Despite the call for an argument-based approach to validity over 25 years ago, few examples exist in the published literature. One possible explanation for this outcome is that the complexity of the argument-based approach makes implementation difficult. To counter this claim, we propose that the Assessment Triangle can serve as the overarching…

In this article we rethink validation within the complex contexts of high-stakes assessment. We begin by considering the utility of existing models for validation and argue that these models tend to overlook some of the complexities inherent to assessment use, including the multiple interpretations of assessment purposes and the potential…

Implications of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) on the development and use of tests in school settings are enumerated. We predict increased demand for behavioural assessments that consider a person's activities, participation and person-environment interactions, including measures that: (a) address…

The Assessment Clearinghouse of the Memphis (Tennessee) City Public Schools is a collection of performance-based instructional tasks that have been designed to address specific content standards at specific grade levels. The tasks consist of a complete set of instructional and assessment activities for immediate classroom use. They also provide a…

Links the literatures on human abilities and expertise, suggesting that human abilities are a form of developing expertise. Discusses the role of tests in a scheme that regards abilities as developing expertise and presents a model that implies a shift toward practice grounded in the development of knowledge-based expertise in all children.…

Research on developing technology for large-scale performance assessments in science is reported briefly, and a conceptual framework is presented for defining, generating, and evaluating science performance assessments. Types of tasks are discussed, and the technical qualities of performance assessments are discussed in the context of…

Uses of tests and assessments as key elements in 5 waves of educational reform during the past 50 years are reviewed. These waves include the role of tests in tracking and selection emphasized in the 1950s, the use of tests for program accountability in the 1960s, minimum competency testing programs of the 1970s, school and district accountability…

A group of school districts in Western Oregon has developed a goal-based improvement model that provides teachers and administrators with a common information base. (Author)

Offers a framework for remedying some of the problems associated with the use of statistical significance tests through modifying journal editorial policies. Reviews examples from some journals that have established guidelines for reporting results of statistical significance tests. (SLD)

The Dallas Independent School District (DISD) is rapidly progressing from the position of having an assessment program that does not work to the position of having an assessment program that does work. The perception that assessment is separate from instruction has changed to a view of assessment as part of a four-stage model including planning,…

Provides a framework for understanding the concept of validity and how it applies to simulation research. Extant tests of validity are discussed in terms of this framework, and a general schema for testing validity is proposed. (MBR)

This document describes state and local elementary and secondary education standards developed for academic achievement and assessment of student progress in Missouri. In response to the Outstanding Schools Act of 1993, the Show-Me Standards were established to represent knowledge students should acquire and how they should be able to communicate…

This article describes a framework for assessing young children with severe multiple disabilities. The assessment is child-led and examines underlying processes of learning, including biobehavioral state, orienting response, learning channels, approach-withdrawal, memory, interactions, communication, and problem solving. Case studies and a sample…

A conceptual overview of the Regression Discrepancy Model (RDM) for assessing discrepancy between intelligence quotient and achievement scores is offered. Six RDM goals are identified, and figures from a RDM computer output show basic outcomes. Strengths and weaknesses of the RDM are discussed, without the use of complex mathematical descriptions.…

This manual provides screening guidelines for rural preschool and kindergarten programs and describes the development of a model Early Screening Program (ESP) that involves nine child stations and two parent stations. Screening stations developed for assessment included: (1) gross motor; (2) visual motor; (3) visual perception; (4) auditory…