[SE-Dir] Setting Text-to-Speech in TIDE

[SANDBERG Ruby - ODE]

TO: District and ESD Special Education Directors



The message below is being sent to you on behalf of:



Sarah Drinkwater, Ph.D.

Assistant Superintendent

Office of Student Services

______________________________________________

April 14, 2016


HIGH IMPORTANCE: Setting Text-to-Speech in TIDE

ODE has received a high volume of testing improprieties regarding students that received the Accommodation of Text-to-Speech (TTS) for stimuli (passages) on the Smarter Balanced ELA assessments and are NOT on an IEP or 504 Plan. As a reminder, this type of testing impropriety can result in an invalidation (loss of testing opportunity) for the student. Please send this communication out to any personnel entering student settings into TIDE or approving students through the TA interface. Per the requirements provided in the Oregon Accessibility Manual, the following is the additional guidance ODE sent out in January:
*        Test-to-Speech(TTS) is an Embedded Designated Support for items and stimuli on all OAKS and Smarter Balanced Tests EXCEPT stimuli in English languages arts (for which it is an embedded accommodation requiring documentation in an IEP or 504 plan).
*        Text-to-Speech could not be split into two categories on the student settings page in TIDE (i.e., Designated Support and Accommodation) this year. Both items, stimuli, and stimuli & items are all located under the same drop-down menu under Embedded Designated Supports.
Please make sure to exercise extreme caution when selecting this support for students to avoid a testing impropriety.

Please contact Brad Lenhardt if you have questions at brad.lenhardt at state.or.us<mailto:brad.lenhardt at state.or.us>.




Ruby Sandberg, Executive Assistant
Office of Student Services
Oregon Department of Education
503-947-5738 l FAX: 503-378-5156 l ruby.sandberg at state.or.us<mailto:ruby.sandberg at state.or.us>

The Oregon Department of Education is an equal opportunity agency and employer.
Messages to and from this email address may be made available to the public under Oregon law.


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