This document discusses in depth the theoretical background of the Lexile Framework, which is based on the assumption that reading comprehension is the best predictor of success in higher education and job performance, and that it is the most tested construct in education. The first section defines measurement and differentiates between specific…

A beverage-server intervention project at two West Coast Navy bases that attempted to reduce levels of alcoholic intoxication via policy changes and server training is described. Data obtained via interviews and structured observations of 1,511 club customers indicate methodological bias and self-selection effects. Bias adjustments were performed…

Questions assumptions implicit in the fifth objective of National Education Goal 5, calling for critical thinking, communication and problem-solving abilities. Outlines strategies for a national assessment/improvement program, including setting goals, preparing faculty to foster student learning, gathering evidence on outcomes, and using…

Teacher assessments should reduce the discrepancy between what is and what should be true for effective teaching and professional standards. Performance Assessment Centers are an attractive way to improve teacher assessment. In such centers, candidates participate in simulated job tasks tapping abilities related to the assessment's focus. (SLD)

Seventeen Canadian teachers and administrators were interviewed to determine their perspectives on reading education. Forty-two interviews were transcribed and evaluated. Preliminary analysis reveals that assessment as a social-psychological phenomenon is filled with tensions, contradictions, and dilemmas that cannot be solved simply through…

Asserts that the whole-language approach requires broader evaluation procedures most often associated with alternative assessment methods. Discusses issues related to alternative assessment, such as goal setting, portfolios, and interrater reliability, as they apply to social studies. (CFR)

Reviews the Standard Assessment Tasks used to evaluate pupil performance relative to the National Curriculum in England and Wales. Asserts that the system of assigning students to one of 10 levels of attainment is criterion-referenced, whereas the test is norm-referenced. (CFR)

Discussion of Web-based instruction in Korean higher education focuses on methods of student assessment, including formal (tests and assignments), informal (attendance, participation, and discussion) and alternative (portfolios, and practicums). Discusses evaluative studies on distance education and suggests improvements in current assessment…

In this lead article three emergent problems in the analysis of cross-national survey data are raised in a context of 40 years of research and development in a field where persistent problems have arisen and where scholars across the world have sought solutions. Anomalous results have been found from secondary data analyses that would appear to…

A central dilemma of portfolio assessment is that as the richness of the data available to readers increases, so do the challenges involved in ensuring acceptable reliability among readers. Drawing on empirical and theoretical work in discourse analysis, ethnomethodology, and other fields, we argue that this dilemma results, in part, from the fact…

Research in information and communication technology in education places an increasing emphasis on the use of qualitative analysis (QA). A considerable number of approaches to QA can be adopted, but it is not always clear that researchers recognize either the differences between these approaches or the principles that underlie them.…

A study investigated the range of methods and approaches used by teachers in Year 2 in teaching reading and writing, and the assumptions underlying these approaches. Headteachers of 122 nationally representative maintained schools in England and Wales completed a brief questionnaire giving mostly statistical information about their school. A…

This conference proceedings presents 17 papers which examine quality assurance and evaluation in higher education, including methodologies, procedures, and ideas from various nations. The papers include: (1) "Quality Assurance in Higher Education" (Malcolm Frazer); (2) "Academic Standards Panels in Australia" (Kwong Lee Dow);…

In the United States today, policymakers and citizens believe that the quality of their schools must be improved. Reform policies and strategies are the focus of the first section of this report. The four areas identified are the perception and interpretation of the problems of quality, the methods of preparing reform or ad hoc measures, the main…

The value-added approach to the assessment of student outcomes examines actual or inferred changes in students' performance over time. It also attempts to separate the net effects of instruction from previous ability or simple maturation. Others may have different definitions of this concept, and this vagueness causes problems. Suggested ways to…