Superintendents
Co-op Directors
Secondary Principals
High School Principals
other: LEA Supervisors
Curriculum Specialists
Counselors

Regulatory Authority:
20 U.S.C.A, Section 1400 et seq.

Phone Number:
501-682-4471

E-mail:
christopher.barnes@arkansas.gov

The federal laws of No Child Left Behind and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as well as the state Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program (ACTAAP) law and regulations require that all students must be tested for accountability purposes. This requirement includes students with disabilities. This Commissioner’s Memo is issued to offer clarification and to answer questions which have been raised recently concerning course coding and assessments for students with disabilities.

Commissioner’s Memo COM-09-142 dated March 3, 2009, outlined the course codes to be used for high school courses for students with disabilities. Nothing in that Memo has changed; however, additional information on assessments to be administered in accordance with course codes is necessary.

Students with disabilities enrolled in high school classes have a variety of options.
Students with disabilities in Grades 9 or 10 who are enrolled in Algebra I or its equivalent and are receiving high school graduation credit for Algebra I shall be coded with the appropriate course code for Algebra I or its equivalent. These students shall be administered the Algebra I End-of-Course Examination, with or without accommodations. Students with disabilities who are enrolled in a resource mathematics class in Grade 9 and plan to graduate with the required 22 state graduation credits shall be enrolled with the course code of 973900 and shall be administered the Alternate Portfolio Assessment for Grade 9 Mathematics.

Students in Grade 9 who receive special education services for mathematics in a self-contained environment of 1:10 or 1:15 shall be enrolled with the course code of 971540. Students in Grade 9 who receive special education services for mathematics in a self-contained environment of 1:6 shall be enrolled with the course code of 971550. Students who receive self-contained services for mathematics in Grade 9 with either aforementioned course code shall be administered the Alternate Portfolio Assessment for Grade 9 Mathematics.