In this article, we explore the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) with a lens informed by the socioscientific issues (SSI) movement. We consider the PISA definition of scientific literacy and how it is situated with respect to broader discussions of the aims of science education. We also present an overview of the SSI framework…

Matches between questions in the Kentucky Instructional Results Information System for 1995-96 (KIRIS96), the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills, Fourth Edition (CTBS4), and the California Achievement Tests, Fifth Edition (CAT5) and the Kentucky Academic Expectations as they are defined in the Kentucky curriculum framework were studied. Each…

The Nation's Report Card, formally known as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), has been informing the United States about the state of learning since its first survey was conducted in 1969. This report describes how this project, mandated by Congress and funded by the Department of Education, has evolved. It describes the…

This study examines the correlation between absence, cognitive skills index (CSI), and various achievement indicators such as the Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress (ISTEP) test scores, discrepancies, and school-based English and mathematics tests for 64 seventh-grade students from one middle school. Scores for each of the subtests…

Performance based assessment refers to tasks that require students to construct responses or take actions to demonstrate specific knowledge or skills. Performance assessment tasks appear in a variety of formats, but they focus on higher order skills and are nonroutine, and sometimes loosely structured, in nature. A number of concerns have been…

Teachers' reactions to the administration and scoring of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program tests (MSPAP) were studied, focusing on their direct and indirect exposure to tasks and evaluative criteria through the experience of scoring the MSPAP. Since its inception in 1991, the MSPAP has been scored in-state by certified teachers…

Information is provided about the Delaware Educational Assessment Program and the performance of Delaware public school students as measured by a nationally-normed standardized achievement test. The Stanford Achievement Test, Eighth Edition was administered statewide, allowing comparisons with national performance and with the performance of…

An attempt is made to summarize the perspectives and relevant experience of state-level higher education leadership in responding to the proposals for national assessment resulting from Goal V, Objective 5, of the National Education Goals, which calls for improvement in the critical thinking, ability to communicate, and problem-solving ability of…

This document provides a model for the national assessment of higher order thinking and consists of a preface and four main sections. The preface discusses the problem of lower order learning, summarizes the state of research into critical thinking and instructional reform, and explains the structure of the paper. Section 1 of the paper describes…

In light of the National Education Goals of 1990, several arguments against any federally funded large-scale census approach to the assessment of college student learning in the United States are presented to clarify challenges to an objective of Goal 5, which specifies that "the proportion of college graduates who demonstrate advanced…

Testing and assessment that are "more authentic" (performance-based or alternative) represent the most pressing issue in education today. Some of the major criticisms leveled at standardized testing are examined, and the advantages and disadvantages of more authentic assessment are reviewed. A general direction for integrating traditional and…

An outline is provided for a national educational assessment and improvement plan as suggested by the National Education Goals of 1990. The following implicit assumptions underlie National Education Objective 5.5: (1) abilities to think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems can be defined and the definitions can be agreed upon as…

College-level assessment efforts in New Jersey are described. For more than a dozen years, students in public colleges and universities in New Jersey have been assessed using a common statewide instrument, the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test. This test assesses reading, writing, and mathematics skills of entering college students as…

The College Outcome Measures Program (COMP) and its role in an era when standardized testing is being questioned and authentic assessment is championed are discussed. Authentic assessment should not mean discarding measurement expertise and existing technology. It is an approach to measuring the quality and level of performance that uses real…

Student learning is the bottom line for nearly all efforts to establish a national test system. Major efforts in this area are summarized in this paper. The various efforts seem to move ahead independently, but some common ideas include: (1) creating a national assessment system rather than a single test; (2) developing more than multiple-choice…