A meta-analysis was conducted to determine whether there were differences between the assigned academic achievement levels of students who were assessed with traditional methods of assessment and those who were assessed with alternative methods. From the more than 800 studies identified through literature searches, 7 studies, with a total of 5,020…

This digest presents 11 basic principles to guide the assessment training and professional development of teachers and administrators. These are: (1) assessment is inherently a process of professional judgment; (2) assessment is based on separate but related principles of measurement evidence and evaluation; (3) assessment decision-making is…

This report is part of a two-volume publication that outlines the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) 5-year plan to transform education in DoD schools. It is based on the vision that the DoDEA will be a learner-centered organization, unbound by traditional school concepts of time, location, and age requirements, and will be…

This study examined the proposition that if teacher professional development focuses on ways of thinking and teacher action, it will facilitate the ongoing implementation of opportunity-to-learn (OTL) assessment strategies rated as "teacher-friendly" and "very teacher-friendly." Case study methodology was used to investigate…

Santa Fe Community College (Florida) published this guide as a means of addressing the 1983 and 1984 U.S. Department of Education reports that called for a "renaissance in higher education in America." This manual aims to define institutional effectiveness for the college, with the quality of student learning as the major focus. It also…

This guide examines claims for 24 schoolwide programs-- programs that promise to improve student learning by changing the entire school. Focusing on quantitative achievement measures such as test scores, grades, and graduation rates, the report was prepared for educators and others to assist them in their investigation of different approaches to…

This document presents papers from a National Science Foundation (NSF) working conference to identify research issues and implementation strategies that support quality classroom assessment. Papers include: (1) "Understanding and Improving Classroom Assessment: Summary of Issues Raised" (George W. Bright and Jeane M. Joyner); (2) "Recommendations…

This paper presents a framework for evaluating cognitive claims to the interpretation of assessment scores and provides evidence of its applicability to science achievement. The idea of the "assessment triangle" (Pellegrino, Chodowsky, and Glaser, 2001) was adopted in the form of an assessment square with four tightly linked corners: construct…

This document presents guidelines for program review at Peralta Community College District's (PCCD) (California) institutions. The primary objective of the program review process is to assure that PCCD's educational programs reflect student needs and encourage student success. The review process consists of five stages: (1) a discipline self-study…

The Subcommittee on Education Reform of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce met to hear testimony on using assessments and accountability to raise student achievement. Statements were given by: (1) Major Owens, Congressman from New York; (2) Michael Castle, Congressman from Delaware, Committee Chairman; (3) Edward B. Rust, Jr.,…

A program was designed, as an action research project, to increase the retention of information through the use of alternative methods of instruction. The targeted population consisted of primary and intermediate students in a community in a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. There had been a decline in standardized test scores, the increasing pressure…

Two trends have converged during the past three decades to change the face of public school education in America. First, achievement testing has been greatly expanded in terms of both the quantity of tests available and the number of uses for the information collected from testing. Second, there has been a significant increase in the development…

This report takes a broad look at the status of California's high schools. It examines the demands being placed on schools, new systems for accountability, available data on the performance of students and schools, and the resources high schools currently devote to helping students achieve. The text focuses on the various factors that influence…

This report presents San Antonio College's (Texas) Student Support Program review, which is intended to ensure quality programs in four areas: Admissions, Assessment Center, Counseling, and Services for Special Populations and Student Activities. This report is divided into four parts: (1) introduction; (2) the program review process; (3) the…

This paper comments on three concepts in mathematics that need harmonizing: attitudes, mathematics, and evaluation. Some ways of evaluating achievement are suggested. Discusses portfolios as an evaluation process and provides information about additional assessment procedures. (ASK)