Once your school has established the reason and the will to move forward with Response to Intervention (RTI), you still have to navigate all the difficult steps of implementing core instruction with a multitiered system of supports, data-based problem solving, progress monitoring, and universal screening. That's where this ASCD (Association for…

Instructional assessment is a systematic approach to solving student academic, behavioral, and social-emotional problems by identifying the key factors that have created or are encouraging the problem. The instructional support team (IST) process emphasizes assistance to students. Assessment in IST consists of ongoing analysis of student…

Sixteen vocational education evaluation problems which indicate the present situation in the states are discussed, and alternative solutions to them are suggested in this report. Each problem represents a situation that should be remedied or a need that must be met and was found to be common to a number of states attempting to develop or improve…

Projects are extended pieces of work completed over a period of time. They provide contexts for the assessment of general skills, as well as the ability to apply subject-specific knowledge and skills. Some of the general skills that projects demonstrate are collecting and organizing information, solving problems, working in a group, and…

Information necessary for informed use by practitioners of higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) tests is presented. Assessment instruments that (1) have as a basic assumption that thinking skills can be taught; (2) provide information that can be useful for instructional planning related to complex thought processes; and (3) have content that is…

This manual is designed for superintendents, principals, teachers, and interested community members who are conducting self-evaluations as prescribed by Ohio Minimum Standards for Elementary and Secondary Schools. Its objective is to provide districts with direction to engage in self-evaluation studies using assessment instruments that promote…

Evaluates the effectiveness of a sixth grade experimental language arts program designed to teach higher-level thinking skills. Reports on different types of instruments for measuring higher-level thinking skills, including verbal and nonverbal tests of divergent thinking, a nonverbal test of flexible thinking, and a verbal divergent production…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the Nation's Report Card, has developed and pilot-tested a variety of hands-on science and mathematics tasks. These tasks were developed as prototypes for use in future national assessments, but the concepts measured and the innovative approaches used are equally suitable for classroom…

A series of 19 questions illuminates the characteristics of effective performance assessments in 3 sections: (1) the nature of assessment; (2) properties of effective tasks; and (3) making tasks meaningful and engaging. A fourth section offers practical suggestions for the construction of performance assessments and for teacher involvement. (SLD)

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reports on the status and progress of educational achievement in the United States. Based on its surveys, "The Nation's Report Card" provides comprehensive information about what students in the United States can do in various subject areas. The framework for the 1990 mathematics…

Performance assessment, constructed-response, and authentic assessment are topics of current interest in educational testing and reform. This workbook presents the following articles on educational assessment to highlight work being done in this area: (1) "Aquarium Problem and Teacher Guidelines: New Standards Project" (University of…

This book reports the analyses and recommendations of a study group formed by the National Research Council to develop conceptual guidelines that make content the driving force in mathematics assessment reform and to explore a variety of related measurement and policy issues. The document focuses on three principles that underlie effective…

A technical note based on the Indonesian Nonformal Education Project discusses use of Q-sort, originally a research technique for studying small groups or individuals, as a needs assessment method. The background of Q-sort, designed to take subjective factors into account, is covered, and its use in needs assessment described: cards, each of which…

This document consists of the 10 issues of "The Teaching Professor" newsletter published in 1991. This newsletter provides forum for the sharing of research findings, observations, instructional strategies, and opinions on subjects pertaining to college level teaching and college faculty. Multiple subjects are discussed in each issue and are often…

Periods of executive change provide an ideal time for the development of planning efforts for public school systems and for self-examination of the system's strengths, weaknesses, and long-range needs. In the anonymous school system under study, the new superintendent's application of general systems theory to school district management entailed a…