This article considers how teachers come to assess pupils' needs and abilities and how pupils come to acquire particular identities in the classroom--particularly Bangladeshi pupils who are both English as an Additional Language (EAL) and minority ethnic pupils. This work is a contribution to an emerging "sociology of educational…

China's emergence in the global economy has captured the attention of U.S. policy makers, who have a vested interest in understanding how China has advanced so quickly. The Chinese government views education as a key to economic growth and has initiated several rounds of education reform since the late 1970s. To meet the demands of globalization,…

This paper examines the English language situation at primary school level in Vietnam from a language planning perspective. It examines language policy for foreign language teaching in Vietnam to provide a picture of the role of English in foreign language education. It analyses language-in-education policy, curriculum and teaching materials, and…

The District Primary Education Programme launched by the Government of India put in place unique management structures and processes. The programme coverage was limited to the primary level of education only, that is, grades 1-4 in some states and grades 1-5 in other states. As this programme period was drawing to a close, the Government was…

Background: Phonological awareness tests are amongst the best predictors of literacy and predict outcomes of Key Stage 1 assessment of the National Curriculum in England at age 7. However, it is unknown whether their ability to predict National Curricular outcomes extends to Key Stage 2 assessments given at age 11, or also whether the predictive…

A teacher recently said of her own education, "When I went to school, we knew a lot and understand nearly nothing. We had no idea how what we learned related to the world beyond the classroom. What a waste!" This teacher is right. Knowing, which is important, is not the same as understanding. Simply cultivating knowledge is, as the teacher said, a…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of pretest items on response time in an operational, fixed-length, time-limited computerized adaptive test (CAT). These pretest items are embedded within the CAT, but unlike the operational items, are not tailored to the examinee's ability level. If examinees with higher ability levels need less…

The political philosophy (from the U.S. Declaration of Independence) that "all men are created equal" succinctly captures the "raison d'etre" and phenomenal successes of American higher education. Today, the deepest commitment to this idea of fair play is affordable access to a higher education that offers the opportunity to cultivate knowledge,…

The paper addresses a number of issues concerning policy and curriculum in post-compulsory education and training (PCET). Firstly, it seeks to locate PCET within its socio-economic context as it is this that frames curricula within the learning and skills sector and serves to legitimate its particular form. Secondly, the paper addresses the manner…

Prior to the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975 (PL 94-142), the educational experience of disabled children and youth was varied and uncertain. Many children and youth with sensory, physical or cognitive impairments received minimal skill development training in institutions, separate day classes, church basements…

Whilst regulation is utilized by governments in Australia and internationally as a means of promoting quality standards in early childhood education and care (ECEC) services, a growing body of literature is critical of the detrimental effect of this regulation. Drawing on our investigation into early childhood teachers' perceptions of the impact…

In this article, the author reports the results of a national survey taken by state assessment directors on the impact of No Child Left Behind on nonassessed subjects between the years 2001-5. Results indicate that during this time, statewide assessment of science and writing increased whereas it decreased in the social studies, arts and…

This paper focuses on the experiences of British parents who have children identified with "special education needs" within mainstream education. Expectations of mainstream education can have a negative affect on parents when a child is unable to maintain his or her education within a mainstream school. In England and Wales,…

A set of procedures is described for constructing an assessment network composed of a connected system of rater and writing task banks within the context of large-scale assessments of written composition. The calibration of the assessment tasks and the measurement of individuals are viewed as separate, although complementary, activities. The…

This digest identifies Internet resources of particular interest to the educational assessment community. Gopher sites and web sites are identified and discussed for the following organizations and institutions: (1) American Educational Research Association; (2) American Evaluation Association; (3) Arizona State University College of Education;…