In 2014, the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) communicated a plan to replace five Standards of Learning (SOL) assessments with alternative assessments based on legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly (VDOE, 2014b, p. 1). School districts were able to choose the type of alternative assessment to implement, yet they were…

Multistage adaptive testing (MST) has become popular in the testing industry because the research has shown that it combines the advantages of both linear tests and item-level computer adaptive testing (CAT). The previous research efforts primarily focused on MST design issues such as panel design, module length, test length, distribution of test…

Social cognitive deficits are core features of schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) or schizophrenia, amongst other conditions. These deficits limit overall functioning, arguably the most important outcome when treating the mentally ill. However, as noted by former National Institute of Mental Health director Thomas Insel, "one cannot treat…

This case study reflects upon a mixed-methods exploratory study utilized by the Leadership in Times of Crisis Framework within the paradigm of pragmatism to survey 976 Minnesota teachers in April of 2020 to determine the demographic profile of teachers in Minnesota who were facing the COVID-19 pandemic and the greatest challenges in their…

Reasoning about mechanism is central to disciplined inquiry in science and engineering and should thus be one of the foundations of a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. In addition, mechanistic reasoning is one of the core competencies listed in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Engineering Concepts and…

The aim of this paper was to examine the relationship between Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) mathematics achievement and the two school achievement measures of grades and national test results in Sweden. A further aim was to examine the association of TIMSS mathematics achievement with different subgroups of students. The results…

The relationship between input and output is one of the leading topics in modern educational discourse. In the current study, we focus on the GEMS (Growth and Effectiveness Measures for Schools) exams in Israel, which constitute a measure of a school's scholastic achievements and its academic-social climate. The GEMS is the equivalent of exams…

The broad range of English language teaching and learning contexts present in the world today necessitates high quality assessment instruments that can provide reliable and meaningful information about learners' English proficiency levels to relevant stakeholders. The "TOEFL Junior"® tests were recently introduced by Educational Testing…

This article presents a review of 20 tests designed for assessing the academic English listening skill of second or foreign language learners. The available test information has been systematically condensed in purpose, listening construct, task characteristics, and validity evidence. It was found that most of the tests were developed for…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), includes new provisions that are designed to support English learners' (ELs) participation in statewide testing. To facilitate testing of ELs and to support their testing participation, ESSA includes stipulations for states to administer content…

This paper reports on a design-based implementation study of the use of a diagnostic classroom assessment tool framed on learning trajectories (LTs) for middle grades mathematics, where teachers and students are provided immediate data on students' progress along LTs. The study answers the question: "How can one characterize the challenges…

Inference skill is one of the most important predictors of reading comprehension. Still, there is little rigorous research investigating the effects of inference instruction on reading comprehension. There is no research investigating the effects of inference instruction on reading comprehension for English learners with reading comprehension…

There has been a growing need felt by practitioners, researchers, and evaluators to obtain a common measure of science engagement that can be used in different out-of-school time (OST) science learning settings. We report on the development and validation of a novel 10-item self-report instrument designed to measure, communicate, and ultimately…

This is the 21st report by the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) that describes how states publicly report assessment data for students with disabilities in K-12 schools in the United States. The purpose of this report is to examine the extent to which states reported 2017-18 assessment data for students with disabilities "to the…

Assessment and evaluation have always been an integral part of educational process. Quality and purposeful assessment can assist in students' learning and their achievement. While there has been a rapid growth in international, standardized student assessments in the past few decades, a large number of education systems participating in these…