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EL Assessment

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DESE supports you as you continue to focus on the health and well-being of your students; find innovative ways to continue teaching and learning; and provide as much normalcy as possible for students, faculty and staff. Refer to the DESE-related COVID-19 webpage for links to useful information. If you have questions about assessment, send them to assessment@dese.mo.gov or call 573-751-3545.

Missouri joined the WIDA (pronounced Wee-Duh) consortium in 2010 in response to both wanting to improve the EL standards within the state and to help provide better service and assessment to a growing EL population. The WIDA Consortium is a non-profit group whose purpose is to promote educational success for ELs. Through the development and delivery of standards, assessments, research and professional development, WIDA provides meaningful tools, training and information to educators working with ELs, which are anchored in research-based practices for serving these diverse learners.

Aside from professional development and English Language Development resources, WIDA provides the state with screener and summative English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessments.​

ELP Summative Assessment

WIDA's ACCESS for ELLs is the English language proficiency assessment that Missouri has selected to meet the requirement of the Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA) to annually assess Missouri's students who are eligible for EL (English Learner) services, including students with disabilities. ACCESS allows educators, students, and families to monitor students’ progress in acquiring academic English in the domains of speaking, listening, reading, and writing and will be aligned with the WIDA English Language Development (ELD) Standards.

WIDA offer three assessments:

  • ACCESS for ELLs - The online assessment for students in grades 1-12 (a paper version is available for those with an IEP and for students with very limited exposure to technology)
  • Kindergarten ACCESS - A Paper-Based Kindergarten assessment that comes in a kit with manipulatives
  • Alternate ACCESS - An assessment of English language proficiency for students in grades 1 – 12 who are classified as ELs and have significant cognitive disabilities (those who do or would qualify for MAP-A) that prevent their meaningful participation in the ACCESS for ELLs 2.0  assessment. The assessment is based on Alternate Model Performance Indicators (AMPIs), which provide expectations of what students should be able to process and produce at a given Alternate ELP level.

More information about the summative ELP assessments can be found in the tabs below labeled ACCESS, K-ACCESS and Alt. ACCESS. Additionally information can be found in the annual LEA Guide to ELP Assessments.

Important Dates

Dates Event
September 28, 2020 to November 5, 2020 ACCESS Test Materials Ordering
DUE October 29, 2020 ACCESS Pre-Code DUE To DESE
November 9, 2020 to March 26, 2021 ACCESS Test Setup Available
December 7, 2020 ACCESS Materials Arrive In Districts
December 7, 2020 to March 26, 2021 ACCESS Additional Test Materials Ordering
January 11, 2021 to April 2, 2021 ACCESS 2021 Testing Window
DUE April 9, 2021 ACCESS Deadline To Ship Materials To DRC
May 4, 2021 to May 11, 2021 ACCESS Pre-Reporting Data Validation
June 14, 2021 ACCESS Districts Receive Individual Student Reports (ISR)
June 14, 2021 to June 18, 2021 ACCESS Post-Reporting Data Validation
July 2, 2021 ACCESS Districts Receive Final Data
 

Resources

Some links may require a login to the WIDA Website.

Manuals/Guides

ACCESS Resources

Test Preparation

Technology Resources

Contact Information

CONTACT PHONE EMAIL
Drew Linkon - Assistant Director of Assessment
EL Screening and EL Assessment
DESE EL Assessment		 573-751-8285 drew.linkon@dese.mo.gov
Shawn Cockrum - Director of MELL, Title III, Migrant
Title III, LAU Plan, EL Law
English Language Compliance		 573-751-8280 shawn.cockrum@dese.mo.gov
Cammy Goucher - ELD Curriculum Director
EL Instruction, building capacity in educational programs and strategies, assistance to LEAs in enhancing English language proficiency and academic achievement of ELs
English Language Development		 573-751-3926 cammy.goucher@dese.mo.gov
WIDA Client Services Center
Administration Questions, Screener, Standards, WIDA Logins
wida.wisc.edu/		 866-276-7735 help@wida.us
Data Recognition Corp. (DRC)
Assessment Management System (AMS), INSIGHT Testing Platform, COS, Technical Support
www.wida-ams.us		 855-787-9615 wida@datarecognitioncorp.com
 

Identification

Upon enrollment, Missouri districts are required to give a language use survey (LUS). The questions are:

  • What was the student’s first language?
  • Which language(s) does the student use (speak) at home and with others?
  • Which language(s) does the student hear at home and understand?

If the answer to any of these questions notes a language other than English is either spoken or understood, or if a Local Education Agency (LEA) feels that a child might have an English language learning need due to unreported exposure to another language, the student is potentially an EL and the district must take active steps to determine if the student qualifies for language instruction educational program (LIEP).

More information about the Kindergarten W-APT Screener and the 1-12 Online Screener can be found in the EL Screening Guide.

Additional information and resources about identification can be found on the Identification tab on the DESE English Language Development page.

Screener Resources

 

ACCESS for ELLs

ACCESS for ELLs is a secure large-scale English language proficiency assessment administered to students who have been identified as English learners (ELs). It is given annually to monitor students' progress in acquiring academic English.

The assessment allows educators, students, and families to monitor students’ progress in acquiring academic English in the domains of speaking, listening, reading, and writing and is aligned with the WIDA English Language Development (ELD) Standards.

The tasks on the assessment attempt to replicate the kinds of communicative situations (and the language needed to be processed or produced within them) that might be encountered in different school contexts. Each assessment item and task will target at least one of the five WIDA ELD Standards:

  • Social and Instructional Language
  • Language of Language Arts
  • Language of Mathematics
  • Language of Science
  • Language of Social Studies

ACCESS for ELLs assesses each of the four language domains of Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing separately.

Purpose and Use of ACCESS

  • Help students understand their current level of English language proficiency along the developmental continuum.
  • Serve as one of multiple measures used to determine those students prepared to exit English language support programs.
  • Provide teachers with information they can subsequently use to enhance instruction and learning in programs for their English learners.
  • Provide districts with information that will help them evaluate the effectiveness of their ESL/bilingual programs.

Training and Test Administrators

Individual test administrators must be trained in its administration and have agreed to maintain the security of test questions. Test administrators are required to go through training if they have not previously done so. Your district testing coordinator or EL coordinator will be tracking electronically who has completed the screener training. Test administrators are required to re-train each year. Beyond training, the only other requirement is that the test administrator must be a district employee that, at a minimum, meets the requirements of a paraprofessional under Title I. Only those under contract with the district may give the Assessment.

To participate in training, log into the WIDA website, log into your My Account & Secure Portal page, look under “ACCESS for ELLs Training Courses”, choose the appropriate assessment and complete the training modules. Test Administrators only need to complete training courses for those assessments they will be giving.

Test Format

Grade Speaking Listening Reading Writing
K Kindergarten Kit Kindergarten Kit Kindergarten Kit Kindergarten Kit
1 Computer Computer Computer Paper Only
2-3 Computer Computer Computer Paper Only
4-5 Computer Computer Computer Computer
6-8 Computer Computer Computer Computer
9-12 Computer Computer Computer Computer
Alternate Paper Only Paper Only Paper Only Paper Only

Reasons why a student may move from computer based testing to paper/pencil:

  • It is an allowable accommodation for students with disabilities who have it in their IEP/504 plan.
  • For students who are brand new to the country who may not have had access to computers, the district may choose to give the test to the student via paper/pencil.

Unlike our other state assessments, if any portion of the assessment is given via Paper/Pencil, the district will not enter those student responses. Instead, those responses will be shipped back with all physical testing materials.

 

Kindergarten ACCESS

About Kindergarten ACCESS

The test is an individually-administered, adaptive assessment. It is based on the WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards that form the core of the WIDA Consortium's approach to instructing and assessing English language learners.

The Kindergarten ACCESS assessment is:

  • Individually administered
  • Not tiered; all students take the same test
  • All domains (Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing) are tested twice, once within the expository section and once within the narrative section
  • Speaking and Listening are presented together, alternating between a listening task followed by a speaking task
  • All sections are adaptive, meaning items are presented until the student reaches his/her performance "ceiling"
  • Scored locally by the Test Administrator
  • High-interest stories
  • Engaging color graphics
  • Improved item types using manipulatives (cards, an Activity Board, and a Storybook)
  • Thematic integration of the language domains (Listening, Speaking, Writing, Reading)

Test Scheduling

The Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs assessment is individually administered.

WIDA recommends that Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs be administered during one session. If test administration has to be divided into two sessions, the break must occur between the administration of the narrative and expository sections and the break should last no more than 2 consecutive school days.

The administration of Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs is estimated to take approximately 45 minutes per student. The test is not timed.

Kindergarten Training Course

WIDA requires test administrators to complete the Kindergarten ACCESS Test Administration Quiz before administering the test. It is the district test coordinators responsibility to monitor whether test administrators have passed the quiz and are prepared to administer the assessment. District Test Coordinators can monitor their district educators’ training certification results via the WIDA website.

 

Alternate ACCESS

The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs, is an assessment of English language proficiency for students in grades 1 – 12 who are classified as English learners (ELs) and have significant cognitive disabilities (those who do or would qualify for MAP-A) that prevent their meaningful participation in the ACCESS for ELLs  assessment.

The assessment is based on Alternate Model Performance Indicators (AMPIs), which provide expectations of what students should be able to process and produce at a given Alternate ELP level.

The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs provides students with additional opportunities to demonstrate their English language proficiency through scripted cues in the Listening and Readings Sections and auxiliary questions in the Speaking Section. It also includes modeled tasks in the Writing Section to allow students to observe the test administrator perform the task before trying it. Other unique features of the test include simplified language, repetition of questions, increased graphic support, larger testing materials, and graphics.

The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs is an individually administered paper and pencil test. All sections of the assessment are scored locally by the test administrator.

Test Materials

Alternate ACCESS testing materials are ordered during the state ordering window through WIDA AMS.

Test Scheduling

The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs assessment is individually administered for all four sections (Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking) of the test. WIDA recommends that each test section be administered in a separate testing session.

The different test sections can be administered on different days, with no minimum or maximum break between administrations, as long as the entire assessment is administered within your district’s allotted testing window. Each section of the test is estimated to take approximately 20 minutes, although the test is not timed. Please see the Test Administration Manual for additional details on scheduling the test.

Alternate ACCESS Training Course

Test administration training and certification is crucial for successful administration of Alternate ACCESS for ELLs, and the answers to many frequently asked questions about test administration can be found in the training. WIDA requires test administrators to complete the Alternate ACCESS Training Course before administering the test. It is the district test coordinators responsibility to monitor whether test administrators have passed the quiz and are prepared to administer the assessment. District Test Coordinators can monitor their district educators’ training certification results via the WIDA website.