The standards-based learning and grading movement of the past twenty years has ushered in a critical shift in assessment that demands clarity in both what is being measured and how well students are learning. Seeing the value in this evolution, a wave of schools has invested enormous effort to institutionalize the policy and practices of the…

Students who have the most significant support needs are at high risk for exclusion from general education. Unlock access to inclusive education for these learners with this forward-thinking book, a step-by-step guide to person-centered, strengths-based, and meaningful IEPs for K-12 students with complex support needs. This practical text shows…

What happens when learning is approached as a creative transaction between teachers, students, texts, and methods? Based on classroom action research conducted in a diverse suburban school district, the author shares a framework that encourages teachers to approach their work with a restorative mindset by focusing on four elements of instruction:…

In a classroom setting interaction among students is the norm. How do you replicate that informality, spontaneity, and focus online? This book provides you with a framework to think about the different kinds of engagement you want to foster -- whether participation, collaboration, or quick feedback -- and then introduces you to available online…

The Louisiana Department of Education has published the Louisiana High School Planning Guidebook each year since 2014. This condensed resource consolidates the policies and programs that are most relevant to high school educators as they plan for the upcoming academic year and prepare all students for college and career success. Every year, across…

More Louisiana students than ever before are graduating with the academic courses, career credentials, and financial support they need to be successful after high school. In fact, the Class of 2018 was the highest achieving in state history. Louisiana's comprehensive plan to prepare students for college and career success includes a system of…

This article examines instructional strategies that middle school educators can use in inclusive settings in order to support the unique needs of culturally and linguistically diverse exceptional (CLDE) students. These nine strategies are appropriate for both typical and atypical learners in a whole group setting, but they are particularly useful…

This essential text and practitioner guide is unique in its emphasis on fostering academic learning as well as life skills. In-depth chapters cover reading, mathematics, science, and social studies, as well as health care needs, communication and social skills, daily living, and job skills. The expert authors present research-based best practices…

Describes one teacher's implementation of portfolio assessment in high school chemistry classrooms in an effort to hold students accountable for more than mere factual recall and to involve students proactively in the assessment process. Discusses the setting, the portfolio, evaluation, and outcomes. (JRH)

Discusses some of the problems of current grading practices and offers suggestions for change, including a few suggestions for dealing with the grading dilemma in literature-based reading programs. (MG)

This book derives from a series of sessions in which a study group of elementary teachers and their principals discussed children's mathematical work in relation to alternative assessment. The purposes of this book to describe the next tier of work for teachers in alternative assessment and how that work can be applied to elementary mathematics:…

Discusses alternative assessment and how it helps teaching practices. Defines embedded assessment as an ongoing, cyclical process in which teachers gather information on students' understanding and reasoning about content knowledge, then make sense and use the information to make adjustments for teaching in response to students' learning needs.…

Shares a teacher's stages of selecting and revising a performance-assessment task focusing on data handling. Discusses selection and revision criteria, examining student work, reflecting on the task, and revising the final task. (MKR)

Discusses how a teacher "assesses" students through "gift-poems" written with little or no revision in the midst of the end-of-year frenzy. Notes that sometimes "invisible" children suddenly became visible to the teacher after writing these poems. Includes eight such poems. (RS)

Offers guidance in conducting observational assessment, including what to look for, how to look for it, how to document it, and how to use it. Also offers hints from teachers who have experimented with observational assessment. (MKR)