There is currently much interest in the assessment of student achievement in public schools. This guide to forms of assessment discusses some of the most common tests and their uses. Standardized tests are described, and some of their limitations are outlined. State-mandated tests are common, and, because the creators of such tests are removed from the classroom situation, these tests may have little relation to what is actually taught. The use of portfolios provides a way that is aligned with the constructivist approach to learning to measure student achievement on a day-to-day basis. Rubrics may be developed to assess each product in the portfolio, making the interpretation of portfolio contents easier. Portfolio results cannot be reduced to a number, however, nor can they be machine scored, making this form of assessment more difficult to use in communicating student achievement results. (SLD)