CBAL, an acronym for Cognitively Based Assessment of, for, and as Learning, is a research initiative intended to create a model for an innovative K-12 assessment system that provides summative information for policy makers, as well as formative information for classroom instructional purposes. This paper summarizes empirical results from 16 CBAL…

This book's title, "I Used to Think... And Now I Think...", is borrowed from an exercise often used at the end of teacher professional development sessions, in which participants write down how what they've learned has changed their thinking. The resulting essays model the ongoing process of reflection and growth among those deeply committed to…

This book is designed to help educational leaders, decision makers, and teachers wade through the complexities of aligning technology planning with learning goals. Organized around a problem-solving model based on solution fluency, the authors outline how to: (1) Address state, regional, or provincial standards; (2) Improve test scores--Meet…

Once your school has established the reason and the will to move forward with Response to Intervention (RTI), you still have to navigate all the difficult steps of implementing core instruction with a multitiered system of supports, data-based problem solving, progress monitoring, and universal screening. That's where this ASCD (Association for…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to identify factors that influenced parents to enroll and re-enroll their children in charter schools in North Carolina. A survey of 25 items was prepared based on previous work related to parental choice reported in the literature. Parents participating in charter programs rank ordered the reasons why…

This Roadmap, developed by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) Next-Generation State Accountability Taskforce, presents a vision for next-generation accountability systems to support college and career readiness for all students. It is written by and for states, building on the leadership toward college and career readiness. This…

A number of indicators, including new professional organizations, the proliferation of software tools, and the launch of a new international journal, are signaling a critical mass of interest in ePortfolios in educational settings. This article describes the current ePortfolio landscape by examining the key promises offered by such tools in…

This paper presents 2011 edition of "Diplomas Count" which explores career-related study pathways for students that lie in the space between a high school diploma and a four-year degree-options such as community college, "early college," or high school career training that leads to occupational certification. It looks as well at what high schools…

An abundance of comprehensive school reform (CSR) literature exists illustrating CSRs are effective in improving student outcomes. However, much of this research reports on top-down reforms, focuses on academic outcomes, and uses quantitative methods alone. Many educational researchers have argued for the use of mixed methods for providing a…

In this paper, the author reports on an analysis of an Australian university's assessment procedure. The procedure--a major governance document of the university--is deconstructed by way of a Foucauldian discourse analysis in order to consider how students and academics are governed. There were three major findings. The dominant discourse…

The results of the twelfth annual EDUCAUSE Current Issues Survey reflect the everyday balancing act that IT leaders need to perform. Many of the issues show the need for continued and thoughtful long-range planning, yet new issues have also risen quickly to the top, requiring nimbleness in both thought and act. Administered by the EDUCAUSE Current…

The goal of the Department of Biological Sciences faculty was to evaluate how effectively our undergraduate biology program supports the goals and intended outcomes of our department and institution. Student responses in written assessment tests have provided the foundation of this evaluation. Each semester questions were selected by a…

The purpose of this study is to describe a new approach for evaluating the judgments of standard-setting panelists within the context of the bookmark procedure. The bookmark procedure is widely used for setting performance standards on high-stakes assessments. A many-faceted Rasch (MFR) model is proposed for evaluating the bookmark judgments of…

This article characterizes and measures errors in the 2010 National Research Council (NRC) assessment of research-doctorate programs in geography. This article provides a conceptual model for data-based sources of uncertainty and reports on a quantitative assessment of NRC research data uncertainty for a particular geography doctoral program.…

This study addressed the topic of job specifications and school characteristics since there is a shortage of quality AP applicants in high-stakes accountability environments. It is important to learn about allocation of duties from educational administrators with on-the-job experience as well as to learn why current APs would consider applying for…