The instructional auditor reviews school district policies, job descriptions, budget allocations, contract provisions, internal and external communications, instructional monitoring and delivery systems, elections, student characteristics, personnel characteristics, and administrative authority as these factors affect a district's instructional…

This paper represents a tribute to the career of Ralph Winfred Tyler, whose publication "Constructing Achievement Tests" served as the basis for most of the major efforts in evaluation since 1934. Tyler's career is traced from his doctoral studies at the University of Chicago to his guidelines for national assessment. (LMO)

This paper serves a dual purpose: (1) it provides a framework for the more specialized papers of this journal issue, which surveys the state of educational assessment and evaluation in the Federal Republic of Germany; and (2) it illustrates the controversial developments that have led to the present state of educational measurement. (PN)

This book explores how standards are bringing about changes in elementary schools and conveys what standards-based education in elementary schools looks and feels like. Chapter 1 tells the story of Andrew as an emblem of the common fate of children in an educational system that did not know its purpose. Chapter 2 sketches the history and…

Previous studies of the validity of gains on high-stakes tests have compared trends in scores on a high-stakes test to trends on a lower-stakes test, such as NAEP. However, generalizability of gains is likely to be incomplete even when gains are meaningful because of differences in the inferences the two tests are designed to support. Therefore,…

The major aspects of the Russian educational system were examined in terms of quality assurance. No part of the educational system in Russia is small enough to escape some form of assessment, measurement, comparison, audit, or classification as to quality. To describe the quality control system, the book begins with an overview of Russian…

A popular design in large-scale educational assessments is the balanced incomplete block design. The design assumes that the item pool is split into a set of blocks of items that are assigned to assessment booklets. This paper shows how the technique of 0-1 linear programming can be used to calculate a balanced incomplete block design. Several…

This publication attempts to provide fundamental theory about service-learning and learning communities, along with descriptions of best practices, lessons learned, and assessment strategies. The text is designed to provide resources to help readers offer service-learning experiences for their students. Learning communities are now commonly…

In educational assessment, what students say, do, and sometimes make is observed, and assessors attempt to infer what students know, can do, or have accomplished more generally. Some links in the chain of inference depend on statistical models and probability-based reasoning, and it is with these links that terms such as validity, reliability, and…

Describing the types and uses of tests may seem to be an easy task, but it is not as straightforward as it may first appear. Tests vary on many different characteristics, are used in many different ways, cross the typical assessment categories, and in some cases are so unique as to from a category unto themselves. This chapter explores many…

Testing is one means of viewing differences among individuals. Culture is another means. When we mix testing and culture together, the results are fascinating and often confusing. Generally, we test individuals in an attempt either to serve them or reward them, and if we want to reward people, there is a strong desire and need to be fair. However,…

The inclusion of students with disabilities in state and district assessments rests on a fundamental belief: all children can learn. This belief centers on all children who receive educational services, even those whose teachers and therapists work with them at home or in the hospital. The purpose of this chapter is to clarify the rationale for…

Since its inception in 1969, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has been the nation's leading indicator of what American students know and can do. The focus of this chapter is on how NAEP, as it exists today, may be useful to educators, in particular four aspects of NAEP that may be of wide interest and use. This chapter…

This paper makes the case that the intensifying pressure to assess higher educational outcomes objectively must be balanced by the inclusion of professional judgment. Mere numbers cannot tell the whole story of educational achievement. The tenacious attachment to positivism distances assessment and quality improvement from more inclusive ways of…

Social studies objectives for the 1971-1972 National Assessment and citizenship objectives for the 1969-1970 and 1974-1975 Assessments are outlined. (KM)