States are increasingly interested in including measures of student achievement growth, or "value- added," in evaluating teachers. Annual state assessments, however, which are the typical measure of student growth, usually cover only reading and math teachers and only in grades 4-8. These state assessments thus cannot …

States and school districts are exploring alternatives to state tests for measuring teachers' contributions to student learning. One approach applies statistical value-added methods to alternative student assessments such as commercially available tests and end-of course tests. The evidence suggests that these methods can reliably distinguish…

Teacher aides, teachers, administrators, and observers in 1 elementary, 1 junior high, and 1 senior high school participated in an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Detroit Pilot Program to Train Teacher Aides in (1) identifying, developing, and defining the role of the aide and (2) identifying effective aide training methods. Procedures…

This paper highlights measurement issues faced when attempting to assess and interpret results of a school improvement project. Based on the assumption that to measure effectiveness, one must measure a wide variety of school factors, the paper presents a broad perspective on measurement problems and dilemmas in analyzing norm-referenced test data…

A three-year study was conducted to evaluate the implementation of the Transitional School Model in the Des Moines, Iowa, Independent Community School District. The model was designed to provide early adolescents in grades 6-8 with a more comprehensive bridge between elementary school and high school by emphasizing students' physical, emotional,…