involved in the assessment and in the identification of those students who are reading below grade level.

The District will notify the parent of each student who exhibits a deficiency in reading, shall consult with the parent in the development of a progress monitoring plan, and will provide intensive reading instruction to the student until the deficiency is corrected.

A.

The Board will establish schedules for the administration of any Statewide, standardized assessments and District-required assessments and approve the schedules as an agenda item at a Board meeting. The Board will publish the testing schedules on its website using the Department of Education’s uniform calendar with the information required by State law.

The Board will submit the schedules to the Department of Education by October 1st of each year. Each District school will publish the schedules for Statewide, standardized assessments and District-required assessments on its website using the uniform calendar.

B.

The Board will not schedule more than five percent (5%) of a student’s total school hours in a school year to administer Statewide, standardized assessments and District-required local assessments. The Board will secure written consent from a student’s parent before administering District-required local assessments that, after applicable Statewide, standardized are scheduled, exceed the five percent (5%) test administration limit for that student. The five percent (5%) test administration limit for a student may be exceeded if necessary to provide test accommodations that are required by an IEP or are appropriate for an English language learner who is currently receiving services in the District’s English language learner program.

A.

distribute to students sample assessment books and answer keys that are published by the Florida Department of Education;

B.

provide individual instruction in assessment taking strategies without suspending the school's regular program of curricula for a student who scores at Level 1 or Level 2 on a prior administration of the Statewide assessment;

C.

provide individualized instruction in the content knowledge and skills assessed, without suspending the school's regular program of curriculum for a student who scores at Level 1 or Level 2 on a prior administration of the Statewide assessment or a student who, through a diagnostic assessment administered by the District is identified as having a deficiency in the content knowledge and skills assessed; and

D.

administer a practice assessment or engage in other assessment preparation activities for the statewide assessment which are determined necessary to familiarize students with the organization of the assessment, the format of the assessment items, and the assessment directions, or which are otherwise necessary for the valid and reliable administration of the assessment, as set forth in rules adopted by the State Board of Education.

A.

Participation in Statewide Standardized Assessments with or without Accommodations

All students with disabilities will participate in the Statewide standardized assessment program based on State standards, pursuant to F.A.C. 6A-1.09401, without accommodations unless the student's individual educational plan (IEP) team, or the team that develops the plan required under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, determines and documents that the student requires allowable accommodations during instruction and for participation in a Statewide standardized assessment.

"Accommodations" are defined as adjustments to the presentation of the Statewide standardized assessment questions, methods of recording examinee responses to the questions, scheduling for the administration of a Statewide standardized assessment to include amount of time for administration, settings for administration of a Statewide standardized assessment, and the use of assistive technology or devices to facilitate the student's participation in a Statewide standardized assessment. Accommodations that negate the validity of a Statewide standardized assessment are not allowable.

The provision of accommodations for students with disabilities shall be provided in accordance with F.A.C. 6A-1.0943 and applicable State and Federal laws.

B.

Florida Standard Alternate Assessment

A student with a disability, as defined in F.S. 1007.02(2), for whom the IEP Team determines that the Statewide, standardized assessments cannot accurately measure the student's abilities, taking into consideration all allowable accommodations, shall have assessment results waived for the purpose of receiving a course grade and a standard high school diploma. Such a waiver shall be designated on the student's transcript. The statement of waiver shall be limited to a statement that performance on an assessment was waived for the purpose of receiving a course grade or a standard high school diploma, as applicable.

The alternative assessment program is designed for a student with a significant cognitive disability and includes the Florida Standards Alternate Assessment (FSAA) – Performance Task and the FSAA – Datafolio assessments. The decisions of whether a student is eligible to participate in the alternative assessment program and whether the student should participate in the FSAA – Performance Task or FSAA – Datafolio assessments is determined by the student’s IEP team and delineated on the student's IEP.  Such determinations must be in accordance with the criteria set forth in Florida law including, but not limited to, F.A.C. 6A-1.0943 and 6A-1.09430.

C.

Extraordinary Exemptions

A student with a disability for whom the IEP team determines is prevented by a circumstance or condition, as those terms are defined in F.S. 1008.212, from physically demonstrating the mastery of skills that have been acquired and are measured by the Statewide standardized assessment, a Statewide standardized end-of-course assessment, or an alternate assessment pursuant to F.S. 1008.22(3)(c) shall be granted an extraordinary exemption from the administration of the assessment. A learning, emotional, behavioral, or significant cognitive disability or the receipt of services through the homebound or hospitalized program is not, in and of itself, an adequate criterion for the granting of an extraordinary exemption.

Once an IEP Team determines that a student with a disability is prevented by a "circumstance" or "condition" as defined in F.S. 1008.212 from physically demonstrating the mastery of skills that have been acquired and are measured by the Statewide standardized assessment, a Statewide standardized end-of-course assessment, or an alternate assessment under F.S. 1008.22(3)(c), the IEP Team may submit to the superintendent a written request for an extraordinary exemption from the administration of the assessment pursuant to F.S. 1008.212.

The written request for an extraordinary exemption may be made at any time during the school year but not later than sixty (60) days before the first day of the administration window of the assessment for which the request is made. The request must include the following information:

1.

A written description of the student's disabilities, including a specific description of the student's impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills.

2.

Written documentation of the most recent evaluation data.

3.

Written documentation, if available, of the most recent administration of Statewide standardized assessments.

4.

A written description of the circumstances' or conditions', as defined above, effect on the student's participation in Statewide standardized assessments.

5.

Written evidence that the student has had an opportunity to learn the skills being tested.

6.

Written evidence that the student has been provided appropriate instructional accommodations.

7.

Written evidence as to whether the student has had the opportunity to be assessed using the instructional accommodations on the student's IEP which are allowable in the administration of a Statewide standardized assessment.

8.

Written evidence of the circumstance or condition as defined above.

9.

The name, address, and phone number of the student's parent.

The superintendent will recommend to the Commissioner of Education whether the request should be granted or denied, and the Commissioner will grant or deny the requested exemption within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of the superintendent’s request. A copy of the District's procedural safeguards as required in F.A.C. 6A-6.03311 shall be provided to the parent. If the parent disagrees with the IEP Team's recommendation, the dispute resolution methods described in the procedural safeguards shall be made available to the parent.

D.

Exemption Options for Students with a Medical Complexity

In addition to the exemption option available under F.S. 1008.212, a student with a medical complexity as defined in F.S. 1008.22 may be exempt from participating in Statewide standardized assessments, including the Florida Alternate Assessment. If a parent consents in writing, and the student's IEP team determines that the student should not be assessed based on medical documentation that confirms that the student meets the criteria of medical complexity, the parent may select from the assessment exemption options set forth in F.S. 1008.22.