Few topics in education have generated as much interest as portfolios. To assist the many educators who are experimenting with this concept, the Test Center at Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory has prepared this annotated bibliography of articles on portfolios in educational assessment. The articles (more than 240) are listed in…

This paper synthesizes information derived from five sources regarding issues in testing as they related to the American 2000; an education strategy and the national education goals. The focus is on proposed national tests. The issue of national testing extends far beyond testing itself because it touches on the structure of the U.S. educational…

Although the use of test results to demonstrate educational shortcomings is important, tests and assessments are also expected to be an instrument of reform. In fact, they are often expected to provide the primary means of creating educational reform. The minimum competency testing movement and the expansion of the use of test results for…

Guidance is offered on the creation and use of alternative assessment; and a process model is presented that links assessment with curriculum and instruction, based on contemporary theories of learning and cognition. The introductory chapter, "Rethinking Assessment," provides background on the purposes of assessment and the need for new…

The New Zealand National Qualifications Framework (NQF) is a new qualifications, credit, and assessment system. This report explores the difference the NQF makes for young people. It is the first report of a longitudinal study that will follow two cohorts of students in seven North Island (New Zealand) high schools to see the impact the NQF has on…

Guidance is offered in Spanish on the creation and use of alternative assessment, and a process model is presented that links assessment with curriculum and instruction, based on contemporary theories of learning and cognition. The introductory chapter provides background on the purposes of assessment and the need for new alternatives, with an…

The present study, which was drawn from a larger project in which teachers developed and implemented performance assessments in their classrooms, investigates children's perceptions of what reading and mathematics are and how they understand their teachers' knowledge of them as readers and mathematicians. Two students from each of 13 third-grade…

The dominant issues in considering the use of tests developed outside the classroom to measure the impact of curriculum reform on higher order thinking are reviewed by a panel interviewed for this discussion. Panel members are: (1) Stuart Kahl, (2) Robert Linn, (3) Senta A. Raizen, (4) Lauren Resnick, and (5) Thomas A. Romberg. It is conceded…

The question of whether tests can be both curriculum-neutral and effective means of monitoring and motivating educational practice is discussed. Educational reform and testing are intimately linked, as tests are widely viewed as a means of educational improvement. Tests/assessments influence educator behavior by stimulating them to assure that…

The purpose of this study was to investigate certain aspects of the internal structure of the DISCOVER assessment checklist (C. Maker, A. Nielson, and J. Rogers, 1994) to assess its construct validity. Other purposes included assessing percentages of identified students and gender differences through the use of the assessment. The sample consisted…

The Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) offers a relatively new way to measure achievement in schools. Six content areas are tested in grades 3 and 5. The use of the MSPAP to differentiate among schools in terms of success was studied using data for the 775 Maryland elementary schools that were active in 1995. Test results for…

The seven chapters of this issue focus on technical qualities of performance assessments and report the findings of systematic empirical inquiries. They add to the body of research that shows that performance assessment, although time consuming and expensive, merits the serious attention of educators. (SLD)

Discusses how recent court decisions and the move toward performance assessment may affect the adverse impact, reliability, validity, and pass-fail standards of teacher-certification tests. Recommendations are made for tests that combine multiple-choice items with open-ended tasks. (SLD)

Articles related to assessment in the field of reading are presented to provide ideas for those studying reading and reading assessment. There are two sections to the bibliography: the articles themselves and an index. Many of the entries describe informal assessments and are intended mainly for classroom use. The 124 articles are listed in…

Articles in this bibliography represent holdings of the Test Center of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory in the area of assessment alternatives in mathematics. Articles are included to stimulate thinking and provide new ideas. Some of the entries describe formal assessments, intended mainly for the classroom. The 134 annotations center…