Although student achievement in most subjects has not declined over recent decades, there is little room for complacency. This article debunks four myths: there really was no SAT decline; test scores are at all-time highs; the top half of American students are internationally competitive; and the American education crisis is not general but…

Identifies the many different groups of scholars, teachers, administrators, and other professionals who lay claim to the field of writing assessment. Describes the various positions, and outlines the major beliefs and assumptions about what is important and valuable. Examines an intolerance for other positions within each position, and identifies…

A project involving 15 high schools suggests that videodisc technology positively affects student outcomes. As suggested in a suburban New York site, staff development is critical to success. Students in biology classrooms using videodisc-enhanced instruction were more confident about their ability to do advanced biology and get good grades than…

A study at an established private Montessori school in a diverse suburb revealed strong achievement gains by students on the Stanford Achievement Test, which was administered to 36 students every year from second through eighth grade. Concludes that Montessori elementary education can take high achieving students and produce even higher academic…

If used effectively, portfolios can be both an assessment tool and an integral part of instruction, while overcoming some attendant standardized-testing problems. New reading, writing, and mathematics assessment standards focus on student learning, reflection and critical inquiry, and integration of literacy skills with students' home, school, and…

Congress should formulate U.S. testing policy to ensure that reliable and accurate data are available to policymakers, educators, and the public and that tests are used fairly without infringing on individual rights or imposing unacceptable social costs. Appropriate test use and continued research funding must be a high priority for agencies…

At its annual conference, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development pressed for educational change. The conference opened with Martin Davies's description of Britain's national curriculum as little short of an educational revolution. Kati Haycock, vice president of the Children's Defense Fund, called for a new financial commitment…

Reviewed is the research of Dr. Phyllis Rosser and the comments made by several speakers at a hearing on gender bias in testing held in October 1989. Discussed are historical perspectives, the gender gap in testing, and possible explanations for this gap. Sample test items are provided. (CW)

Explores literacy models implicit in reading instruction theory and implications of models and standardized reading tests for developmental educators. Compares outer-directed and autonomous literacy models (e.g., reading as interpretation versus technical skill; meaning occurring between reader and text versus being in text; readers in discourse…

The tide is slowly turning against prevailing forms of student assessment. The Primary Language Record, a whole-language-based system that assesses elementary students' literacy skills, assumes that all children can learn and that diversity and multilingualism are valuable assets. A sidebar details FairTest's criticisms of standardized testing.…

Accountability systems are designed to heighten probability of student exposure to good instructional practice, reduce the likelihood of harmful practices, and provide internal self-correctives. The Chapter 1 accountability system fails to meet these objectives, as it lacks timely self-correction information, credible tests, and linkages among…

NAEP and SAT scores show U.S. schools are not necessarily declining, but they are struggling. Math and social studies instruction is still dominated by teacher explanations, quizzes, and textbooks; students remain unexcited by science; literacy levels are low; school children do much more TV-watching than homework or reading. A major structural…

Analysis of records from 347 students who graduated, dropped out of, or were terminated from State University of New York-Buffalo's nursing program, 1983-92, showed that Graduate Record Examination scores correlated with first-year and overall grade point average but was a weaker predictor of graduate performance than undergraduate grade point…

Mandated, standardized national testing is being discussed as a means of improving education by holding schools accountable. Making schools genuinely accountable means involving teachers in developing assessment methods that measure what students know and can do. This approach ties assessment to instruction, improvement of practice, and the…

Summarizes the negative effects of high-stakes standardized testing, presents the national testing vision outlined by the National Education Goals Panel, and identifies curricular and technical problems needing resolution before the NEGP's vision can be realized. Negative effects include politically inflated scores, narrowed curricula, and…