This is an editorial for a special issue "Innovations in Exploring Sequential Process Data" in the journal Zeitschrift für Psychologie. Process data refer to log files generated by human-computer interactive items. They document the entire process, including keystrokes, mouse clicks as well as the associated time stamps, performed by a…

Dr. Tracey Burns is a Senior Analyst in the OECD's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation. She heads a portfolio of projects including Innovative Teaching for Effective Learning, 21st Century Children and Trends Shaping Education. Until recently she was also responsible for the OECD work on Governing Complex Education systems. Previous to…

David Foster is the founder of Kryterion, an Internet test administration company, and currently serves there as chief scientist and executive vice president. He is the author of numerous articles for industry trade journals and textbooks and sits on the Council for the International Test Commission. In this interview, Foster talks about his…

On a general level, the objective of diagnostic classifications models (DCMs) lies in a classification of individuals regarding multiple latent skills. In this article, the authors show that this objective can be achieved by multidimensional adaptive testing (MAT) as well. The authors discuss whether or not the restricted applicability of DCMs can…

The recent National Research Council (NRC) report, "Knowing What Students Know: The Science and Design of Educational Assessment," suggests that it is time to rethink the basic assumptions underlying assessment of students and the use of measurement data to enhance teaching and learning. This essay draws on arguments developed in the NRC report to…

From 2005 to 2008, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is funding a series of distance education (DE) studies in its Pan Asia Networking (PAN) region. Eight collaborative projects are under way in Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Mongolia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The…

Districts must hire "highly qualified teachers" to implement "research-based best practices" using "data-driven decisions" to positively impact student achievement. The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 has provided educators a whole new set of catch phrases. As states, districts, and educators work to define…

This article discusses some of the limitations of current educational assessment and how application of universal design for learning (UDL) concepts can improve assessment accuracy and its applicability to instruction. Benefits of UDL are described and include allowing for multiple means of representation and expression, and multiple means of…

A number of challenges will be faced by the school testing community in the future. The content of achievement tests must match the curriculum, which changes its focus over the years. Test content should reflect expanding curriculum areas such as computer literacy, consumer skills, and critical thinking. Test publishers will provide data for…

This article explores the relationship between the inclusion movement and the development of national standards for "all students," and outlines their implications for technology-assisted improvements in assessment of students with disabilities. Testing accommodations, such as input/output adaptations, can be facilitated with technology, and new…

This discussion provides an overview of the kinds of technological resources available to support language learning and of various approaches to using them, and explores some issues surrounding the trend. Topics considered include efficacy, availability, computer-mediated technologies, software acquisition and content, material evaluation,…

Views the learning resources center (LRC) as the most accessible place at two-year colleges to apply microcomputers to instruction, pointing to the potential for LRC involvement in microlabs, computer-assisted instruction, staff development, software collection development, providing assistance with interactive authoring systems, automated…

Today's high-end cell phones have the computing power of a mid-1990s personal computer (PC)--while consuming only one one-hundredth of the energy. Even the simplest, voice-only phones have more complex and powerful chips than the 1969 on-board computer that landed a spaceship on the moon. In the United States, it is almost universally acknowledged…

Three essays on the ways in which colleges and universities use the computer as a teaching tool are presented, along with descriptions of 10 school programs that reflect the diversity of computer applications across the United States. In "A Place for Computing in Liberal Education," Karl L. Zinn likens the computer to personal resource…

Discusses the use of student assessment methods other than standardized tests. Topics addressed include the use of technology in assessment; performance-based assessment; the use of video; issues of technological equity; writing portfolios; and professional development to change educators' views of assessment. Five recent national studies on…