The Response to Intervention initiative is in danger of failing and being thrown on the ash heaps of countless education reform initiatives, but not because it is poorly structured, rather on account of poor implementation. Among the implementation mistakes are seven that can be watched for and avoided. (Contains 3 tables.)

Presents some of the characteristics of open education, discusses some of the difficulties in evaluating it, and offers recommendations to improve the classic approach to evaluation and to encourage the use of methods outside the classic approach. (IRT)

Content and performance standards can underlie high-quality assessments that provide useful information about how students and schools are doing. These data should be used to inform teaching decisions, trigger special supports for students' learning, and evaluate school practices, rather than simply allocating mechanistically determined rewards…

To evaluate the effects of the 1988 Hawkins-Stafford Amendments on Chapter 1, the U.S. Department of Education is conducting several analyses of the program's new accountability features and other provisions. Current evaluation projects focus on early education, effective practices for at-risk children, and integrated services for preschool and…

Authentic testing, consisting mainly of the three P's (performance, portfolios, and products) must be evaluated in light of practicalities and usage context. This article reviews British experience with standard assessment tasks (SATs), concentrating on issues pertaining to technical adequacy, efficiency, manageability, standardization,…

Presents content standards for performance-based accountability systems, which should not be driven by a single indicator. Systems must consider school context and individual student differences; monitor and support equitable learning opportunities, long-term professional development opportunities, and classroom assessments; and allow for…

The Carnegie structure, involving seven-period days and nine different locations daily, is an ineffective system. The Copernican plan changes school scheduling by lengthening instructional periods for fewer and smaller classes. The system should improve teacher-student relationships, lighten workloads, and introduce innovative evaluation and…

In 1990, Congress charged OERI with evaluating the nation's school-reform efforts. Representative planners subsequently called for research proposals in systemic reform, school-based management, uses of time, student assessment, curriculum reform, educator professionalism, school-to-work transition, early childhood education, parent and community…