The 2018-2019 ELPA21 Dynamic Screener Training Modules are now available through AEA Learning Online! Please see the information below regarding the availability of these modules.
New English Language Proficiency Screening Assessment for All Iowa schools
As of Aug. 1, all Iowa schools will be required to implement the new ELPA21 Dynamic Screener Assessment for decisions regarding possible student placement in English language instructional programs
ELPA21 Dynamic Screener Training Modules Now Available
To help you prepare for administration of the required ELPA21 Dynamic Screener, the following modules are now available at no cost to Iowa districts and AEA employees through AEA Learning Online:
- Gearing up for ELPA21 Assessment Module 2018-19: The purpose of the "Gearing Up" module is to help those who are new to EL assessment in Iowa quickly get up to speed with the assessment requirements and online system. This module is beneficial for new teachers, administrators, and support staff members who have never administered an ELPA21 assessment before. It can also be a good review (although not required) for those who are experienced with ELPA21 Assessments.
- ELPA21 Dynamic Screener Training 2018-19: This training is required of those who need to administer the ELPA21 Dynamic Screener Assessment. This training contains 2 modules:
- ELPA21 Dynamic Screener: Preparation 2018-19
- ELPA21 Dynamic Screener: Administration, Scoring, and Viewing Results 2018-19
Please Note: Documents to support the ELPA21 Dynamic Assessment can also be found in the Resources folder of the online assessment system.
For additional assistance, please contact Jennifer Riedemann at (515) 661-7066 or jennifer.riedemann@iowa.gov.
In order to receive communications regarding the ELPA21 Assessment, now is the time to make sure your district coordinator has access to the Iowa ELPA21 application of the Iowa Education Portal. District coordinators for public districts should request the role of “ELPA21_Dist_Coord” for the Iowa ELPA21 application. New for this year, coordinators for non-public schools should request the role of “ELPA21_NP_Coord”. Having the correct district coordinator specified is important to be sure you receive up-to-date communication needed to prepare for training and administration of the 2017-18 ELPA21 assessment. For assistance, contact the Portal Helpdesk at (515) 725- 2040 or ed.portal@iowa.gov. This message was also included in the Nov. 2017 issue of the School Leader Update.
For the 2017-18 school year, schools should continue to make placement decisions using the TELPA. There will be a switch to the ELPA21 screener for the 2018-19 school year, beginning with screening for incoming kindergarten students in May. Online training to administer the ELPA21 screener will be available next spring.
For the 2017-18 school year, schools should continue reporting TELPA scores for their students to the Iowa Department of Education. Please use this new, updated Score Reporting spreadsheet and discard any earlier versions you may have. The DE has been working with the EdInsight team to get screening scores added to the data warehouse, but the first step is to ensure that data is complete and accurate. Schools no longer need to include screening results in the SRI data elements, so the spreadsheet is the only way the Department can document compliance with this expectation from the Title III corrective action plan.
Current information on EL assessments can also be found on the ELPA21 page of the DE website and in the TELPA online training materials.
TELPA training has been updated for the 2017-18 school year and is now available at the AEA Learning System. The method and timelines for reporting student scores on the TELPA has also been updated in the training. ELPA21 training modules will be announced when they become available.
There is now a way to earn re-licensure credit with the ELP Standards modules. (Note: If you have completed some or all of the modules, you would not need to redo them.) For more information about this course offering, click this link.
If you are unsure what trainings are available around serving ELs, click this link for a list of trainings and how to access them.
With another successful ELPA21 assessment administration in the books, districts are reminded to return all testing materials as noted in the training and in the original shipment. Return all used and unused paper and pencil materials (e.g. Kindergarten and 1st grade online writing supplements, paper test booklets, braille kits) using the prepaid return shipping label for return to Measurement Inc. as soon as possible. If you have any questions, contact the Iowa Department of Education Help Desk at iowaelpa21helpdesk@air.org or (855) 873-5710.
Google has released a patch for Chrome OS 56 that fixes the speaking recording issues AIR identified earlier. Chromebooks used for testing ELPA21 Speaking should be updated to Chrome OS 56.0.2924.101. Schools using Chromebooks are recommended to take a practice test on the Chromebook and confirm that ELPA21 Speaking records correctly before administering an operational test to students.
The American Institutes for Research (AIR) has identified an issue with Iowa ELPA21 speaking recordings on certain HP, Samsung, ASUS and Dell Chromebooks running Chrome OS versions 54 and 55. AIR and the Iowa Department of Education suggest that if you are planning to test Iowa ELPA21 students using an HP, Samsung, ASUS or Dell Chromebook you first take the Iowa ELPA21 practice test on the Chromebook.
If the speaking items function correctly on the practice test and your recordings play back clearly you can move ahead with administering the speaking test on these Chromebooks. If the speaking practice test does not function properly, you will need to upgrade some Chromebooks to OS version 56 when it is available.
Google is expected to fix this issue with the release of Chromebook OS version 56 in the next few days. For additional support, contact:
Iowa ELPA21 Help Desk
American Institutes for Research
(855) 873-5710
iowaelpa21helpdesk@air.org
The ELPA21 Assessment Administration Training for 2016-2017 is now available at AEA PD Online. All staff who are responsible for administering the ELPA21 assessment are required to complete this training prior to administering the test. The administration window is Feb. 13 to April 14, 2017. Practice tests will become available on Feb. 1, 2017.
It’s important that all districts are familiar with the exit date for ELs for winter reporting due to the delay in ELPA21 scores for the first operational administration.
Districts need to use the actual date that the team met and decided to exit the student based on ELPA21, reading and math proficiency. This will create error messages in SRI and districts will utilize the normal process for clearing error messages with their state SRI contact.
This will not be an issue moving forward as data will be available in plenty of time to exit within the pre-established window. Be watching for ELPA21 updates regarding changes for the 2017 Test Administration.
As previously shared, a sample parent ELPA21 letter has been developed for districts to use for communication to parents. While it’s not required that districts use the sample letter, it will serve as a good model for districts who desire to develop their own communication. For districts that wish to utilize the document, place on district letterhead and add additional information as deemed necessary and appropriate for your context.
In addition, the Title III Network has begun collaboration on translations for the sample ELPA21 parent letter so districts may communicate with family members in a language most easily understood. Several translations are currently available and have been posted on the English Language Learners Community Agora. Additional languages will be posted to this statewide site as they become available. Follow these steps to access the translations.
Two important messages about Training to Access ELPA21 Results and the ELPA21 Score Reporting Interpretation Guide are below, to help with interpretation of what the scores mean,
Training to Access ELPA21 Results
ELPA21 Online Score Reports are live on the Online Score Reporting System. Before accessing the individual student score reports, district staff must complete the training as outlined below.
For students who have transferred to a new district post-test administration, they will be included in the score reporting for the district that tested the student. Follow the same process that was utilized for Abbreviated Reports for Proficiency Determinations as follows:
- Contact the sending district and request the student’s ELPA21 Score Report be sent to you.
- If you run into problems retrieving the score report from the sending district. contact Kelly Hart.
Online Reporting System Training is live and needs to be completed before attempting to retrieve score reports from ORS.
- Access the webinar training here. Once you have logged in, click on Catalog and search for ELPA21 to locate the webinar training titled, Online Reporting System (ORS) Webinar for ELPA21 Assessment 2016-2017.
Instructions for accessing ORS are provided in the training webinar.
All questions related to A and A accounts need to be addressed through the Iowa Department of Education helpline at (515) 725-2040.
All other questions related to the ORS need to be directed to the AIR help desk at:
- Toll-Free Phone Support: (855) 873-5710
ELPA21 Score Interpretation Guide
The ELPA21 Score Reporting Interpretation Guide will also be uploaded to the AIR/IDE Portal and attached to the ORS Training as a resource. This will help clarify a number of questions regarding what the scores mean.
The Iowa Department of Education reports that there has been a delay in the release of the ELPA21 Screener, which necessitates the use of the TELPA for the 2016-17 academic year. Due to field testing complexity issues related to the ELPA21 Screener, the field testing can’t be accomplished until the fall of 2016 and the final operational screener will not be available until spring of 2017. As such, Iowa has made the decision to use TELPA for the full academic year to ensure consistency in the identification of ELs.
More information on ordering materials and returning assessment results to the vendor will be forthcoming. This status is provided to help you RETAIN current TELPA test booklets and to assist you in planning for Kindergarten round-up testing.
Thank you for your ongoing collaborative spirit and dedication to Iowa’s growing population of English Language Learners. For more information, contact Dr. Jobi B. Lawrence, Title III Director, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3805 or Colleen Anderson, Student Assessment, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3249.
The timeline to use the state’s required online assessment for English Language Learners, the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21) closes April 15. If any students have moved out of your district and should be removed from the list, contact Colleen Anderson at Colleen.Anderson@iowa.gov before April 15.
The Department of Education (DE) has provided clarification on a number of issues surrounding ELPA21 Assessment Requirements for ELL Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities. Read more about assessment requirements and participation and ELL services in this DE memo.
In addition, the Department will a host a webinar March 8, 2016 at 3:30 p.m. to provide IEP teams with further guidance on accessibility for ELL students with significant cognitive disabilities and their ELPA 21 Test Proctors. You can access the webinar here. If you’re unable to attend the live event, the recording will be posted on the Iowa Department of Education ELPA21 webpage.
For more information, contact Jobi Lawrence, Colleen Anderson or Emily Thatcher with the DE.
There have been a number of general questions related to the first operational administration of ELPA21 (the new Annual English Language Proficiency Assessment).
Please review the DE memo, the ELPA21 Testing Administration and directions to Create Account on DE Portal that help answer these questions and to fully engage in the required webinar trainings in preparation for practice testing and live administration.
All general information related to ELPA21 can be accessed on the public side of the Portal. There are several items that are locked due to security and only users with A&A Accounts will be able to access those items when they become available on Jan. 19.
For more information, contact Jobi Lawrence, Ed.D., Title III Director, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3805 or Colleen Anderson, Assessment Consultant, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3249.
Training on the state’s required online assessment for English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21) continues with a webinar this Monday, Jan. 11 at 3:30 p.m.
This training is an overview and should help district and building test coordinators and classroom teachers prepare for the actual testing session with students as well as navigate the online reporting system. More details on the system will come in the spring.
Special Notes:
- Upcoming ELPA21 training webinars on Jan. 13 and Jan. 20 are CANCELLED.
- It’s important that participants either attend the webinar this Monday or view the recording once it’s posted.
- All participants need to register individually.
Register for the Jan. 11 webinar here.
For more information, contact Colleen Anderson, Student Assessment, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3249.
Beginning this school year, the state’s required assessment for English Language Learners will be an online assessment: the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21). It will replace the Iowa English Language Development Assessment.
The Department will provide training for tech coordinators, test coordinators, and test administrators with a series of webinars. They are also providing a test administration certification module for teachers.
Training registration information can be found here.
For more information, contact Colleen Anderson, Student Assessment, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3249.
Beginning this school year, the state’s required assessment for English Language Learners will be an online assessment: the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21). It will replace the Iowa English Language Development Assessment.
The ELPA21 is required for all English Language Learners in K-12. The tests are to be administered annually from Feb. 15 - April 15. The cost for the assessment is wholly paid by the Iowa Department of Education.
The Department will provide training for tech coordinators, test coordinators, and test administrators with a series of four, one-hour webinars. They are also providing a test administration certification module for teachers.
All webinars are scheduled from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. and the first training is Dec. 14. The recording and materials will be posted on the Iowa Department of Education’s ELPA21 website and the Area Education Agencies’ Agora site for English Language Learners.
Registration information can be found here.
For more information, contact Colleen Anderson, Student Assessment, Iowa Department of Education at (515) 281-3249.
