TELPAS Alternate Accommodations

TEA defines accommodations as changes to materials or procedures that enable students to participate meaningfully in learning and testing. Because TELPAS Alternate is an assessment based on a year of quality English instruction, the student performance described in the Observable Behaviors occurs while students have access to the instructional accommodations indicated in their IEP. A teacher’s determination of the English proficiency of a student with the most significant cognitive disabilities using TELPAS Alternate should reflect the student’s performance in English using the same accommodations used in daily instruction.

For purposes of TELPAS Alternate, “English” is not limited to the typical spoken or written English of other state assessments. It is important to recognize that some EB students use sign language, braille, or another method of communication as a substitute for traditional English in one or more domains. Teachers evaluating how well their students participate in classroom activities in English should consider whether an alternate response mode is an appropriate way for a student to demonstrate proficiency in a specific language domain. Allowable response modes for TELPAS Alternate are listed in the table below.

Domain	Allowable Response Modes
For the listening domain, it is allowable for a student to	alert to gaze at point to reach for touch or pick up draw circle nod gesture toward the targeted stimulus
For the speaking domain, it is allowable for a student to	verbalize form responses with the assistance of a communication device with preprogrammed familiar vocabulary or programmed student vocabulary sign responses
For the reading domain, it is allowable for a student to	read alert to gaze at point to reach for touch or pick up draw circle nod gesture toward the targeted stimulus verbalize or sign by responding to letters, words, or numbers to form a response when a wide range of manipulatives is available arrange letters, words, or numbers to form a response when a wide range of manipulatives is available form responses with the assistance of a communication device with preprogrammed familiar vocabulary or programmed student vocabulary indicate yes or no when presented with three or more choices and being asked, “Is this the ___?”
For the writing domain, it is allowable for a student to	write alert to gaze at point to reach for touch or pick up draw circle nod gesture toward the targeted stimulus use adaptive writing equipment (typing, keyboarding) arrange letters, words, or numbers to form a response when a wide range of manipulatives is available