Standardized Testing Accommodations for Alaska Students with IEPs

Testing season is when many IEP accommodations either get applied — or quietly disappear. Parents frequently discover after the fact that the extended time their child receives for classroom tests was not provided on the state assessment, or that a testing accommodation listed in the IEP was not implemented because the test proctor was not informed. Understanding how testing accommodations work in Alaska, and how to verify they are actually being used, prevents this.

What Standardized Testing Accommodations Cover

Accommodations for standardized testing are not a separate category from your child's everyday IEP accommodations — they flow directly from the IEP or 504 Plan. The principle is that students with disabilities should be able to demonstrate what they know, rather than have their scores reflect the impact of a disability on the testing format.

Common accommodations that appear in IEPs for standardized testing:

• Extended time: Most commonly 1.5x or 2x the standard time limit
• Separate setting: Testing in a small group or individual room to reduce distractions
• Read-aloud: Tests or test directions read aloud by a proctor
• Assistive technology: Text-to-speech software, screen magnification, speech-to-text
• Scribe: A person who transcribes the student's verbal or dictated responses
• Breaks: Scheduled breaks during the testing session
• Calculator use: For math assessments where the student's disability affects calculation but not mathematical reasoning
• Large print or braille formats

Not every accommodation used in daily classroom instruction is automatically approved for standardized testing. State and federal testing programs have specific lists of approved accommodations, and some classroom supports (e.g., simplified language on test questions) may not be permitted on state assessments because they would change what the test is measuring.

Alaska's Statewide Assessment and IEP Accommodations

Alaska students take the Alaska System of Academic Assessments (AKSAA), which currently uses the PEAKS assessment for English language arts and mathematics in grades 3-10, and science assessments for grades 4, 8, and 10. Students in the state are expected to participate in statewide assessment unless their IEP specifically places them in the alternate assessment pathway.

The IEP team, with parent input, determines which accommodations apply during state testing. The accommodations must be:

1. Already documented in the IEP — you cannot add a testing accommodation the week before the exam
2. Consistent with the student's regular instruction — accommodations should reflect how the student actually learns and works, not be added solely for testing
3. Approved under AKSAA guidelines — the Alaska DEED publishes the current approved accommodations list for state assessments

If your child receives an accommodation in daily instruction that is not on the approved list for state testing, that accommodation cannot be applied to the PEAKS assessment, even if it is in the IEP. The IEP team should address this gap — either by working within the approved list or by clearly noting in the IEP that a particular accommodation is for classroom use only.

Alternate Assessment: The Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) Pathway

For students with significant cognitive disabilities whose IEPs determine they cannot meaningfully participate in the general state assessment even with accommodations, Alaska offers the Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) Alternate Assessment. DLM is based on alternate achievement standards called Essential Elements, which represent reduced complexity versions of general content standards.

Participation in DLM is an IEP team decision, not a unilateral school determination. The team must document that:

• The student has a significant cognitive disability
• The student's IEP is based on alternate achievement standards
• The student requires extensive, direct support to acquire and generalize skills

Being placed in DLM has implications beyond the assessment itself. Students participating in alternate assessment are generally following an alternate curriculum pathway, which affects their graduation options. In Alaska, students on the alternate pathway receive a Certificate of Completion rather than a standard diploma upon exiting. This is not inherently negative — it is appropriate for some students — but parents should understand the trajectory and ensure it aligns with the student's long-term goals.

504 Plan Accommodations and Standardized Testing

Students with 504 Plans — rather than IEPs — are also entitled to accommodations on standardized tests. The same approved accommodations list applies. The process for documenting and communicating these accommodations is similar: they must be in the 504 Plan, already in use in daily instruction, and within the approved list for the specific assessment.

Where 504 accommodations often break down is in communication. Unlike IEPs, 504 Plans do not always have a single designated coordinator who systematically communicates with the testing office. Before state testing season, send a written reminder to the 504 coordinator and the testing coordinator confirming which accommodations are in the plan and requesting confirmation that they have been communicated to proctors.

What to Do If Accommodations Were Not Provided

If your child's testing accommodations were not implemented — extended time was not given, separate testing was not arranged, a reader was not available — document it as soon as you learn about it.

For IEP accommodations: request a written explanation from the district of what happened, document the impact (if the student ran out of time, note it), and address it at the next IEP meeting as a compliance issue. A single instance of missed accommodations may not rise to a denial of FAPE, but a pattern of accommodation failures on testing certainly can.

For high-stakes testing where the score has consequences (graduation requirements, scholarship eligibility), you may have grounds to request test invalidation and retesting with correct accommodations. Districts can submit accommodation-related testing irregularity reports to the testing vendor.

IEP Testing Accommodations and the Alaska Performance Scholarship

The Alaska Performance Scholarship (APS) requires students to complete specific coursework and meet minimum score thresholds on college readiness assessments (ACT, SAT, or WorkKeys). Students with IEPs and 504 Plans can receive accommodations on these assessments — but the accommodations must be approved by the testing company, not just the school district.

College Board (SAT) and ACT each have their own accommodation request processes, which require documentation of the student's disability and evidence that the accommodation has been in use for at least six months. The school's testing coordinator typically facilitates these requests, but parents should not assume this is happening automatically. Ask specifically, at least six months before the student will take the SAT or ACT, whether the accommodation request has been submitted.

If accommodations on college entrance exams are a concern for your high school student, addressing it early — ideally in sophomore year IEP planning — prevents a last-minute scramble when the testing window is near. The Alaska IEP & 504 Blueprint covers secondary transition planning in Alaska, including how to coordinate academic accommodations with college entrance testing requirements and post-secondary scholarship eligibility.

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