Five alternatives to standardized testing of student achievement are described in this brief overview. The first, criterion-referenced tests, are designed to evaluate the accomplishment of specifically stated instructional objectives. Student performance is judged on the basis of the objectives, rather than in comparison to other students taking…

Alternative forms of evaluating student progress are changing testing or assessment in U.S. schools. From the teacher-made to the standardized test, the familiar over-emphasis on multiple-choice items is giving way to expanded generative formats in which students are called upon to demonstrate mastery through applications in which they use complex…

The purpose of this digest is to describe school counselors' roles in the area of assessment through an historical review of testing in counseling, and to report on study findings regarding roles employers require school counselors to perform. Knowledge needed by counselors to obtain evidence, evaluate its usefulness, and interpret its meaning…

Standardized testing of American students provides comparative scores for the placement of individual students, enables students to make appropriate decisions regarding a future course of study, and offers the opportunity to assess the effectiveness of teachers, schools, and school districts. As a result of using standardized test scores for…

Performance-based assessment has the potential to support a richer curriculum and more accurately assess the skills of low-income minority students than standardized tests. Performance-based assessment has the following advantages: (1) it allows a wide range of expression; (2) it permits assessment of learning in a natural context while students…

This digest focuses on going beyond multiple choice testing to the development of methods for assessing complex knowledge and performances. Newly designed assessment systems must accurately measure and promote the complex thinking and learning goals that are known to be critical to students' academic success and their eventual sustained…