2013 New York Consolidated Laws
EDN - Education
Title 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 7-A - (340 - 348) STANDARDIZED TESTING
341-A - Standardized testing; reports.

 
    § 341-a. Standardized  testing;  reports.  1.  Definitions. As used in
  this section and section three hundred forty-six-a of this article,  the
  following words and terms shall have the following meanings:
    a.  "Test"  means  a  standardized  test  as  defined in section three
  hundred forty of this  article;  provided  however,  that  the  test  of
  English  as  a foreign language shall not constitute a test for purposes
  of this section;
    b. "Test subject" means a test subject as  defined  in  section  three
  hundred forty of this article.
    2.  Not  later than July first, nineteen hundred eighty-eight, and for
  one year thereafter, test agencies shall ask each test subject to report
  on the test answer sheet, test registration form, or  other  appropriate
  means all of the following information:
    a.  The  test  subject's  race  or  ethnicity, including the following
  groups:  Black, White, American Indian, Asian, Hispanic or other;
    b. The test subject's gender, expressed as male or female; and
    c. The test subject's  linguistic  background,  expressed  as  whether
  English was the dominant language of the test subject's household.
    3.  The  test  agency shall advise all test subjects that they are not
  required to provide the information requested under paragraphs a  and  c
  of  subdivision  two of this section, that they will not be penalized if
  they do not provide the information, and that the  information  provided
  will   be   used   exclusively   for   research,   recruitment,   talent
  identification and planning purposes.
    4. a. Not later than September first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-nine,
  the  test  agency  shall  prepare and file or cause to be filed with the
  committee described in section three hundred forty-six-a of this article
  a report relating to each test administered and  disclosed  pursuant  to
  section  three  hundred  forty-two of this article by the test agency in
  New York between July first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-eight  and  July
  first, nineteen hundred eighty-nine. Such report shall be subject to the
  provisions  of  subdivisions  two  and  three  of  section three hundred
  forty-one of this article.
    b. Each such test report shall show by race or  ethnicity,  linguistic
  background  and  gender,  the  mean-scaled  scores of test subjects, the
  standard deviation of scaled scores,  and  the  distribution  of  scaled
  scores.
    5.  a.  Not  later than September first, nineteen hundred eighty-nine,
  the test agency shall prepare and file or cause to  be  filed  with  the
  committee  an  item report relating to each question used in calculating
  the subject's raw score on each test  form  administered  and  disclosed
  pursuant  to section three hundred forty-two of this article in New York
  between July  first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-eight  and  July  first,
  nineteen  hundred  eighty-nine.  Such  report  shall  be  subject to the
  provisions of subdivisions  two  and  three  of  section  three  hundred
  forty-one of this article.
    b.  Each  such  item  report  shall  show  for  each  question used in
  calculating the test  subject's  raw  score,  the  item's  content  area
  specification,  and  where  disclosed  pursuant to section three hundred
  forty-two of this article, information identifying the text of the item,
  and the correct answer-rates and R-biserial correlations  for  all  test
  subjects,   combined  and  separately  by  race,  ethnicity,  gender  or
  linguistic background as reported under subdivision two of this section.
  Such item report shall also  calculate  the  correct  answer  rates  and
  R-biserial  correlations  comparing  performance  by gender and language
  dominance,  within  race  and  ethnic  subgroups,   including   language
  dominance by the total gender group. Content area specification shall be
  reported  for  each exam to indicate area of knowledge, skill or ability

  that  an  item  purports  to  measure  according  to  the  examination's
  manufacturer   or  sponsoring  agency.  Correct  answer-rates  shall  be
  calculated by dividing the number of correct answers for a question used
  in  calculating  the  subject's raw score on all test forms administered
  and disclosed pursuant  to  section  three  hundred  forty-two  of  this
  article  between  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-eight and July
  first, nineteen hundred eighty-nine by the number of  test  subjects  to
  whom  those  test forms were administered. R-biserial correlations shall
  be  calculated  by  correlating  performance  on  a  question  used   in
  calculating  the  subject's  raw  score  on  each test form administered
  between July  first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-eight  and  July  first,
  nineteen  hundred  eighty-nine with performance on the tests as shown by
  total scores.
    c. The test agency shall not be required to include in such  test  and
  item reports under this subdivision and subdivision four of this section
  information  for  any  group  comprising  fewer  than  one  hundred test
  subjects.
    d. The  test  report  will  also  include  data  showing  measures  of
  differential  item  functioning  on  individual questions that take into
  account differences in overall test performance. Data will  be  provided
  for  test  items  which contribute to the candidate scores and for which
  differential item data are available. Differential item functioning data
  shall be reported for comparative purposes between the  following  pairs
  of  groups:  (Black-White),  (Hispanic-White),  (American Indian-White),
  (Asian-White), (Other-White) and (Male-Female). Documentation as to  the
  methods  by  which  these  data  have been calculated will accompany the
  data. Differential item functioning data shall not be required for pairs
  of groups comprising fewer than  four  hundred  test  subjects  in  each
  group.
    e.  The committee may request additional data, where already available
  and published, from the test agencies to  clarify  the  data  previously
  reported  pursuant  to  this  subdivision  and  subdivision four of this
  section.