Albert H. Brigance had a place deep in his heart for his special education students. When he began his career as a school psychologist in the 1970s, he noticed that assessment tools tended to undervalue his students’ unique development trajectories and instead emphasized what they didn’t know and couldn’t do. Al wanted to change the conversation.
He envisioned an expansion of existing assessments for developmental and academic skills to suit special ed—in-depth skill sequences that would reveal what students did know and could do. Al’s idea became a best-selling reality, and BRIGANCE Special Education was born.
Our special education products consist of assessment inventories and instructional materials that focus on a broad array of skills and behaviors in key developmental, academic, and transitional domains. They assist professionals with writing accurate, comprehensive, and meaningful IEPs and developing the skills that students need to thrive.
Criterion-referenced assessment measures a student’s performance on a specified set of skills over time. Educators use criterion-referenced assessment when progress is to be evaluated solely by comparing a student’s own present and past performance. It is commonly used when normative, or standardized, scores are not necessary.
The Inventory of Early Development III (IED III), intended for use with students functioning at a developmental age from birth through age 7, consists of more than 100 assessments that cover a broad array of skills and behaviors to offer a comprehensive picture of a student’s skill mastery. With assessments in the key domains of Physical Development, Language Development, Literacy, Mathematics and Science, Daily Living, and Social-Emotional Development, the IED III is aligned to state and national standards, including the College and Career Readiness Standards, as well as IDEA requirements for a comprehensive and accurate assessment.
Designed to help special educators meet the IDEA requirement for transition services, the Transition Skills Inventory 2 (TSI 2) and Transition Skills Activities 2 (TSA 2) provide a comprehensive set of tools to support each student in identifying and developing the skills they need to thrive as adults in their personal lives, workplaces, and communities.
The Comprehensive Inventory of Basic Skills II (CIBS II) consists of nearly 400 Mathematics and English Language Arts criterion-referenced assessments and grade-level placement tests intended for students in Grades K–9.
The CIBS II examiner’s manual will no longer be available for purchase as of November 2023. If you’re looking for replacement assessments for Grades K–9 learners with reading difficulties or for monitoring mathematics skills, we recommend you explore i-Ready’s accessibility features and Literacy Tasks.
Al’s World was inspired by Albert “Al” Brigance, and also by you, because we recognize the difficulty and importance of the work that you do every day. We hope Al’s World makes you smile!
Terri Pica | Contact Your Local Representative
