Higher education institutions (HEIs) have experienced increasing pressures to provide accountability data and consumer information on the quality of teaching and learning. Existing ratings and rankings of HEIs tend to neglect information on student learning outcomes. Instead, they focus on inputs, activities and research outputs, such as resources…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA) requires states and the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) to define and determine whether schools are making adequate yearly progress (AYP) toward meeting the goal of 100 percent academic proficiency. To address tribes' needs for cultural preservation, NCLBA allows tribal groups to…

This report presents findings from a rigorous evaluation of the Early Start to Emancipation Preparation (ESTEP)-Tutoring Program in Los Angeles. ESTEP-Tutoring provides up to 50 hours of remedial one-on-one tutoring in reading and math to foster youths ages 14 to 15 who are one to three years behind grade level in either reading or math. The…

In 2006 the Educational Policy Institute released the first edition of "Beyond the Sticker Price: A Closer Look at Canadian University Tuition Fees." The report presented a new way by which to look at the prices and costs associated with university tuition, an alternative to the annual tuition fee report produced by Statistics Canada…

This document was developed by the Mid-South Regional Resource Center (MSRRC) and is designed to be used as an assessment of State systems by State Part B and Part C staff and their stakeholders. It provides a detailed process for State Education Agencies (SEA) and Lead Agencies (LA) to follow that will guide improvement efforts relative to the…

[Slides] presented at the Annual National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) in New York in March 2008. This presentation explores the demographic information as well as how and where educational measurement professionals are in the field.

Technological innovation undoubtedly offers many potential benefits for education and the assessment of learning, which have been acknowledged elsewhere. One area that is relatively under-researched relates to the practice of how assessors interact with longer texts that are presented on screen. This is an important area of study because there…

Between 1998 and 2002, enrollment in American Sign Language (ASL) curricula at the postsecondary level has increased 433% nationally, representing the largest enrollment percentage gain of all world languages. This unprecedented demand for ASL linguistic study has created a wide range of instructional challenges, the most pervasive of which…

This paper presents findings from a study that developed a model process and created a Quality of Life-Value-Added Index for Education. The model helps communities assess the value-added characteristics of education by providing the methods necessary to evaluate the value added of their schools. "Value-added" refers to the value that…

Science education standards are criteria by which to judge the quality of what students know and are able to do, of the science programs that provide the opportunity for students to learn science, of science teaching, of the system that supports science teachers and programs, and of assessment practices and policies. This document summarizes the…

This paper describes and reviews the Effective Early Learning (EEL) Research Project's approach to quality evaluation and improvement in early childhood settings in the United Kingdom which focuses primarily on enhancing the effectiveness of the early learning experiences of young children. The project began work in May 1993 and is completing its…

This research investigates whether the Computer-Based Academic Assessment System (CAAS), a battery of tests examining speed and accuracy at performing component reading skills, would be useful for identifying reading disability in college students. One important question was whether CAAS could distinguish reading disability from non-disability or…

When individuals are given tests that are too hard or too easy, the resulting scores are likely to be poor estimates of their performance. To get valid and accurate test scores that provide meaningful results, one should use functional-level testing (FLT). FLT is the practice of administering to an individual a version of a test with a difficulty…

Statistical significance tests (SSTs) have been the object of much controversy among social scientists. Proponents have hailed SSTs as an objective means for minimizing the likelihood that chance factors have contributed to research results. Critics have both questioned the logic underlying SSTs and bemoaned the widespread misapplication and…

Educational reform efforts have led to increased use of alternatives to the traditional binary-scored multiple choice item. Many stimuli employed by these alternative assessments yield complex responses that require complex scoring rules. Some of these new item types can be polytomously-scored. Differential item functioning (DIF) assessment is a…