The importance of high-quality evaluation is underscored in Learning Forward's Standards for Professional Learning: Evaluation provides information that supports advocates, professional learning planners, and anyone who wants to know "about the contribution of professional learning to student achievement" (Learning Forward, 2011). Most…

American classrooms are increasingly heterogeneous linguistically. If all students are to engage in three-dimensional learning, how are educators making classroom assessments accessible and meaningful for emergent bilingual learners? There are few classroom assessment exemplars that embody the NGSS three-dimensional vision of the…

Background: Despite the consensus regarding the value of school placement experiences for primary pre-service teachers (PSTs) in teacher education programmes, challenges remain in PSTs' ability to transfer the knowledge gained on assessment for learning (AfL) in their initial teacher education (ITE) programmes to the reality of the primary…

In this paper, we compare and contrast our experiences in using standards-based grading in different courses and across two separate institutions to explore the related tradeoffs and subtleties in designing and implementing such grading systems, guided by innovation diffusion theory. We summarize our individual courses, use Linda Nilson's criteria…

Research has shown that the attitudes of teachers towards pupils can influence their academic and social behaviour. In the context of special education needs (SEN), the same processes likely apply, and there is evidence that teachers' attitudes influence the success of inclusive initiatives. While the literature on attitudes to pupils with SEN is…

Throughout the United States, public school districts serve increasing numbers of students with disabilities who are in the process of developing proficiency in English as a new or additional language. As a result, the need persists for special education teacher preparation programs to cultivate competencies for meeting the needs of emergent…

The present investigation analyses the potential of a pedagogical dynamic assessment (DA) approach to foster second language (L2) development through the use of a mobile instant messaging application. Students' zone of actual and proximal development is observed through the use of a grammar and vocabulary level test and the use of the WhatsApp…

In March 2020, Advance CTE and the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) convened a Shared Solutions Workgroup of state and national experts to explore strategies for effective Career Technical Education (CTE) data reporting and communication. Over a series of meetings, the workgroup co-designed a set of tools and resources to help…

This paper marks the second in a series of five reports detailing the work of the Optimizing Assessment for All (OAA) project at Brookings to strengthen education systems capacity to integrate 21st century skills into teaching and learning, using assessment as a lever for changing classroom practices. Twenty-first century skills (21CS) are now…

Responding to an Illinois law that took effect in 2010, the Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA), Chicago Public Schools (CPS) created and implemented the REACH (Recognizing Educators Advancing Chicago's Students) educator evaluation and support system. REACH was piloted in 2012-13. It is still being implemented as of the 2019-20 school year,…

The United States is formally represented around the world by approximately 14,000 Foreign Service officers and other personnel in the U.S. Department of State. Roughly one-third of them are required to be proficient in the local languages of the countries to which they are posted. To achieve this language proficiency for its staff, the State…

School closures in response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic resulted in an immediate and universal pivot to online teaching. More than 3.7 million teachers in the U.S. were suddenly asked to teach in an entirely new setting with little preparation and no advance notice. This has caused an unprecedented threat to children's education, giving…

Online education is becoming prevalent across the higher education sector and requires new approaches to teaching and learning. As music is seen as a 'hands on' discipline, there has been a very gradual move toward the use of online technologies in music teaching in tertiary education, especially in the area of performance studies. By surveying…

Including animals in autism intervention is growing in both research and practice. A systematic literature review was conducted to collate and synthesize all empirical research on animal-assisted intervention (AAI) for autism published from 2012 to 2015. Findings from 28 included studies revealed that AAI programs generally include one animal per…

This study aims to investigate Ethiopian higher education Amharic language writing skills instructors' practices of Assessment Methods in writing skill context. It was also intended to look for their viewpoints about the practicality of implementing Assessment Methods in Amharic writing courses. In order to achieve the goals of this study,…