Project Activities
Research question
- What were the key objectives and features of the IADA systems?
- How "ready" were the IADA systems at the start of the demonstration to meet early program expectations?
- How far along were the IADA systems after 2–3 years and 4–5 years of implementation?
- What challenges to developing and implementing assessments did IADA systems report?
- How innovative were the IADA assessments using Congress and the Department's definitions of innovation?
- What development and implementation practices worked well for IADA systems?
Structured Abstract
Design
The first phase of this descriptive implementation study examined IADA implementation in the initial four pilot states (5 different assessment systems) based on states' IADA applications, annual progress reporting, and interviews with state assessment directors. The four states were: Louisiana and New Hampshire (approved in 2018); Georgia and North Carolina (2019). The second phase of the study, drawing on an additional round of interviews with state officials and reviews of annual progress reports, would have also included Massachusetts (approved in 2020), and looked at states' progress after a few more years of implementation in order to provide lessons learned from attempts to replace statewide assessment systems.
Key findings
Key findings from the first report included:
- All five IADA systems sought to increase the usefulness of assessment data for classroom teaching, but few were ready to try out their assessments within a year of starting IADA—both program goals.
- After 2 or 3 years of participation, the IADA systems had made limited progress and may not be on track to meet the program's 5-year statewide scale-up goal.
- States reported challenges hampering assessment development and implementation activities, with the COVID-19 pandemic causing major disruptions.
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
The first report, titled Evaluating the Federal Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority: Early Implementation and Progress of State Efforts to Develop New Statewide Academic Assessments, was released in April 2023.
The contract for this study was canceled in February 2025. NCEE is evaluating what further publications, if any, may arise from this work.
Questions about this project?
To answer additional questions about this project or provide feedback, please contact the program officer.
