Accommodations are changes in procedures or materials that increase equitable access during the Smarter Balanced assessments. The accommodations described on this page are not modifications. Accommodations all yield valid scores that count as participation in assessments that meet the requirements of ESSA when used in a manner consistent with the Guidelines. They allow students to show what they know and can do. Smarter Balanced members have identified digitally embedded and non-embedded accommodations for students for whom there is documentation of the need for the accommodations on an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 plan. One exception to the IEP or 504 requirement is for students who have had a physical injury (e.g., broken hand or arm) that impairs their ability to use a computer. These students may use the speech-to-text or the scribe accommodations (if they have had sufficient experience with the use of these), as noted in the Guidelines.
Alternate Response Options
American Sign Language (ASL)
Braille
Closed Captioning
Large Print
Speech-to-Text
Text-to-Speech (Reading Passages for ELA and CSA & ELPAC Listening, Reading and Writing)