Examines the relevance of decoding, comprehension, and reading rate as used by teachers for evaluation of their students' reading competence. Finds that teachers claim to rely only on decoding and comprehension in assessing reading competence, but that in practice teachers rely quite heavily on reading rate as a diagnostic tool. (RS)

The construct of competence, its structure, and the interrelationships among assessments of children's competence provided by different observers were studied using 76 mother-daughter pairs (girls were 8-11 years old), as part of a larger study. Two major domains relating to interpersonal relationships and academic-related concerns were…

Fourteen essays on the National Assessment of Educational Progress offer a broad, systematic examination of technical and policy issues in national-level assessments. Topics include reading and mathematics trends, quality control, national achievement trends, state-level implementation and reporting, and federal review panel responses. (TJH)

Offers a five-step design for assessing organizational effectiveness in small rural school districts: (1) consideration of major policy and technical issues; (2) defining the district's organizational components; (3) agreeing on measures of quality; (4) translating measures of quality into operational standards; and (5) assessing standards'…

The development, implementation, and observational evaluation of focused learning activities developed for students visiting the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora in Israel are discussed. The activities stimulated interest and motivation in most of the subjects, who were from five seventh-, eighth-, and ninth-grade classes. (TJH)

This article summarizes the evaluation of a university-based summer music festival and academic program sponsored by a school of music and held in a semi-remote community (Starret) in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Strategies employed by the evaluation team assessed public relations, faculty and student development, and cultural awareness. (TJH)

Discussed are trends in performance across the last three National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics assessments for students in grades 7 and 11, and reports on indicators of instructional activity. The results suggest that achievement in mathematics has taken a modest upturn in the 1980s. (MNS)

The Office of Instructional and Management Services at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, has been involved in the development and administration of several evaluation programs that contain an assessment component. These programs are described. (MLW)

Many medical schools have developed written expectations for their students that contain both cognitive and noncognitive academic criteria. Criteria included: honesty, professional behavior, dedication to learning, appearance, respect for law, respect for others, confidentiality, aid to others, substance abuse, and financial responsibility.…

Discusses the role and consistency of judges' interpretations of teacher performance as part of an evaluative scheme for complex performance, with reference to the ideological framework of professional standards. The tension between assessment decisions and the recognition that assessment involves interpretation is explored. (SLD)

The application of generalizability theory to the reliability and error variance estimation for performance assessment scores is discussed. Decision makers concerned with performance assessment need to realize the restrictions that limit generalizability such as limitations that lead to reductions in the number of tasks possible, rater quality,…

Reviews five books for educators: (1) "Once upon a Folktale: Capturing the Folklore Process with Children" (Blatt); (2) "Integrated Studies in the Middle Grades: Dancing through Walls" (Stevenson, Carr); (3) "Conflict in Child and Adolescent Development" (Schantz, Hartup); (4) "Ways of Assessing Children and…

Only the Social Withdrawal and Social Competence subscales of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) tapped a Social Competence factor in common with Social Competence subscales from a parent rating scale (Social Skills Rating System) and a scale (Pupil Evaluation Inventory) for teachers. Mothers of 93 boys (aged 7 to 11 years) completed the CBCL.…

Argues that international assessments that show U.S. educational inferiority are unwarranted, reviews the history of these assessments, and evaluates the major explanations of the achievement differences. It also examines the theoretical and empirical underpinnings of curriculum-centered explanations because of their relevance to school reform.…

Explores what outcome-based education could mean if it is properly planned and implemented. Outcome-based education emphasizes that the success of schools should be measured on the basis of what students actually know rather than what they are supposed to know. Issues in implementing outcome-based education are discussed. (SLD)