Outlines a four-step grading system to help teachers implement standards-based education. Teachers should design a workable format; define three sets of codes (for assessment types, performance levels, and time periods); create a grade book with easily accessible student grade sheets; and monitor and adjust the process. (MLH)

Eugene (Oregon) Public Schools want to replace the traditional content-driven curriculum with a general concepts-based curriculum stressing the relationships among ideas. To help district educators understand the new model, a coin metaphor describing the two interlocking areas of curriculum (learning core conceptual knowledge and strategic…

For 6 years, Frederick County (Maryland) Public Schools has pursued a major restructuring effort involving 30,000 students and 46 schools and covering all disciplines and grades. This initiative involved five components: developing student outcomes, defining curriculum, developing new assessment tasks, planning for instruction, and providing for…

Assessment for learning involves the frequent, continual use of both formal and informal classroom assessments. It can be as simple as requiring students to respond to a lesson-embedded, one-item quiz as a way of gauging student understanding of what is being taught. Ideally, this innovative approach to classroom assessment is based on a careful…

Despite the popularity of outcome-based education, research documenting its effects is rare. As an umbrella concept embracing various reform efforts, OBE defies easy definition. This article explains two OBE models (Mastery Learning and the Outcomes-Driven Developmental Model used in Johnson City, New York, Schools) and summarizes recent state OBE…

Educators can develop fair and accurate standards-based grading/reporting by switching to criterion-referenced grading practices; using differentiated criteria (denoting product, process, and progress); clarifying the purpose of each reporting tool; and developing a reporting form that identifies standards, facilitates interpretation, and…

The National Curriculum is perhaps the most important element of the United Kingdom's Education Reform Act of 1988. Although there are many challenges in describing and assessing the skills, knowledge, and understanding that each child is expected to develop, the national curriculum's early implementation has won wide support. (MLH)

Dissatisfied with their present parent-teacher conference format, an Iowa middle school perused the literature on student-led conferences and established three program implementation phases: initial preparations, conferences, and evaluations. Students selected portfolio items, decided what to discuss with parents, and rehearsed the conference…

When they are well-devised and implemented, academic standards, tests, and associated accountability provisions can change the nature of teaching and learning. They can lead to a richer, more challenging curriculum, foster teacher collaboration, create a more productive teacher/parent dialogue, and focus attention on student achievement. (MLH)