Three innovations combine to make it possible for Arizona State University to move 1,600 students a year through a performance based communication course with no expense but the salary of a single faculty member. Apart from the obvious economic benefits, the mass lecture/small group breakdown format assures that the student will receive an…

Much of the effectiveness of college instruction depends on the quality of the methods that are used to evaluate student progress. After developing a test or examination that is a valid and reliable measure of student performance, the college instructor must evaluate the results of the examination and report the level and quality of student…

Article considered the authority of the school to grade students and examined statues from several states. (RK)

Seniors' writing skills were assessed in 1998 at a medium-sized public university. Blind scoring, a standard scoring guide, and trained graders were used. Curricular writing emphasis was assessed through a syllabus study, yielding a Curricular Emphasis Score. Controlling for entry-level skill in writing, Writing Score and Curricular Emphasis were…

Walker-Grant Middle School has moved from the traditional failure-oriented method of measuring student progress to one that measures continuous student progress. The concept of standards for each grade and subject was replaced by the concept of "taking the child where he is and working from that point." Under the old system, a student's…

Reports a study that evaluated the efficacy of a nonranking grading system in assessing superior performance. (JT)

The course design explained and illustrated in this paper provides students with a number of learning activities from which they may select those most appealing to them. After an introduction setting the background for this multidimensional approach, a general course design is presented in which each learning activity has a point value and student…

An English for Special Purposes (ESP) program, devised for students of the School of Environmental Design at the English Language Centre of King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, is described. The course is intended to be of direct relevance to students by developing their English language skills and giving them a basic professional vocabulary. A…

Within aptitude areas (Mechanical, Administrative, General, or Electronic) in the Air Force, some technical schools require higher levels of aptitude for admission than do others (for example, there are G10 schools, G60 schools, and G80 schools based on General test scores in th 10th, 60th, and 80th percentiles respectively). The schools, however,…

The developmental mathematics program described in this report is offered at Mohawk Valley Community College (New York) as a self-paced, semi-programmed sequence of units covering signed numbers and beginning algebra. The paper begins by establishing the need for such a program, explaining that in Fall 1979 it became evident that the college's…

If developmental studies programs are to successfully enhance affective and cognitive development in a non-competitive, supportive setting, they must abandon traditional A to F grading in favor of a descriptive, personalized feedback system that helps the student make intelligent decisions concerning his/her academic future. Indeed, research…

This learning module on evaluating students in performance-based vocational education (PBVE) programs is one of nine developed for use in training administrators, teachers, and prospective teachers in the utilization of Vocational-Technical Education Consortium of States (V-TECS) catalogs of performance objectives, criteria-referenced measures,…

The problems brought to the Ombudsman Office at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, are considered. Many of the questions brought to the Ombudsman Office concern grades and grading practices, but nonacademic problems are also questioned. Many of the problems are the result of misinformation having been given to the student. Patronizing or rude…