NCME is a strong organization with a great board. Colleagues, please nominate those eager and ready to lead us forward, together. Link (due 11/14): form.jotform.com/252314794748... We welcome your questions and look forward to your engagement. @ncme38.bsky.social @derekbriggs.bsky.social

My 2025 travel schedule includes 6 trips to Kansas, but I am particularly excited for this one because it includes visits to the Kansas School for Blind and Kansas School for Deaf. My goal is to improve reading assessments to align with effective instruction, but that starts with learning.

In a recent article in EM:IP, Cahalan Laitusis and Karvonen review the history of universal design and propose a new framework—universal design of assessment systems—to address contemporary issues and needs in the field. Learn more: doi.org/10.1111/emip... #NCMEResearch

We recognize the impressive advances the universal design community has made to ensure that #universaldesign #UDL requirements permeate laws and design requirements that extend beyond educational assessment. Instead of abandoning these efforts, we reimagine - onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Public school choice is expanding—but how do families make informed decisions? AIR's Kerstin Le Floch and Laura Hamilton explain why statewide assessments matter more than ever in a new @nciea.bsky.social blog. www.nciea.org/blog/statewi...

We’ve got a bunch of interesting presentations lined up for the National Conference on Student Assessment #NCSA2025 next week. ➡️ bit.ly/4edAaDs Here’s a rundown of what we’re doing. Come see us if you’re in Denver!

If you are #NCSA2025 join me at 2:45 in Ballroom D. I will be presenting with Kansas and Maryland on how to balance the civil rights of students with disabilities and implement science of reading reform. I am sharing more on the importance of measuring background knowledge.

I love the Microsoft inclusive persona spectrum graphic for accessibility. Since bartender and cataracts don’t fit my main audience of K12 education, I adapted it and thought I would share. @edusky.bsky.social #Edusky #a11y

Much needed session at #NCME2025 on how civics education can happen in a divided nation. www.xcdsystem.com/ncme/program...

If you are interested in how we can use accommodation and universal tools click/usage data to inform policy, scoring, and test design just keep walking all the way around the back to find us at 8am Colorado I/J #NCME2025 www.xcdsystem.com/ncme/program...

The Joint Committee will have two sessions for #AERA2025 and #NCME2025 attendees to hear about our work updating the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. Today’s session is at 1:45 at the convention center and (Saturday session is at the Hilton). www.xcdsystem.com/ncme/program...

And now we know. #AI items for bar exam and “non legally trained” psychometrician www.latimes.com/california/s...

I just reviewed the #AERA2025 accessibility tips. I don’t think it is necessary to “describe your appearance and dress”. Here are my #4 1. Use the mic 2. Say your name before you speak 3. Describe/read key points in the visual slides 4. Slow down for ASL interpreting www.aera.net/Events-Meeti...

Future of Testing and Accountability www.the74million.org/article/trum...

I am heading to #AERA2025 and #NCME2025 next week. I think this may be the first conference with a lot of us on @bsky.app Does anyone know if we just use hashtags or if there is a better way to interact people at the conference? @ncme38.bsky.social @aeraedresearch.bsky.social

Another wonderful addition to BlueSky is the Center for Assessment @nciea.bsky.social Also included in the Measurement and Assessment Starter Pack go.bsky.app/DW9LoQa #EduSky

Sharing my 6 favorite things for accessibility. I hope #5 and #6 can keep their federal funding. www.nciea.org/blog/caras-f... #edusky #a11y @edusky.bsky.social #edtech #asugsvsummit

Happiness is when your 80 year old mom is sending you this picture with her friends in Florida and your 82 year old father sends a video from his #HandsOff protest in Connecticut. I am hoping the apple won’t fall far from the tree for me.

If you missed the Center for Assessments “Case for Testing” webinar you can find the paper and recording here: www.nciea.org/library/the-...

This one seems to be really sliding under the radar with all the other news but is a big deal IMO. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/03/u...

If the federal role is diminished, should statewide school accountability systems continue? My colleagues and I at the Center think the answer is YES. We explain why in this brief. Please consider sharing it. www.nciea.org/library/the-...

I hope @andrewdeanho.bsky.social lives a very long life but after reading this, I am envisioning the start of his obituary. IYKYK www.nytimes.com/2025/03/13/s...

NAEP Law uses the phrase "valid and reliable" 8 times and references "professional testing standards" 7 times. We can't measure educational progress with a bendable yardstick. Let's get the expertise we need. www.nagb.gov/naep/the-nae...

@stevenfulop.bsky.social who is your education advisor? I would like to connect with them but can’t find anyway to make direct contact via your website and no one responded to my form inquiry.

If you know testing people, you know we rarely agree, but all of us at the Center for Assessment agree on the case for state testing. Download our paper and sign up for our webinar @EduSky #EduSky www.nciea.org/event/the-ca...

Sad truth: Special education researchers always feel forgotten, but after the NCSER IES funding and program officers were spared we may become very popular.

Update on my career shifting sabbatical that was inspired by “anxiety fueled planning.” I am resharing given the many layoffs last week of educational researchers. @edusky #EduSky www.linkedin.com/posts/cara-l...?

With all the layoffs in educational research and policy, I thought I would reshare this article I wrote about my “do it yourself sabbatical” or “mid-life gap year.” highly recommend if you can swing it financially. www.linkedin.com/pulse/my-do-...?

I saw the source and @mattbarnum.bsky.social hits all the highlights. It is unclear if an EO is needed or if congress needs to ultimately approve (60 votes). However it is time for states to decide what assessment and accountability they value and which students they will prioritize.

+1 for this and it is particularly important for parents of special education students to effectively advocate for changes to an IEP. www.the74million.org/article/what...

I smell “cost savings” from AI item generation. Anyone know? www.nytimes.com/2025/03/02/u...

Anyone who cares about NAEP should worry about the abrupt removal of the person most responsible for its technical and operational quality.

Bright spot in my month that blends personal and professional. My kid was selected to play in the Duke vs. UNC Unified #basketball game on Tuesday March 4th 7:00pm at Cameron. I hope those in #NorthCarolina come out to support the Special Olympics athletes @specialolympics.bsky.social #inclusion

Pinning this one since it is the best resource I have found to keep up on all the federal funding changes and executive orders. hechingerreport.org/tracking-tru... I encourage all who care about education (and have jobs) to support education reporters like @hechingerreport.org

More on section 504. The case is “on pause” and the states issued this joint statement to clarify that they didn’t mean what they said, but also didn’t pull back entirely. Good example of advocacy by the disability rights community. www.scag.gov/media/opdf20...

And the chaser … www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-t...

DOGE's death blow to education studies hechingerreport.org/proof-points...

Good analysis of a Dear Colleague Letter that will have a chilling effect on college admissions but also extends across all of education including exam high schools, affinity groups, and scholarships.

Also ironic that there was a specific request for USED to stop sending Dear Colleague Letters. www.the74million.org/article/excl...

I see a lot of journalists and law folks weighing in here, but I can tell you as someone who worked in the policy shop at a state education agency that we treated Dear Colleagues letters as official policy to be followed. Done right, these letters filled in the blanks between laws and...

After red states requested no more“Dear colleague letter” … the newest DCL explicitly states that banning standardized test to increase diversity is prohibited and encourages reporting of violations to the Office of Civil Rights. www.ed.gov/media/docume...

Thinking of all those educational researchers who may find themselves unemployed soon. I hope this could be a silver lining of the #EduSky storm.

#A11yFeed what are your best recommendations for training in creating accessible Google docs? My tables are reading in an odd order with speechify, despite trying to fix them with grackle

And so it begins. Temporary (hopefully) layoffs at RTI www.wral.com/video/rti-in...

504 lawsuit update www.bazelon.org/wp-content/u...

We had been told that DOGE's cuts to ED did *not* include the regional education laboratories (e.g., www.edweek.org/policy-polit...), but I have just been told by a trusted anonymous source that employees of REL Pacific were told their contract has been canceled.

This is an excellent summary of the still evolving IES story. It made me feel a little better to know they plan to rebuild. However, it appears saved programs like College Scorecard, can’t report data without cancelled contracts like IPEDS. #EduSky www.the74million.org/article/is-t...

Starting one thread on IES articles and information. Here is the @aeraedresearch.bsky.social statement. www.aera.net/Newsroom/AER...

Did anyone with NCSER funding get this letter? All my past IES funding was from NCSER and I was was told that was actually IDEA money that came from OSEP when Bush created IES. Just wondering if that money has special protections.

Important read for those tracking potential federal department of education changes. I was particularly pleased to see that special education is not included and found it interesting that the Dear Colleague Letters were called out. #SPED. www.the74million.org/article/excl... @edusky #EduSky