A seminar in Idaho on creating assessment and accountability plans for charter schools presented attributes of assessments that build children's confidence and give insights into how they can improve; offered criteria for using portfolio assessments; and described how to develop objectives that are measurable. A sidebar presents a six-step plan…

The articles of this special issue focus on problems and deficiencies in the evaluation of school superintendents. They explore ways to improve superintendent evaluation, drawing on the literature, political realities, educational philosophy, and the theory and practice considered essential for good evaluation. (SLD)

This article describes practices effective in assessing communication and language in persons with autism. It reviews basic principles that govern assessment in the discipline of speech-language pathology, discusses features associated with autism that affect communication and language assessment, and provides strategies to address these features.…

This paper aims to examine current nationwide youth fitness test programs, address problems embedded in the programs, and possible solutions. The current Fitnessgram, President's Challenge, and YMCA youth fitness test programs were selected to represent nationwide youth fitness test programs. Sponsors of the nationwide youth fitness test programs…

This research focuses on the examination of problems related to the national teacher performance appraisal system by the Thai Ministry of Education. It highlights major problems of the current performance appraisal system by delineating the weaknesses and pitfalls of the current appraisal system. The findings indicate problems to three major…

The pedagogical potential of classroom assessment to support student learning has increasingly been evidenced in research over the past decade. Constructive classroom assessment has been championed by assessment specialists, and endorsed by professional organizations. In practice, however, the process of changing classroom assessment from its…

In this journal issue, the authors of the focus articles have provided a suite of very stimulating and thoughtful articles. The overarching purpose of this research is to explore the application of principles derived from the view of validity proposed by Kane (2004) to their research on issues related to the measurement of mathematical knowledge…

The authors of this volume's stimulus papers have taken on the challenge of developing measures of teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT). This task involves multiple decisions and considerations, including: (1) How does one specify the body of knowledge being assessed? What warrants are offered for those choices?; (2) How does one…

This report summarizes results from research aimed at improving the quality of information collected about school curriculum. The research sought to design and pilot a model for collecting benchmark data on school coursework. These more indepth data, such as course textbooks, assignments, exams, and teacher logs, can serve as anchors against which…

This study examined the attitudes of elementary school teachers and students toward portfolio assessment. A total of 11 teachers and 116 students in grades 3 through 5 responded to open-ended questions regarding the benefits of portfolios for highlighting students' written work. Teachers were asked about the strengths and weaknesses of portfolio…

Noting that the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress used a variety of innovative assessment approaches, this executive summary discusses a number of issues related to the new reading assessment framework. An introductory section of the executive summary discusses the new framework for reading assessment, the transition in reporting…

An understanding of state accountability systems is critical in the discussion of educational reform. Clear and complete definitions of expectations for learners are needed before conducting educational assessments. This document describes findings of a study that examined six state accountability systems, with a focus on how they impacted…

A demonstration project was conducted to develop and pilot test a portfolio-based approach to learning assessment in adult basic education (ABE). The portfolio process and materials were developed under the oversight of a project task force after a review of existing portfolio assessment practices. The portfolio assessment approach was pilot…

A preliminary discussion is presented of the advantages and disadvantages of the comprehensive assessment system used to complement the National Curriculum that is being introduced in England and Wales as part of the 1988 Education Reform Act. Some of the early findings of the Primary Assessment, Curriculum, and Experience (PACE) study are also…

In 1990, North Country Community College (NCCC) in New York developed an outcome assessment plan as a response to a requirement of the State University of New York. The planning process began in summer 1989 with an inventory of current assessment processes and a review of their effectiveness. A new plan was then developed, reviewed, and refined.…