NCEO recently published Getting Ready for the 2021-22 School Year: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Testing Children with Disabilities (NCEO Brief #26). This brief addresses six common questions about testing children with disabilities and provides links to related resources. As the 2020-21 school year was unprecedented and many normal procedures were disrupted, with some schools engaging in virtual learning and others shifting between in-person and virtual learning, many questions arise for the upcoming school year about testing children with disabilities.

There is concern that children, particularly children with disabilities, may have experienced learning loss due to the disruptions of the last year as well as questions about how to best to design instruction accordingly. Testing can provide information about what children with disabilities have learned, and where additional support is needed. The six questions addressed in this brief are:

1. Why should children with disabilities be tested this school year?
2. Are schools required to test children with the most significant cognitive disabilities and English learners with disabilities this school year?
3. Which tests should children with disabilities take this school year?
4. Should the accommodation needs of children with disabilities be reviewed for this school year?
5. How should children be prepared for testing this school year?
6. How should the test results of children with disabilities be reported this school year?