Most states have expanded their statewide testing programs to include alternative educational assessments, and two (Kentucky and Maine) have completely abandoned the multiple-choice format. However, over half of states designing alternative assessments are encountering major difficulties related to the high cost of performance-based assessments,…

Standardized test results are skewed by family socioeconomic status. Until top-down, corporate-style testing is eliminated, genuine reforms like cooperative learning and multi-age classrooms will be doomed. Citizens should learn about local tests, talk to neighbors, speak out at school board meetings, write legislators, and challenge proponents to…

This article examines whether changes in the ethnic minority composition of the standardization sample for the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III (PPVT-III) can be used as the sole explanation for children's better test scores when compared to an earlier edition. Analysis suggests other factors may explain improved performance. (Contains…

The analogy of pregnancy and birth is used to describe the founding of a Waldorf-style charter school in southern California. Advice is given for dealing with the sponsoring district, bureaucracy, politics of educational reform, standardized testing, and parent community. Sidebars present the mission statement, grant excerpts, timeline, required…

Used data for students in grades 5 through 8 to evaluate the effects of the Comer School Development Program in 10 inner city Chicago, Illinois, schools over 4 years. Data suggest that the Comer program caused positive changes in standardized test scores and in the beliefs, feelings, and behaviors relative to disruptive and illegal student…

This study compared 4 methods (2 case history and 2 performance-based) used to classify the status of adult subjects in familial studies of developmental language disorders, involving 24 parents of children with developmental language disorders and 24 unrelated adult controls. Classification by case history found fewer affected adults than…

This article uses a question-and-answer format to describe the major categories of technical information usually presented in technical manuals for tests used by speech/language clinicians, including logical evidence of validity, empirical evidence of validity, types of reliability estimates, and practical issues in applying standardization data…

Claims that each educator must discover the potentials of the learner and build on the individual's specific assortment of strengths. Presents Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, with practical implications, emphasizing that the intelligences are integrated at the application level by activities and remain separate only at the…

Describes the developmental process of the Dallas Independent School District Chapter 1 portfolio assessment and compares the portfolio results to the standardized measures available within the district. Concludes that there are two different types of portfolios based on the purpose intended, accountability or instructional improvement. (SM)

Presents a collection of articles on the black experience in postsecondary education, including issues regarding black achievement, black faculty, enrollment, politics and racism, black status in Ivy League schools, and affirmative action. The black experience at several specific colleges, including Wharton, UCLA, Kean College, Howard College, and…

In a 5-year evaluation of the $6.6 million Challenge 2000 Multimedia Project, technology-using students surpassed nonparticipating peers in developing critical 21st-century job skills. Multimedia Project students outperformed comparison students on content mastery, sensitivity to their audience, and coherent design capabilities. Standardized test…

These articles examine the racial scoring gap on the Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT) and other standardized tests for college admission, noting reasons why it exists and its impact on black educational opportunities. Topics addressed include: black-white scoring gaps by state; states where blacks have improved their SAT scores; online tutorial…

High-stakes standardized testing cannot be considered a reform tool for increasing student achievement. Teaching quality is critical in student achievement. Teachers can become powerful agents in raising students' academic achievement levels, regardless of common barriers (e.g., poverty and bilingualism). The extreme focus on high-stakes testing…

A case study of three Eastern urban schools examined the difficulties inherent to measuring bilingual program success. Results indicate that significant data sources were available, but they were rarely disaggregated in a fashion conducive to showcasing bilingual programs. Teacher involvement in establishing, reviewing, and monitoring assessment…

Examined whether a mathematics placement system accurately predicted success in university mathematics classes for both genders. The placement system used four variables to predict grades a student would receive if placed in various freshman mathematics classes. Found that the multiple predictors added to the gender bias of the Scholastic…