Early childhood stakeholders in state departments of education are interested in knowing what child assessment measures are being used in state-funded pre-kindergarten and in kindergarten classrooms. To address this need, the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) performed a secondary analysis of data in the National Institute for…

Although interim assessments are currently promoted as a mechanism for improving teaching and student learning, we know little about how teachers use this data to modify instruction. This article presents findings from a larger study on teachers' use of interim assessment information in elementary mathematics. We address the following questions:…

The No Child Left Behind Act increases pressure on schools and districts to use standardized state test data. Seeking to learn about the process of turning accountability data into actionable information, this paper presents findings from three case studies of small to medium sized school districts. The study examines the flow of state science…

Elementary general music teachers typically teach hundreds of students every week. Each child has individual learning needs due to a variety of factors, such as prior experiences with music, music aptitude, learning style, and personality. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore ways that experienced teachers used assessments to…

Since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001), districts, schools, and educators are pressured to collect, analyze and report data annually regarding student performance. If high-stakes assessments are to be useful tools for educators in their classrooms, the data need to be applicable in conveying meaningful instructional information…

This article presents a discussion of field utilization of staff development activities in the context of three separate training programs. Specifically, classroom implementation of knowledge and skills gained by participants in their training sessions was assessed via the Levels of Use (LoU) interview system. (Author/LMO)

The National Policy Board of Educational Administration reflects the belief that principals should be taught processes for experimenting and learning from real world data to meet the challenges of the work environment. This study of practicing principals yielded a content analysis of 482 responses, which reflect the need for principals to…

Designed for use by institutions at the postsecondary level, this program evaluation package contains instructions for planning and implementing an evaluation program, instruments for obtaining information from key sources, and procedures for their use. Covered in the individual chapters are the following topics: an overview of evaluation…