Critical consideration of the role of environmental education in meeting conservation outcomes is increasingly necessary for environmental agencies and organizations. Evaluation can help move organizations to alignment between educational goals and organizational mission. Moving theory-driven evaluation into mission-based program theory, this…

After the reestablishment of independence in 1991, Latvia implemented large-scale educational reforms that enabled the transformation of the educational system from Soviet ideology to a democratic society. The critical thinking approach has been purposefully put into practice in the educational system of Latvia since 1998, as it was regarded as an…

The process of giving official acknowledgment to formal, informal and non-formal prior learning is commonly labelled as assessment, accreditation or recognition of prior learning (APL), representing a practice that is expanding in higher education in many countries. This paper focuses specifically on the assessment part of APL, which undoubtedly…

The pilot research reported in this article is part of the Centre Research Study (CReSt) which evaluates the impact of the educational reform programme on schools, colleges and other centres in England. The article reports findings from one special school, based on interviews with teachers (including the headteacher), students and a parent. The…

This paper describes the prevailing academic scenarios of a representative group of secondary schools in Assam (India) with special references to students performance in general and mathematics performance in particular. The state of Assam is one of the economically backward regions of India and is witnessing socio-political disturbances mainly…

The article's main focus is on exploring ways in which modern forms of values education are being utilized to address major issues of social dissonance, with special focus on dissonance related to religious difference between students of Islamic and non-Islamic backgrounds. The article begins by appraising philosophical and neuroscientific…

This study compared the underlying factors measured by a state standards-based grade 4 English-Language Arts (ELA) assessment given to several groups of students. The focus of the research was to gather evidence regarding whether or not the tests measured the same construct or constructs for students without disabilities who took the test under…

An important step towards the successful integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in schools is to facilitate their capacity to develop a school based ICT policy. However, one of the biggest challenges for schools is to gather data that could help shape such policy development. In this context, ICT researchers can be very…

At the 12th Annual National Learning Communities Conference in November 2007, Juan Carlos Huerta, Gale Stuart, Lauren Chism, and Michele Hansen participated in a panel discussion about new directions in learning communities assessment and research. The intent of the panel discussion was to hear from those involved in learning community assessment,…

There has been much discussion recently about why the percentage of students scoring Proficient or above varies as much as it does on state assessments across the country. However, most of these discussions center on the leniency or rigor of the cut score. Yet, the cut score is developed in a standard-setting process that depends heavily on the…

In this paper we present a model of collaborative evaluation that has been used to engage teachers in data-based decision making for improving teaching and learning in mathematics and science. We examine three external challenges that threaten the process of continuous school improvement; namely, making sense of data, policy changes, and…

Public colleges and universities, which educate the vast majority of the nation's students, are an important part of states' economic competitiveness efforts. These institutions face a number of pressures that will demand increased productivity and a data driven investment strategy moving forward. Increasing productivity in higher education will…

Get an in-depth understanding of how to create fun, engaging, and challenging performance assessments that require students to elaborate on content and demonstrate mastery of skills. This update of an ASCD (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) classic includes new scoring methods, reading assessments, and insights on navigating…

In "Team Teaching Science," Ed Linz, Mary Jane Heater, and Lori A. Howard demonstrate the truth in the old adage "Two heads are better than one." This guide for developing successful team-teaching partnerships that maximize student learning will help preservice and inservice special education and science teachers in grades K-12, as well as methods…

The ideas and examples in this book help teachers successfully collaborate to raise student achievement through the use of formative assessments. Here, Todd Stanley and Betsy Moore, educators with over 40 years of combined experience, offer proven formative assessment strategies to teachers in a professional learning community. Contents include:…