The Center on Standards, Alignment, Instruction, and Learning (C-SAIL), examines how college- and career-readiness (CCR) standards are implemented, if they improve student learning, and what instructional tools measure and support their implementation. This brief presents findings from C-SAIL's Implementation Study, which uses interview and survey…

This technical assistance paper provides policy and guidance to individuals with test administration responsibilities in adult education programs. Rule 6A-6.014, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.), titled, General Requirements for Adult General Education Programs, requires all adult education programs to report all student measurable educational…

In a recent report entitled "All Together Now: Collaboration and Innovation for Youth Engagement,": the Commission on Youth Voting & Civic Knowledge concluded that civic education is a shared responsibility of schools and other institutions. Data suggests, however, that more work is required to provide all young people with the…

Preparing the next generation of Americans to engage in their communities civically and politically is a shared responsibility. Although civic education takes place every day in homes and community centers, our nation's K-12 schools are in a unique position to nurture and reinforce the civic development of all young people. States influence their…

Background: The relation between academic self-concept and achievement has been examined in a large number of studies. The majority of these studies have found evidence for a reciprocal effects model. However, there is an ongoing debate on how students' achievement should be measured and whether the type of achievement indicator (grades, tests,…

Discusses the importance of fairness in evaluation studies of second-language programs and the potential for misinterpretation of studies which are not program-fair. Strategies designed to overcome this problem from the perspective of standardized tests include: specific tests for each program, program-specific plus program-neutral measures,…

Kindergarten has changed significantly in the last two decades: children now spend more time being taught and tested on literacy and math skills than they do learning through play and exploration, exercising their bodies, and using their imaginations. Many kindergartens use highly prescriptive curricula geared to new state standards and linked to…

Limitations in standardized test use with Hispanic students are summarized and recent research developments supporting use of testing and assessment as tools for promoting learning are examined. Assisted performance and dynamic assessment are discussed in the context of individual education plans and a test-train-test cycle. (Author/MSE)

Teachers' attitudes and nonverbal messages about standardized testing can affect students' test scores. This article presents a four-question test to help teachers determine their attitudes toward standardized testing, then offers suggestions on how to get rid of excess baggage before approaching the tests and explains the importance of…

Whether it is standardized test data, student journals, or informal classroom question and answer, assessments provide invaluable, ongoing diagnostic information for making key instructional decisions. In this engaging and comprehensive resource, the authors demonstrate practical ways for embedding test preparation into teaching by integrating…

Assessment instruments should be selected on the basis of test design variables (such as date of development and content sequence), test construction variables (including standardization results), examinee-related variables (such as prerequisite skills and vocabulary level), examiner-related variables (including preparation and skills), and…

A teacher explains the procedures she uses to prepare her fifth and sixth graders for taking multiple-choice standardized tests. (SJL)

This guide shows how to integrate assessment with teaching and learning to reach educational goals. The aim is to present assessment concepts in a concise manner that can be understood and applied by teachers, administrators, and other school personnel. The chapters, organized around major assessment topics, are: (1) "Integrating Assessment with…

The fact sheet focuses on considerations when testing adaptations are needed, provides some facts about disability, and identifies a variety of adaptations of testing procedures which have been developed and successfully used in schools, vocational training programs, and on college campuses. Testing adaptations are discussed in terms of disability…

Contends that measurement-driven instruction (MDI) has numerous interrelated and pernicious effects on curriculum, instruction, and learning. Shows that MDI fragments, narrows, deflects, and trivializes the learning experience and furthers the teacher-dominated classroom. Successful response to a set of questions does not equal understanding.…