The state of accommodations for fifth grade students with disabilities on the Virginia SOL reading, writing, and math tests

The purpose of the study was to conduct a post hoc analysis of the Virginia Standards of Learning Programs (SOLs) 2004 performance of grade 5 students with disabilities on the English: Reading, Literature & Research Test, English: Writing Test, and the Mathematics Test to examine the use of test accommodations and their impact on the statewide performance of students with disabilities. Results from this study indicate that 77.9% of students with disabilities utilized accommodation during assessment, while 70% of students used more than one accommodation. The pass rate of all students with disabilities was consistently lower than the state reported pass rate for all fifth grade students on the Spring 2004 administration, with students using accommodations having the lowest performance rate. These results clearly indicate that students with disabilities who utilized accommodations in Virginia did not have an unfair advantage. This study provides discussion regarding recommendations for future research and policies leading to improved accountability in state assessments.