The first half of this publication consists of four papers presented at a 1967 working conference intended to foster the development of a theory of educational assessment. Topics discussed in "The Purposes of Assessment" by Ralph W. Tyler include assessment for diagnosis, for individual guidance, for college admissions and placement, and…

An observational monitoring system is described for evaluating preschool programs and providing feedback to relatively untrained caregivers in order to encourage program improvement in the social and cognitive realms. The system utilizes a simple one page observation form for teachers and children detailing interaction and type of activity. Data…

This book describes what has happened to one group of young black children in an urban school inside a black community persistently and doggedly contained by surrounding whites. Even beyond the realities of racism, their education was influenced by the pervasive impact of schools in perpetuating the existing inequalities of American society. This…

Several sampling procedures for collecting observational data on student activities were studied in an effort to determine their relative efficiency. The setting was a fifth grade Individually Prescribed Instruction (IPI) mathematics class of thirty-three pupils. A criterion measure was obtained by cumulating the measurements obtained on the…

The Institute was 1) to provide a group of 13 experienced teachers with techniques for teaching elementary school students to recognize and define problems, and 2) to work closely with these teachers, evaluating the effectiveness of their teaching techniques over a period of 1 year. A series of workshops used reading, films, discussion, and…

A collection of articles related to testing instruments of the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) are reviewed. The report has been organized into four sections. The first discusses briefly the background and purposes of the NTE and the hazards of combining data on these tests in research studies. The second section is concerned with articles…

The Quality Assurance Model for Process Evaluation has been developed by the Southwestern Cooperative Educational Laboratory. It provides educational administrators several alternative techniques for maximizing desired terminal behaviors. By working with project directors, the evaluator helps to assist the program's implementation, providing…

The purpose of this study was to develop an observation system which would describe some of the important phenomena in groups that have the task of making a decision about a controversial issue involving value conflicts. The basic design to develop the observation system involved the analysis of transcriptions of group discussions of controversial…

A study to investigate the significance of teacher decisions concerning the social and physical dimensions of the Open Classroom was conducted. Preliminary observation reviewed teacher goals and decisions for the Open Classroom. This research is based upon Hall's theory of culture reflecting the communication model. There are five basic structural…

Thirty children, 7.5 to 8.5 years, in two classrooms in a Catholic school trying to implement an informal curriculum were studied. The classrooms were not "exemplary"; The children had lower-middle-class origins. Each child was observed under free-choice conditions for approximately 80-90 minutes over a 3-month period. Two-minute narrative records…

This paper reviews the literature pertaining to the measurement of attitudes toward reading, and recommends a workable approach for the elementary grades based on available instrumentation. The preliminary section summarizes the findings of studies relating to the theoretical framework of the psychology of reading. Reading research findings…

The ecobehavioral approach to assessment of instructional outcomes is based on observational methods and behavioral research design. A practical observational system for use in examining the percentage of time in which a student uses various tasks and materials during a specific instructional activity is described and illustrated in detail.…

Describes several facets of small-group instruction including teacher, group, and individual behaviors and use of time. Observational data were supplemented by teacher interviews concerning student groupings. Grouping practice appeared to result from decisions teachers made primarily on the basis of three factors: the teacher, the students, and…

Analysis of feedback provided by 40 teachers in self-contained special education classes serving learning disabled, emotionally handicapped, or educable mentally retarded students discerned no differences by type of handicap involved or in comparison to regular classroom teachers. Results raised questions concerning the appropriateness of…

Discusses teacher evaluation in Great Britain, abandoning some common assumptions about "correct" teaching methods and hierarchical and "outside" appraisal systems. Advocates peer evaluation, flexible criteria, faculty discussion, and staff development as a primary purpose. Describes an evaluation sheet to be used by observing…