This article reports on an investigation of teachers and students within special education to determine the accuracy with which teachers recommend read-aloud accommodations for mathematics tests, and develop a profile of students who benefit from this type of accommodation. Students in both general (n = 973) and special education (n = 245) in elementary and middle schools from eight states were administered an accommodated and standard mathematics achievement test. Teachers were no more successful than chance at predicting which students would benefit from the accommodation. Supplementary analyses used pretest reading and mathematics achievement scores in an attempt to develop a profile of students who favored one or the other formats. The outcomes from accommodations did not necessarily match student profiles. Exceptional Children

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From a larger sample of field-tested mathematics production response items, 11 were selected that individually (a) differentiated between high and low achievers on a general math achievement test, (b) measured a mathematical concept rather than a procedure, and (c) were conducive to the creation of alternate forms of the items. This math concept curriculum-based measure (CBM) was administered to 171 students in eighth grade. Scores were correlated with scores from a computer adaptive test (CAT) designed in conjunction with the state to approximate the official statewide mathematics achievement test. Correlations for general education students ( r = .80; n = 90) and students with learning disabilities ( r = .61; n = 81) were high. Regression analysis showed that relatively few of the 11 items were needed to predict CAT scores. Implications for students with learning disabilities, who traditionally receive little instruction in conceptual understanding, are discussed.

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