To be successful in producing improvement, assessment must be "part of a larger set of conditions that promote change" (Astin et al. 1992). To identify the enduring principles likely to produce the specific conditions to promote change, the author turned to two sources: (1) W. Edwards Deming's classic 1982 book, "Out of the Crisis:…

State Quality Rating Improvement Systems (QRIS) can effectively support the improvement of school-age childcare programs by leveraging Program Quality Assessments (PQAs) alongside structured improvement planning and professional development. Real-world implementations in Arkansas, Michigan, and Pennsylvania underscore the impact and adaptability…

Shifts in the education system to more student-centered learning will require state and local education agencies to rethink how they do their work. Current accountability systems focus on compliance with standards, as demonstrated in annual summative assessments. Mark Elgart explains that a new approach to accountability will offer more authentic…

The Internationalization of Higher Education (IHE) has expanded significantly in quantity, scope, and complexity over the past two decades, advancing into a complex system able to influence and control numerous aspects of higher education. IHE has led to international ranking and university reputation concerns, increasing interest in accreditation…

What are the emerging assessment trends of today that will profoundly affect tomorrow's practice? As part of the 2024 International Conference on Assessing Quality in Higher Education, Busby and Fulcher moderated as three panelists discussed the future from their vantage points. Topics included the role of accreditation in advancing assessment…

Faculty create thoughtful lectures and assignments designed to elicit learning, but it is only after assessment that we see whether students learned. This study demonstrates the value of a three-pronged approach to using assessment results to improve learning. First, review the literature on teaching and learning within the discipline. Second,…

Balanced assessment systems provide feedback and support decision-making to improve instruction and learning. "Supporting Continuous Improvement Efforts Through Balanced Assessment Systems: Components, Integration, and High-Leverage Actions" outlines key features and components, integration of various assessment approaches, and guiding…

In "The Enduring Promise of America's Great City Schools," Michael Casserly presents a forthright assessment of the past performance and future potential of large urban PreK-12 school districts in the United States. From a vantage of nearly five decades of work within the Council of the Great City Schools, which now represents…

The participation of countries in various international large-scale assessments (ILSA) is motivated by different factors. In recent years however, there has been a growing popularity and importance placed on the results of ILSA. Recognising the significance of ILSA as a valuable source of feedback for enhancing the basic education system, the…

As assessment work matures, campuses increasingly focus on how to develop structures and processes that facilitate the use of assessment findings and identify opportunities for improvement of curricula, teaching, and student learning.

Already under fire before spring 2020, the dominance of federally mandated test-based accountability in American education had led many educators and policymakers to decry the system as largely out of balance and to suggest that this imbalance has stifled productive local efforts toward meaningful, lasting improvements in student learning. It is…

Assessment of student learning is typically undertaken with at least two goals in mind, accountability and improvement. This dichotomy of purpose has dogged assessment from the outset (Ewell, 2009) and contributed to conflicted or incomplete ends. As Banta and Palomba (2015) concluded, assessment undertaken primarily to comply with accountability…

Educators in Tennessee use Response to Instruction and Intervention (RTI[superscript 2] ), a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS), to address problems early for students at risk for poor learning outcomes. Tennessee Department of Education officials sought to support schools and districts implementing RTI[superscript 2] with a tool that…

This memorandum introduces a set of 10 principles--"from" states and "for" states--to inform the design and management of effective systems to improve or replace low-performing schools. The principles are derived from what is known based on current research, evidence, and experience, and the input of state leaders, key…

"U.S. students are being educated less well these days than they should be," writes W. James Popham. One key contributing factor is that educators often use the wrong tests to make their most important educational decisions. Two recent events have made it a perfect time to change the way we conduct our educational testing: growing…