What are the Special Codes in writing, and how are they included in accountability reports?
Special Codes applicable to Writing: • 1 (BL) = Blank • 2 (TS) = Too Short to Score • 3 (TL) = Too Long to Score • 4 (NE) = Non-English or Spanish • 5 (IL) = Illegible • 6 (PV) = Profane or Graphically Violent • 7 (MS) = Miscellaneous (e.g. plagiarism) • 8 (OT) = Off-topic • 9 (S) = Spanish Any test score where the TstValidFg is set to ‘Y’ (i.e., Test Attemptedness = ‘Y’ on the screen in Student Staging) is counted as a participant and is included in the calculation of the percentage of students meeting standard according to the assigned performance level. Beginning with the 2006-07 school year, any student response with a special code will be counted as a non-participant in the writing assessment, as these assessments do not yield valid scores. Note that a student response to the grade 4 prompt that is off topic will not receive a special code and will be counted as a participant and included in performance calculations. In 2005-06 and prior years, special codes 2-8 were considered va
