In the United States, opposition to traditional standardized tests is widespread, particularly obvious in the admissions context but also evident in elementary and secondary education. This opposition is fueled in significant part by the perception that tests perpetuate social injustice through their content, design, and use. To survive, as well…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by Section 3113 of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), requires state educational agencies (SEAs) to establish and implement standardized, statewide entrance and exit procedures for English learners (ELs). WIDA provides the English language proficiency placement and annual…

This document is written primarily for policy makers and state department of education staff who are considering through-year assessments, as well as consultants and contractors state departments rely on. The document identifies essential things to consider when designing or evaluating a through-year assessment program. The paper is organized into…

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is committed to the cognitive, linguistic, and socio-emotional development of all children in Illinois. ISBE's Multilingual Department is focused on ensuring that students with diverse linguistic repertoires and those who may benefit from additional support have equitable access to academic instruction…

In 2011, the Arizona State Legislature adopted a law creating the first education savings account (ESA) in the United States. Following Arizona's lead, several other states, including Florida Tennessee,Mississippi and Nevada, have implemented ESA policies. Typical eligibility requirements include conditions such as a pupil's diagnosed disability,…

As a discipline, chemistry enjoys a unique position. While many academic areas prepared "cooperative examinations" in the 1930s, only chemistry maintained the activity within what has become the ACS Examinations Institute. As a result, the long-term existence of community-built, norm-referenced, standardized exams provides a historical…

The Communities In Schools (CIS) Model of Integrated Student Supports aims to reduce dropout rates by providing students with integrated and tiered support services based on their levels of need. The model includes preventive services that are available to all students (Level 1 services) as well as intensive, targeted, and sustained services…

Two recent peer-reviewed studies support the need to update the traditional school design model that has remained fundamentally unchanged for over a century. In a 2011 study published by the American Educational Research Journal, entitled "Problem-Based Learning in K-12 Education," Clarice Wirkala and Deanna Kuhn document a 200-500…

This is an abridged version of the "Science Framework for the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress." The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and its reports are a key measure in informing the nation on how well the goal of scientific literacy for all students is being met. The framework reflects the nature and…

This article describes the middle grades teacher preparation program at Augusta State University in Georgia. It describes the negotiation between the middle school concept and the standardized testing culture of the local schools as the faculty redesigned the undergraduate middle grades program to adequately address both. Ways in which new…

Schools are facing tight budget times that call for doing more with less and finding ways to innovate, increase efficiency and effectiveness, and accelerate reform. At the top of the ideas for increasing productivity is moving ahead with efforts to personalize learning, leaving behind an instructional system modeled on the American factory of the…

Early Childhood Education (EDE) describes the education of young children from birth through age 8. EDE reports have concluded that traditional approaches to curriculum, such as those emphasizing drill and practice of isolated, academic skills, are not in line with current knowledge of human learning and neuropsychology. These approaches fail to…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and its reports are a key measure in informing the nation on how well the goal of scientific literacy for all students is being met. The "Science Framework for the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress" sets forth the design of the NAEP Science Assessment. This document is…

Current research on the teaching of writing puts some secondary English teachers in a bind. While many teachers understand that the best ways for students to develop into strong writers is to encourage them to select personally relevant topics, de-emphasize mechanics, and provide opportunities to take risks, the message they receive from state and…

The authors argue that the affective is the most-overlooked of the three domains identified by Bloom & Krathwohl's committees. Research suggest the affective domain is the gateway to learning, yet the cognitive and psychomotor domains take precedence. Some complexities of the affective domain are neglected. They further suggest that many college…