The goal in personalized assessment is to best fit the needs of each individual test taker, given the assessment purposes. Design-In-Real-Time (DIRTy) assessment reflects the progressive evolution in testing from a single test, to an adaptive test, to an adaptive assessment "system." In this paper, we lay the foundation for DIRTy…

This chapter will define and illustrate the sustainable cycle of Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) benefits for both employees and employers in the U.S. workforce. Employer and student benefits of PLA will be reviewed, and program completion outcomes will be examined.

In this report we walk through a systematic review of how PLA [prior learning assessment] was implemented under the ideal circumstances provided by the TAACCCT [Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training] grant program. We found that there was positive policy development, but student use of PLA opportunities remained low. In…

The Portfolio-Based Language Assessment (PBLA) literature explicitly states the suitability of using PBLA in English as an additional language (EAL) learning contexts. An underlying assumption is that it is also suitable for adult learners. This paper tests this assumption by comparing PBLA against the assumptions and principles of andragogy--a…

Previous research from the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) and the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) found that prior learning assessment/credit for prior learning (PLA/CPL) 1 has a positive effect on adult student credential completion--an effect that was evident for every student subgroup analyzed in a…

At their most basic level, digital badges are a new way to capture and communicate what an individual knows and can demonstrate. This report examines the nature, value, and potential impact of digital badges, an emerging electronic form of recognition of an individual's knowledge and skills. Badges can represent different levels of work and…

This review of current writing assessment practices focuses upon the adult population, an area significantly underrepresented within psychoeducational literature. As compared to other populations, such as K-12 students, there are few options for the practitioner wishing to evaluate adult writers by means of standardized assessment instruments.…

This study examined the reliability and validity of administering Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) to adult basic education (ABE) students. Ninety ABE participants were administered DIBELS measures, the Woodcock-Johnson III Broad Reading (WJ III BR) measures, and four orthographic ability tests. Since ABE students are a…

The Plus 50 Initiative is a three-year initiative of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), launched in June 2008 and funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies. It was created to support a pilot group of two-year institutions to develop or expand campus programs that engage plus 50 learners. The overarching goal of the Plus 50…

Traditional approaches to learning have often focused upon knowledge transfer strategies that have centred on textually-based engagements with learners, and dialogic methods of interaction with tutors. The use of virtual worlds, with text-based, voice-based and a feeling of "presence" naturally is allowing for more complex social interactions and…

The American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Plus 50 Initiative is a three-year initiative launched in June 2008 and funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies. It was created to support a pilot group of two-year institutions to develop or expand campus programs that engage plus 50 learners. The initiative focuses on three types of…

The American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Plus 50 Initiative is a three-year initiative launched in June 2008 and funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies. It was created to support a pilot group of two-year institutions to develop or expand campus programs that engage plus 50 learners. The initiative focuses on three types of…

This study evaluated a program that was designed to empower staff members form nonprofit organizations to design evaluations that help further their organizational mission, addressing the needs of their clients more effectively and efficiently. In 2001-200, the program was offered in five bimonthly, 2-day sessions. Twenty participants from 10…

Beyond the obvious acquisition of the three "R's"--reading, writing and arithmetic--many other benefits derive from learning. Increases in self-esteem and confidence have often been cited as consistent, if unanticipated, outcomes of learning and have been achieved even when there has been limited gain in the competency being learned.…

A project was conducted to develop, monitor, and evaluate schemes for assessing the prior experiential learning of individuals enrolling in polytechnic institutes and colleges. A total of 12 evaluation schemes at 15 educational institutions throughout Great Britain were examined. The evaluation schemes studied had been developed to assess the…