Basic rules of test construction are detailed to provide teachers with ways to improve the validity and reliability of teacher-made tests and worksheets. Designing the test, writing the items, and scoring the test are each discussed. The critical need for good instruments is promoted. (MP)

Diagnostic evaluation is a major way to help students overcome errors. How such evaluation can be done is discussed, with comments on what should be checked and recorded by the teacher. (MNS)

Two successful procedures for evaluating problem-solving performance in the classroom are shared. Five goals for teaching problem-solving are noted, followed by a discussion of evaluating a child's performance through joint use of: (1) analyzing written work; and (2) observing and questioning students. (MP)

Alternative identification and instructional procedures are discussed. Instructors are warned against assuming an equivalence between the quantity of mathematical work a child demonstrates and the quality of that child's thinking. A need to integrate qualitative information is seen. Two types of activities for gifted pupils are detailed. (MP)

Mathematics success or failure is noted as possibly related to the way in which material is presented rather than to the subject itself. Teachers are encouraged to have pupils complete a questionnaire that is designed to measure their mathematical "state of health." Instructors are told to identify learning styles. (Author/MP)

Argues that teachers should be encouraged to use not just pencil-and-paper tests but also observations, interviews, and even students' journals to gather information on which to base their evaluations. (PK)

Delineates and describes four types of questions which may help teachers learn more about student understanding, namely, silent questions, oral questions, written questions, and students' questions. (PK)

Explains a set of processes that teachers might use to structure their evaluation of students' learning and understanding. Illustrates the processes of setting goals, deciding what to assess, gathering information, and using the results through a measurement task requiring students to estimate the number of popcorn kernels in a container. (MDH)

Offers seven criteria for developing mathematical thinking, plus suggestions for teaching and assessing students' progress that are compatible with each learning criterion. Provides evaluation sheets that help the teacher assess and grade students on the criteria. (10 references) (MDH)

Performance assessment, a method that makes possible the assessment of multiple dimensions of students' progress, including dispositions, is described. Criteria for good performance tasks are given, and their structure is illustrated through an example. A list of 10 dispositions toward mathematics and a self-evaluation group-performance rating…

Presents the elementary-level formative evaluation method of functional diagnosis that gives students immediate feedback on completed assignments. Gives three examples of the method as observed in the classrooms of master teachers: putting red dots next to problems needing attention; paired learning, and student answer keys. (MDH)

Presented are practical methods exemplifying principles of assessment that involve minimal disruption of the instructional process and not impose additional work on the teacher. Informal assessment methods include annotated class lists and student work folios. Formal assessment methods include practical tests, student-constructed tests, and…

Focuses on student organization, preparation, and presentation of simple foods (beverage, brownies, sloppy-joe sandwiches) as a way to apply various mathematical concepts, with problem-solving techniques being central to almost all the activities. Includes reproducible student worksheets. (MKR)

Presented are assessment techniques to help improve instruction. Included are the formative assessment techniques observation and questioning, diagnostic interviews, and problem-solving-based investigations and the summative assessment technique of performance-based tasks. Examples of these methods are provided together with at-home activities…

Many teachers use cooperative learning methods during instruction but face the problem of aligning evaluation techniques with that instruction. Described are methods to include cooperative problem solving in evaluation, including strategies to identify possible grading schemes, to make appropriate problem choices, and to evaluate individual versus…