This comprehensive guide to alternative, authentic assessment in early childhood education provides discussions of the most current research and practical ways to integrate assessments into teaching. It shows assessment as a process that teachers can use in their own classrooms, using the latest procedures, such as portfolios, standards,…

The North Carolina State Board of Education, as part of the Quality Assurance Program, established a computer proficiency requirement for students in grade eight for the 1996-97 school year and beyond in order to receive a North Carolina high school diploma. The first opportunity to meet the requirement is during the eighth grade. Passing the…

This qualitative study explored the evaluative criteria used by administrators at a southern, metropolitan university to define institutional effectiveness and to determine the congruency between those criteria and the institution's metropolitan mission. Four focus groups were conducted with 22 administrators (vice chancellors, associate and…

This design document describes a research methodology for setting achievement levels (performance standards) on the NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress). The current plan is an extension of earlier work by NAGB (National Assessment Governing Board) to set achievement levels on the 1990 NAEP mathematics assessment, and by NAGB and…

The initial development of a testlet-based algebra test was previously reported (Wainer and Lewis, 1990). This account provides the details of this excursion into the use of hierarchical testlets and validity-based scoring. A pretest of two 15-item hierarchical testlets was carried out in which examinees' performance on a 4-item subset of each…

Three critical procedural skills in emergency medicine were evaluated using three assessment modalities--written, computer, and animal model. The effects of computer practice and previous procedure experience on skill competence were also examined in an experimental sequential assessment design. Subjects were six medical students, six residents,…

This technical manual provides all major existing information about the technical characteristics of the Kentucky Instructional Results Information System (KIRIS). The assessment component of the Kentucky Education Reform Act Accountability System was in use between 1991-92 and 1993-94 and was referred to as Cycle One. Two sets of test…

This technical manual provides information about the technical characteristics of the Kentucky Instructional Results Information System (KIRIS), the assessment component of the Kentucky Education Reform Act Accountability System. The time period covered is Accountability Cycle 2, which spanned the school years 1992-93 through 1995-96. Sections of…

The New Jersey Commission on Higher Education releases this report annually on systemwide accountability. The data are collected from the system's 9 state colleges and universities, 3 public research universities, 19 community colleges, and 25 private higher education institutions. The key findings of this year's report include: (1) full-time…

The first volume of the 24th annual conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education includes plenary addresses, plenary panel discussions, research forum, project groups, discussion groups, short oral communications, and poster presentations. (ASK)

The fourth volume of the 24th annual conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education contains full research report papers. Papers include: (1) "What are essential to apply the 'discovery' function of proof in lower secondary school mathematics?" (Mikio Miyazaki); (2) "The anatomy of an 'open'…

This study examines performance and authentic assessments related to job and academic skills. It begins with a general historical perspective that discusses the evolution of assessment systems used by education and industry in the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan. The influence of federal policy also is discussed,…

Until very recently, assessment in the Arabian Gulf focused primarily on high stakes testing. However, with the increased popularity of multiple-measure assessment, institutions in the region are adopting alternative forms of assessment. This paper provides a rationale for alternative assessment in the English-as-a-Foreign/Second-Language…

This issue brief reports on accountability policies and practices for elementary students with emotional and behavioral disorders in private and public day treatment and residential schools. Between January 2001 and March 2002, a study was conducted of these schools, gathering responses from 271 principals and 229 teachers. Major findings…

This paper argues that--with the increasing use of enhanced, computer-based instructional technologies in education--studies that examine differences between distance and traditional classroom instruction by comparing a distance course with a regular classroom section of the same course are no longer appropriate. The author proposes methods that…