Illinois Alternate Assessment (IAA)

The Illinois Alternate Assessment (IAA) is the yardstick the state uses to measure the learning of students with significant cognitive disabilities. Students with severe disabilities take the IAA if participation in the state's regular assessment – the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) - is not appropriate. Rather than a pencil-and-paper format, the IAA uses a portfolio of student work collected over the course of the school year.

The state assessment scores are used to measure adequate yearly progress (AYP) for all public schools. Scores are published on the School Report Cards yearly.

Students at these grade levels take the following
Third Grade - Reading, Math
Fourth Grade - Reading, Math, Science
Fifth Grade - Reading, Math, Writing
Seventh Grade - Reading, Math, Science
Eighth Grade - Reading, Math, Writing

Performance Definitions
Standards-based education uses standards to help educators and their communities identify explicitly what students must know and be able to do. Educators wrote performance definitions for the IAA (Illinois Alternate Assessment).

For more information about the IAA, dates and sample portfolios, please visit the Illinois State Board of Education's website.

Illinois Alternative Assessment Home Page