This paper lists practices recommended by the Division for Early Childhood for assessment in early intervention and early childhood special education (EI/ECSE) programs for infants and young children with special needs and their families. Introductory text examines the role of assessment, materials and procedures used, and assessment principles,…

The differences between multiple-choice, simulated, and concurrent tests of software-skills proficiency are discussed. For three basic human-resource functions, the advantages of concurrent tests (i.e., those that use the actual application software) include true performance-based assessment, unconstrained response alternatives, and increased job…

Course placement systems in postsecondary education consist of an assessment component (to predict students' probability of success in standard first-year courses) and an instructional component (in which underprepared students are taught the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the standard course). The effectiveness of a placement system…

This paper presents a synthesis of research on teacher-constructed portfolios and a scan of the state of the art in using teacher-constructed portfolios in preservice teacher education and in inservice teacher development and assessment. It continues work begun in 1991 at the Far West Laboratory on the increased interest in using teacher…

This report summarizes the major changes to higher education in the United Kingdom as a result of the Further and Higher Education Act of 1992. These changes include the creation of new universities and new arrangements for the assessment and assurance of quality in higher education. Due mainly to the upgrading of polytechnics to university…

This document, the second part of a four-part analysis and assessment of Pakistan's system of primary education, presents the report's susbstantive analysis. Seven chapters are included: (1) Introduction; (2) Educational Policy and Planning; (3) The Financing of Primary Education; (4) Organization, Management, and Administration; (5) The Formal…

The fourth part of a four-part analysis and assessment of Pakistan's system of primary education presents annexes to the analysis that was reported in the second part of the overall report. Five annexes are included: (A) Acronyms; (B) Scope of Work; (C) Persons Interviewed; (D) Chapter Annexes; and (E) Bibliography. A number of charts and diagrams…

This paper reviews current approaches for tracking student progress in postsecondary education, focusing on the context of emerging policy and information needs at the state, national and institutional levels and on the capabilities and limits of currently available information technology. The paper consists of six main sections. First the growing…

In 1988, whether the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)--the "Nation's Report Card"--could become a report card for the states was studied. A trial assessment program was authorized to determine whether state assessments following the NAEP format could produce reliable and useful estimates of educational progress. This…

This booklet draws on the findings of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) geography survey of 1988 and shapes recommendations for practices that will make teachers more effective in stimulating student excitement about this increasingly important subject. The assessment surveyed more than 3,000 high school seniors in…

Report cards (RCs) on schools have become common in several states. This study determined relationships among factors reported in RCs developed for local school districts within Tennessee in 1988-89. Every year the state board of education produces an RC for each school district containing student outcome data (test results and achievement data)…

The renewed attention to assessments that attempt to capture complex aspects of educational attainments of students is explored. The definition and impetus for attention of the measurement community to higher order thinking skills are examined. Through a detailed description, a model assessment development process is presented. The process relies…

This hearing was held to update the Subcommittee on Judiciary and Education of the House Committee on the District of Columbia on the present status and overall condition of the District of Columbia public school system. Witnesses invited to testify included Nate Bush, president, District of Columbia Board of Education; Andrew E. Jenkins, III,…

Good elementary school science engages children in wonder and the study of the natural world. It makes links to technology and gives children the opportunity to explore how things work firsthand through activities and experiences with a wide variety of materials. This book was written for decision makers. While some of these decision makers hold…

A questionnaire with demographic questions and questions concerning learning disability (LD) assessment and placement practices was developed and sent to all 341 practicing school psychologists in Minnesota. Focus was on determining: the school psychologist's role in the assessment and reevaluation of students referred for LD placement, the…