The United Kingdom's 1992 Education Act established the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), which was mandated to oversee an inspection system for all schools. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the extent to which the inspection process helped schools with their school-development planning. A survey was mailed to…

Elements of arbitrariness in the standard setting process are explored, and an alternative to the use of cut scores is presented. The first part of the paper analyzes the use of cut scores in large-scale assessments, discussing three different functions: (1) cut scores define the qualifications used in assessments; (2) they simplify the reporting…

A new paradigm for evaluating school restructuring that is based on the teacher-as-researcher concept, or action research, is presented in this paper. The first section compares the traditional and new evaluation paradigms. The old model is competitive, one-dimensional, reactive, and based on external change agents; it appeals to fear and views…

Test theory encompasses models and methods for drawing inferences about what students know and can do, cast in a framework of ideas from measurement, education, and psychology. The emerging paradigm of cognitive psychology prompts new considerations about collecting and interpreting evidence, suggesting alternative models for the nature,…

The gap between policymaker enthusiasm for the uses of student assessment and expert caution is analyzed by examining new forms of student assessment as an education policy strategy. The study is based on interviews with 34 national and state policymakers and focuses on their differing expectations of what assessment policy can accomplish and how…

The construct validity of content standards is addressed in terms of their representative coverage of a construct domain and their alignment with the students' cognitive level of developing expertise in the subject matter. The construct validity of performance standards is addressed in terms of the extent to which they reflect increasing levels of…

Understanding the distribution of achievement levels of students' performance on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is aided through the use of the trilinear chart. This chart is described and its use illustrated with data from the 1992 state NAEP mathematics assessment. The trilinear chart is used to portray three variables…

Because of recent educational reform efforts aimed at creating more "educated persons" at the college level, a descriptive-correlational study was made to describe the aspired and the assessed cognitive level of instruction and determine the relationship of these variables to attitude toward teaching at higher cognitive levels among…

An evaluation of North Carolina's public school system is provided in this report, which uses student academic performance as a primary indicator of educational effectiveness. The first two sections describe characteristics of North Carolina and its schools, with a focus on public school population, enrollment, and funding. Section 3 focuses on…

In light of the 10th anniversary of "A Nation at Risk," this report attempts to answer some of the questions about the southern states' educational accomplishments of the past decade. After the introduction, three sections address the following questions: (1) What is different today? (2) Why are we disappointed? and (3) What are we…

In its effort to meet the challenges of the National Education Goals, New Hampshire is emphasizing three major goals: develop an outcome-based assessment program; formulate major reforms in science and mathematics education; and support the "break the mold" schools program. All state policies and programs are guided by common themes:…

Schools are being increasingly encouraged to "restructure" to improve education in schools. However, restructuring has many different meanings for different people. This book addresses the origins, purposes, and methods of restructuring schools and clarifies the definition of restructuring. It also advocates comprehensive change in thinking about…

Educational leaders are developing standards to specify what students should know and be able to achieve in key subject areas. This document examines an important challenge of standards-based reform--that of creating a process to develop standards. Information is based on studies conducted by the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE)…

This publication describes issues in the policy debate about opportunity-to-learn (OTL) standards. OTL standards are designed to represent what schools and teachers should do if the new curriculum and achievement standards, as outlined by National Education Goal 3, are to be met. Goal 3 calls for competency in challenging subject matter for all…

This paper defines Total Quality Management (TQM), discusses its origins, and identifies its strengths and weaknesses as they apply to higher education. The paper defines TQM as a philosophy of organizations that defines quality and improves organizational performance and administrative systems. The system originated from statistical quality…