A random survey of 208 colleges and universities investigated perceived changes over 10 years in students' use of the academic grievance and due process mechanisms to resolve course evaluation disputes with faculty members. Findings showed increase in the number of academic grievances, suggesting that students are demanding more accountability in…

Analyzed kindergarten report cards from Ohio public schools. Results indicated that there was an emphasis on academic skills and that kindergartners were expected to master skills in work habits and reading and math readiness. A behaviorist perspective was favored. (PCB)

The grading of high school physics students as a function of conceptual versus nonconceptual performance is investigated. The nonconceptual means a routine substitution in equations or direct recall. Students scoring highest on one type of question are far from distinguished on another type of question. (YP)

Discusses using interdisciplinary classroom projects planned jointly by students and teacher in a language arts based gifted program for students in grades K-6. Describes projects based on the study of teddy bears and real bears, publicizing National Children's Book Week, and conducting a study of the students' school and community.(DHP)

Maintains that academia has not escaped the litigious nature of the current U.S. social climate. Cites pivotal U.S. Supreme Court cases on academic judgment and reviews lower court cases where students challenged their assigned grades. Provides suggestions for lessening the likelihood of litigation. (CFR)

Argues for a diverse response to the issues and objectives concerning assessment. Highlights a wide variety of assessment procedures from foreign schools, each one relevant to the local culture and educational objectives. Discusses the inherent dangers in overemphasizing, as well as underemphasizing, assessment. (MJP)

An Australian study investigated the structure of a master's program in education and examiners' concerns about theses, focusing on the most common criticisms. The study was based on information about 125 part-time students' theses over a 4-year period. The examiners' criticisms raised questions about the thesis supervisor's role. (MSE)

A study of grading of 375 third-year medical students and their 121 preceptors after a required 1-month ambulatory care clerkship examined patterns in student gender, preceptor gender, and student-preceptor gender pairs. Results indicate female students received higher clinical grades, especially when the preceptor was male. (Author/MSE)

A survey of 120 law schools investigated grading practices for different course types, use of different kinds of grading curves to standardize assessment at several instructional levels, and recent experience with institutional changes in grading systems. (MSE)

Asserts that evaluating cooperative learning experiences is both traditional in the tools used and innovative in the way the results benefit students and teachers. Provides suggestions for encouraging interdependence, grading group projects, and evaluating both academic achievement and group process skills. (CFR)

Effects of frequent ungraded tests on graded unit tests, instructional strategy preference, and student ratings of course and instructor were studied with 82 undergraduates. Mean performance on unit tests did not differ for experimental (formative) and control groups, but formative students expressed a preference for the ungraded tests. (SLD)

The level of confidence in pass/fail decisions obtained with computerized adaptive tests and paper-and-pencil tests was greater for 645 medical technology students when the computer adaptive test implemented a 90 percent confidence stopping rule than for paper-and-pencil tests of comparable length. (SLD)

Argues that criteria for grading essay questions in geography examinations must be explicit and must reflect the kinds of knowledge and abilities sought after in British undergraduate geography courses. Proposes evaluative criteria designed to encourage and assess critical thinking. Enjoins other geographers to further the debate. (CH)

Describes an assessment procedure that allows the students to share in the responsibility and judgment of evaluating their own learning and achievement. As applied in an introductory biochemistry course at the University of Sao Paulo, the method consists primarily of a double, independent correction procedures for the students' examinations. (JJK)

Asserts that, although portfolios are used frequently to evaluate art students, the potential of the portfolio as an intellectual, creative, and comprehensive test of artistic performance needs further exploration. Discusses the portfolio process as having three major components: (1) idea; (2) process; and (3) product. (CFR)