Although educational reform has generated much excitement and has been associated with many positive classroom changes, policymakers and educators also face a number of challenges in designing and implementing the new policies. This publication examines these challenges and the strategies that states are using to address them. It draws from the…

The changing meaning of equity and assessment is traced in the context of a shift from the hegemony of a market discourse to an emergent "conversation" centered around relationships and community. The weakening position of the state and the market through global socioeconomic transformation sets loose a search for alternatives, which…

In response to increasing demands for evidence of institutional effectiveness in higher education, and given the diversity within the Academy, a decentralized model of institutional academic effects assessment, the Academic Program Level Effects Assessment Model (APLEAM), may be useful. APLEAM consists of three interdependent components:…

Like many countries, Norway in the 1980s decentralized many government functions including public education. However, there was concern over maintaining common national education goals and evaluating schools' performance. Decentralization in schools also included school-based evaluation, evaluation done by and in the school. Three studies of…

In July 1989, the Tacoma Board of Directors adopted a 5-year strategic educational plan, which included a curriculum strategy and action plan. A 6-year curriculum adoption cycle was proposed during the 1989-90 school year, and an audit of current procedures for developing and implementing curriculum was conducted in 1991. This report describes the…

This document presents recommendations made by Tennessee's High School Advisory Task Force, with a focus on describing what students should know and be able to do after completing high school. Nine elements that are essential for schoolwide reform are identified: a core curriculum, a focused plan of study, active learning, an integrated…

This document contains parts of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP). Rubrics and released items are provided for four levels and areas of the test including high school, grade 5, grade 8, and graphing items. (CCM)

Because education in the United States is largely determined at the state and local levels, there has been considerable interest in how the performance of students in individual states compares with each other, with the United States as a whole, and with other nations. The comparison of state performance with other states and with the nation as a…

Many textbooks in educational measurement and classroom assessment have chapters devoted to specific item formats. There may be attempts to relate one item format to another, but the chapters and item formats are largely seem as distinct entities with only loose and uncertain connections. This paper synthesizes these discussions. An item format…

Findings from a study that explored the ways in which principals use information on school quality are presented in this paper. The effects of school level, years of administrative experience, students' socioeconomic status, and school performance are also examined. Methodology involved interviews and follow-up interviews with a total of 38…

A small sample of the 60 indicators contained in the "Condition of Education, 1992" are provided in this brief booklet. Ordering information to receive the complete 421-page book is listed along with the following tables: (1) High school completion rate for 19- to 20-year-olds; (2) student drug and alcohol use; (3) immediate transition…

Information on the condition of K-12 education in Iowa during 1990 is presented in this document. To provide comparisons across time, comparable data for the 1985-86 school year are also presented. Following the introduction, the first section describes statewide initiatives for improvement and quality assurance and for increased educational…

Missouri's Outstanding Schools Act of 1993 will dramatically improve public education throughout the state. This report provides background and an outline of the act. The law increases state funding of education by more than $360 million a year over FY 1993 funding and sets into motion a series of reforms. Basic education, including science and…

The New Standards Project, a joint program of the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh and the National Center on Education and the Economy, is working to set very high, voluntary national education standards for all students and to create a performance-based examination system. Approximately 20 states and 6…

The validity of results from international assessments depends on the correctness of the test translations. If the tests presented in one language are more or less difficult because of the manner in which they are translated, the validity of any interpretation of the results can be questioned. Many test translation methods exist in the literature,…