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    State and federal rules require the inclusion of all public elementary and secondary ELs in the State’s ELP assessment, including ELs with disabilities. ELs with the most significant cognitive disabilities may qualify for the Alternate annual ELP assessment (Alternate ACCESS) if they qualify or if they will qualify for the state alternate assessment.

    Pennsylvania is a member of the multi-state WIDA Consortium. The WIDA Consortium develops the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS assessments. The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) uses the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS as the required instrument for the annual assessment of English language proficiency. ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS are standards-based, criterion referenced English language proficiency assessments designed to measure English language learners' proficiency in English. They assess social and instructional English as well as the language associated with Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies within the school context across the four language domains of listening, speaking, reading and writing. The ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS are used to assess the English language development (ELD) of English learners (ELs) reliably and validly in grades K–12. Results of the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS are used by PDE and local education agencies (LEAs) for monitoring the progress of students, for making decisions about reclassifying students from language instruction educational programs (LIEPs), and for accountability. For more information about the technical characteristics and quality of the assessment, please visit the WIDA webpage.  Please see the WIDA English Language Development Standards​ for more information about the standards that the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS measure.

    State Testin​​​g Dates

    Please visit the PA state page on the WIDA website​ for current testing dates. Please note that DRC and PDE establish testing dates and update the schedule between late June and early August each year

    Test security breaches or irregularities

    The security of state administered assessments is of the utmost importance. The Bureau of Assessment and Accountability has outlined the state's expectations and procedures regarding test booklet security, test administration security, and the identification and reporting of test security violations. Additional test security measures and procedures are outlined in the Test Coordinator manuals for ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS and the state specific guidelines provided on the PA state page on the WIDA website.

    Breaches in test security must be quickly identified and reported to PDE. To report a test security breach or test irregularity, email the PDE ESL/Bilingual Education Advisors, Bob Measel (romeasel@pa.gov) or Julia Puza (jpuza@pa.gov). Please include a detailed description of the issue and any follow-up actions that have been or will be taken at the LEA.

    PDE also tracks test irregularities through the WIDA Assessment Management System and notifications from DRC. Some of these irregularities may include:

    • Testing sessions that are open for multiple days
    • Missing test materials (not returned to DRC on or before the deadline)
    • Plagiarism and suspected plagiarism (use of AI to form responses)
    • Unusual material orders (no orders for an LEA or excessive orders)

    All test administrators in an LEA in which a test security breach or irregularity has occurred must re-certify using the WIDA test administrator training modules. LEAs will be notified at the time of the irregularity if this applies.

    ELs with disabilities who cannot participate in all domains of the assessment

    If an English learner has a disability that precludes assessment of the student in one or more of the required domains/components (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) because there are no appropriate accommodations for the affected domain(s)/component(s) as determined by an IEP Team, LEAs must ensure that the student is assessed in the remaining domain(s)/component(s) in which it is possible to assess the student. When this occurs, LEAs must apply the appropriate “Do Not Score” code to the effected domain to indicate the student was unable to participate. Specific procedures for this are included in the WIDA/DRC testing manuals and help articles as well as in the test administrator training that all test administrators must complete.

    PDE has adopted a method for calculating an overall composite score for students who cannot complete all four domains. A calculation tool is provided on the reclassification page of the PDE EL website.

    Alternate ACCESS for ELLs

    The Alternate ACCESS for ELLs is an assessment of English language proficiency (ELP) for students in grades K-12 who are classified as English learners (ELs) and have significant cognitive disabilities that prevent their meaningful participation in the ACCESS for ELLs® assessment.

    For more information about the Alternate ACCESS, please visit the WIDA Alternate Assessment webpage.​

    For Alternate ACCESS eligibility criteria, please see the state Alternate Assessment webpage.

    IMPORTANT NOTE: ELs must be assessed in grades K-12, so criterion 1 from the state alternate assessment eligibility does not apply. LEAs must apply criteria 2-6 only when determining if an EL is eligible for the Alternate ACCESS.

    Testing Accommodations

    Pennsylvania uses the WIDA Accommodations Guidelines for ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS without addition or modification. The guidelines can be found on the WIDA Secure Portal and are provided in the training resources for test administration and coordination. If an LEA has questions about specific accommodations, they should contact the WIDA Helpdesk or a member of the PDE EL Program Area - Bob Measel (romeasel@pa.gov) or Julia Puza (jpuza@pa.gov).

    Test administrator training and certification requirements

    All personnel who will administer a WIDA assessment or screener MUST complete the full training and pass the relevant quizzes before their first administration. Training courses and resources can be found on the WIDA Secure Portal. Educators must have a secure portal account to log in. EL Coordinators in all LEAs can create secure portal accounts for their educators.

    Any educators, including paraprofessionals, may administer the ACCESS test or Screener as long as they have completed the required training and passed all certification quizzes. Paraprofessionals must be employed by the LEA. In all cases in which it is possible, PDE recommends that paraprofessionals be monitored by a teacher while administering a test.

    For the Alternate ACCESS, only a certified teacher who works regularly with the student may administer the test. Again, the test administrator must have completed the test administrator training and passed all quizzes.

    For personnel administering the online ACCESS:

    • Complete the full training only once. Annual recertification is not necessary.

    For personnel administering PAPER ACCESS or WIDA 1-12 Screeners:

    • Complete only the speaking training and pass the relevant quizzes annually after initial certification. 

    For personnel administering the Kindergarten ACCESS:

    • Pass the Kindergarten ACCESS certification quiz annually.

    For personnel administering the Kindergarten Screener:

    • Pass the oral language and the literacy certification quizzes annually. 

    For personnel administering WIDA Alternate ACCESS:

    • Complete the full training and pass all quizzes.

    Full recertification will be required for test administrators who were involved in any test anomalies during the previous year (e.g., missing tests, student plagiarism, breach of test security, etc.). The local Test Coordinator or EL Coordinator is responsible for tracking test anomalies and ensuring compliance with this requirement.

    Assessment Monitoring

    PDE conducts annual monitoring of the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS both virtually and onsite. Monitoring visits include ensuring compliance with policies/procedures and communication requirements, staff training/test administrator requirements, and test security procedures and protocols as well as testing room observations.

    LEAs are selected for monitoring either randomly or based on past test irregularities. LEAs are generally notified in advance of monitoring, although PDE may conduct monitoring unannounced at its discretion. After the monitoring visit or meeting, LEAs are provided with a monitoring report for their records. The report outlines all areas that were monitored and any findings that must be addressed along with notes and recommendations.

    Additional state-specific information regarding the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS can be found on the PA state page on the WIDA website. Additional information about the ELD standards and the ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS can be found on the WIDA website.