The introduction of standards-based instruction ushered in a movement to clearly articulate the academic outcomes for students across the curriculum. State departments of education and local school districts across the nation have invested tremendous resources to define what students "need to know and be able to do" in English Language…

This "Practitioner's Guide to Growth Models," commissioned by the Technical Issues in Large-Scale Assessment (TILSA) and Accountability Systems & Reporting (ASR), collaboratives of the "Council of Chief State School Officers," describes different ways to calculate student academic growth and to make judgments about the…

Educational assessment and, more broadly, educational research in the United States have entered into an era characterized by a dramatic increase in the prevalence and importance of test score use in accountability systems. This volume covers a selection of contemporary issues about testing science and practice that impact the nation's public…

This publication presents the American Federation of Teachers' 10 criteria for high-quality public school academic standards and seeks to contribute to the national debate about school reform, academic achievement, and world-class educational standards. The criteria are: (1) standards must focus on academics because the purpose of setting…

This report presents the experiences and outcomes of accounting standards-setters who have, in many cases, been successful in establishing a national, uniform system of certification for public accountants. An executive summary appears first. The report begins with two sections that examine the evolution of accounting into a 20th-century…

In the bookmark standard-setting procedure, judges place "bookmarks" in a reordered test booklet containing items presented in order of increasing difficulty. Traditionally, the bookmark difficulty location (BDL) is on the trait continuum where, for dichotomous items, there is a two-thirds probability of a correct response and, for a score of "k"…

The officially reported impressive rises in standards in mathematics and English in primary schools since 1995 are challenged. The article looks at the increases from four different perspectives. First, the general pattern of change is considered. Secondly, the statutory test data are compared with the results from several different studies. These…

Presents the history and an overview of how generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) are established and by what process the standards are created. School business officials are invited to participate in the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), established as the standard setting body for state and local governments. (MLF)

Maintains that there soon will be a rush to review recent state and national efforts to establish curriculum standards. Describes three nightmares and three possibilities for substantive change. Discusses the role of the National Council for the Social Studies in the standards development movement. (CFR)

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is the standard-setting body for establishing generally accepted accounting principles for school systems and all state and local governments. A brief summary of a statement prepared by GASB's staff outlines the proposed changes in school accounting and financial reporting. (MLF)

Asserts that efforts to achieve educational reform can have significant personal and professional effects on participants in the process. Presents "Ten Verities" as a perspective on the tremendous investment that participation in the reform process requires. Concludes that, the end product of world class geography standards will justify…

Teachers of mathematics are leading a nationwide effort to bring about a complete redesign of both school and college mathematics programs by setting new and more demanding standards for what students must learn about mathematics, as well as for what teachers themselves must accomplish as professionals in the classroom. This brief document is…

The most important issue in education today is helping students reach high standards. These standards are changing American education from a system driven by inputs and regulations to one judged by results. This manual is intended for use with any set of standards. Followed step by step, it will take the teacher from the abstract statements of the…

This outline of standards is designed for administrators and committees concerned with libraries for religious congregations. The standards were developed based on the understanding that the church or synagogue library is a special library that serves the institution in which it is housed and which is supplemental to other libraries in the area,…

One of the objectives of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is to promote standardization in the field of information handling, both in development of guidelines and standards and in the use and application of existing norms and standards. This teaching package on the standardization of information…