ELPAC email update, June 28, 2021.

Dear LEA ELPAC Coordinator:

Your local educational agency (LEA) has been selected to complete the second scoring requirement during the administration of the 2021–22 Alternate ELPAC Operational Field Test. We want to ensure that you have all the necessary resources to prepare and complete second scoring.

What Is Second Scoring?

Second scoring is the process of having an additional educator score a student's rubric-scored items simultaneously with, yet independently from, the student's primary test examiner (TE). The purposes of second scoring are to establish and document standardized scoring procedures; second scoring is one method of providing scorer reliability evidence. Ideally, the secondary TE is an educator who is familiar with the student's preferred communication modes.

Approximately eight items in each Alternate ELPAC form will require both the primary TE and the secondary TE to observe and score a student's live response using a rubric provided in the Directions for Administration (DFA). The second scores will not be used for official scoring or reporting purposes, although an analysis of aggregated second scoring results will be included in the annual technical report for the Alternate ELPAC. A student's test results will be reported whether or not the second scoring occurred.

Who Participates in Second Scoring?

All selected LEAs and schools assigned to second scoring will be required to participate in second scoring for that year. LEAs and schools that were selected for second scoring for the Alternate ELPAC in the current year will not be selected to participate in second scoring the following year. LEAs can use the lookup tool on the ELPAC website to search the LEA by name or county/district/school code to check if your LEA is selected for second scoring. If your LEA shows up on the lookup tool, your LEA has been selected for second scoring.

How Does Second Scoring Work?

Participating schools must have a primary TE and secondary TE present at the time of testing to observe and score the student's live response to rubric-scored items. All scores recorded by the secondary TE must be entered into the Data Entry Interface (DEI), either by the TE who scored the items or LEA staff designated to enter the data, before the end of the test administration window. The Alternate ELPAC Online Test Administration Manual can be accessed through the Manuals and Instructions web page on the ELPAC website. The Alternate ELPAC Online Test Administration Manual includes step-by-step instructions on the second scoring process .

What Are LEA ELPAC Coordinator Responsibilities for Second Scoring?

The list of responsibilities and deadlines related to second scoring is included in the LEA ELPAC Coordinator Checklist on the Alternate ELPAC Resources web page. They include the following:

• Review the second scoring process as outlined in the DFA and the Alternate ELPAC Online Test Administration Manual .
• Communicate to site ELPAC coordinators about their roles and responsibilities for second scoring the Alternate ELPAC, including the need to allocate and train a second educator to participate as a secondary test examiner.
• Share second scoring resources, including the second scoring video and one-page handout, and the Entering Student Responses and Scores into the DEI video with site ELPAC coordinators to distribute to test examiners.
• Work with site ELPAC coordinators to identify and train the secondary TE(s) on the second scoring process. The LEA ELPAC coordinator is responsible for ensuring that a secondary TE is available and properly trained.
• Ensure that the secondary TE has a Test Operations Management System (TOMS) account with an "ELPAC Test Examiner" user role.
• Ensure that the secondary TE completes the Alternate ELPAC training and signs the Test Security Affidavit in TOMS.
• Track second scoring completion rates using the Alternate ELPAC LEA-Level Second Scoring Report in TOMS.
• Ensure all students who take the Alternate ELPAC in the LEA or school have second scores submitted in the DEI before the end of the school's test administration window.
• Submit a Security and Test Administration Incident Reporting System case if a secondary test examiner was not present at the time of testing. Select Data Entry Issue, and then select "A test examiner did not test in real time and cannot determine scoring" from the resulting drop-down list. This is not an appealable incident type.

LEAs selected for second scoring will be required to complete all of the necessary steps within the testing window starting on November 1, 2021, through February 15, 2022. Refer to the Second Scoring web page on the ELPAC website for additional information about second scoring. LEA ELPAC coordinators can direct questions about the Alternate ELPAC Operational Field Test to CalTAC, by phone at 800-955-2954 or by email at caltac@ets.org.

Sincerely,

California Technical Assistance Center
Phone: 800-955-2954
Fax: 800-541-8455
Email: caltac@ets.org
Website: https://www.elpac.org/