Purpose: The aim of this article is to critically explore the complex relations among the triad comprising standards-based curriculum, the curriculum concept of 'competences' and the subject of civics in Swedish curricula. Design/methodology/approach: The theoretical framework is based on Bernstein's (2000) two models of pedagogy, the competence…

Too many students still experience the factory model evident in most U.S. high schools, which were designed to put young people on a conveyor belt and move them from one overloaded teacher to the next, in 45-minute increments, to be stamped with separate, disconnected lessons 7 or 8 times a day. While these factory-model designs may have worked…

This study presents an analysis of the consequences for students when performance assessment and differentiation practices are combined, as part of attempts to increase minimum standards within upper-secondary schooling. Recent standards-based curriculum reform in Australia demonstrates how a focus on minimum levels of achievement can limit the…

Education policymakers and leaders often say that the opinions and observations of teachers are among the most important information to help explain and understand what is happening in schools. Teachers' voices can inject a sense of classroom and school-level realism into those discussions and add clarity and credibility to issues that are often…

This article provides an analysis of the rise of 'scientific management' and 'social efficiency' theories in the early 1900s, traces their impact on the structure and administration of education systems, and critically analyses their contribution to the emergence of a new orthodoxy--outcomes-based education (OBE) approaches to school curriculum…

This book describes two high school teachers' efforts to align curriculum, assessment, and performance standards, troubleshooting issues surrounding content standards, instructional objectives, and curricular aims. Eight chapters examine: (1) "What Does a Competent Classroom Look Like?"; (2) "What Drives a Course?" (e.g.,…

The Institute for Standards, Curricula, and Assessments (ISCA) of the United Teachers Los Angeles Educational Foundation has instituted a lesson study process and support system for teachers that enables them to develop high-quality, standards-based curricula and assessments. This Handbook represents the teachers' best thinking at this time. It is…

The increasing emphasis on accountability in early care and education has created an opportunity for programs to revisit their child assessment practices. This article presents a model for using authentic assessment practices to document children's progress toward a set of program standards, specifically the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework, as…

Through workshops, seminars, training programs, and conferences, the nonprofit Center on Learning, Assessment, and School Structure (CLASS) helps educators in public and private schools develop more credible and authentic assessments and curricula. The Center's head, Grant Wiggins, argues that schools should have standards--but the standards…

This article examines how a state, a district, and a local school in Texas are making steps toward meeting the first recommendation (setting challenging curricular standards) of the 1993 national report "National Excellence: A Case for Developing America's Talent". Specific performance standards for students are listed and standard…

Assessing students' knowledge has always been a difficult task, especially in today's climate of standards driven curriculum. Challenges to educators include meeting content standards, assessing students' progress and focusing on diverse learning styles, as well as preparing students for work and life beyond schools. To meet these challenges,…

This paper describes how university coursework for a graduate level teaching internship in Childhood Education (preK-4) at the University of Arkansas incorporates standards of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) and encompasses performance-based assessment as utilized in Praxis III to develop instructional units. The…

New Standards Project is consortium of 17 states and 6 leading school districts working with cluster of specialists to design and implement system of performance standards, authentic assessments, and professional development aimed at improving educational equity and excellence. New matrix examinations and portfolios will yield results that can be…

Several leaders in education have concluded that the United States should have some form of national achievement testing. Such tests are proposed as part of the "America 2000" education strategy. Believing that the experience of other countries will be useful to educators, policymakers, and concerned citizens, the National Endowment for…

A 1993 National Study of High School Restructuring surveyed principals of 3,380 high schools concerning restructuring elements being used. Although 10-15% of U.S. schools are being restructured, few are simultaneously employing key elements (performance standards, authentic assessment, interdisciplinary curriculum, school-based decision making,…