Higher education in the United States is a complex and multilayered system where open-access community colleges coexist with highly selective, 4-year institutions to which only a handful of students each year gain access. Each institution plays a unique role in this marketplace, and students across the spectrum engage with the system at…

Longitudinal data about individual students and groups of students can be used to track their progress in ways that hold district-level administrators, school principals, and teachers responsible for what's happening in schools. The key is to examine data that show how well individual students perform in specific classrooms in specific schools.…

This guidebook aims to provide clear, non-technical descriptions of procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of local gifted education programs in Virginia. The procedures were developed with both external and internal evaluations in mind. The evaluation process is described in four phases: planning, collecting the data, interpreting the data…

The concept of three curriculums--intended, implemented, and attained--is central to this report. In the second international mathematics study, students were surveyed at age 13 (grade 8 in the United States) and in the terminal grade of secondary schooling; this analysis is limited to the first group. How each of the three curriculums was…

This report was designed to provide information on the effectiveness of the high school mathematics program in Hawaii, including identification of deficiency areas. The Stanford Achievement Test of Academic Skills (TASK) Level 1 was administered to 10,154 tenth-grade students in October 1983. In general, the students did not perform as well as the…

This report was designed to provide information on the effectiveness of the mathematics instructional program in grade 2 in Hawaii, including identification of deficiency areas. The Stanford Achievement Test, Primary Level II, was administered in May 1984 to 12,106 students in grade 2. In general, these students performed better than the national…

Demonstrates how case study evaluation concentrates on a single situation to present a holistic view of an experiential learning program and reveals unique and unanticipated features. Outlines steps of planning, gathering, analyzing, synthesizing, and reporting data and considers the advantages and disadvantages of the case study approach. (LFL)

This report summarizes the problems schools are encountering as they try to use data to gauge the effectiveness of standards-based education, accountability efforts, and school reform. It provides an overview of the education market, discusses the strengths and weaknesses of available software, and describes systems used by 19 states. The article…

The standards and accountability movement of the last decade has resulted in the collection of more assessment data about students than ever before. Often, the results from high-stakes tests have been used merely to grade and rank schools and students. A new trend, however, has emerged where school leaders see the power of using these same…

During the 1978-79 school year, 27,058 students were involved in the Minnesota Educational Assessment in Mathematics at three grade levels. Eighth graders were tested in the fall, fourth graders in the winter, and eleventh graders in the spring. The first chapter of this report presents a general overview of the assessment program. Chapter two…

in this era of standards, high-stakes testing, and accountability, school leaders need to know how they can increase the achievement of their students. Researchers have found that high-achieving schools show common, key factors, including challenging learning experiences for all students, a principal who fulfills his/her role as the instructional…

Data from 32 state assessments in mathematics (conducted in 1984 and earlier) are analyzed in this document. The high degree of variability across the states is stressed, with some of the points of variation in the test development, administration, and analysis process noted. Information is then presented on topics on which students are doing well…

This introductory level text provides a background for understanding the uses of qualitative research in education, its theoretical and historical underpinnings, and specific methods of educational research. This revised edition places qualitative research into the context of current discussions of research methods and alternative ways of knowing.…

This review identifies options for developing alternate assessments for students with disabilities who are unable to participate in the general district and state assessments used for accountability purposes. It notes that students with disabilities are often excluded from these educational assessments used for accountability and urges development…

Data from the Stanford Test of Academic Skills Level I, administered to 10,910 tenth graders in Hawaii in Fall, 1985, are analyzed. The purposes of this report are to provide information on the effectiveness of the mathematics program in the high school, including the identification of deficiency areas and recommendations for improving…