Studies have shown how school professionals deal with large quantities of student test data and accountability policies in different ways. However, the subtle ways in which school leaders and teachers use their time, their power and their talk when dealing with external policy demands in daily practice is understudied. Using data from interviews…

"Classroom Assessment" shows pre- and in-service teachers how to use classroom testing accurately and formatively to dramatically increase their teaching effectiveness and promote student learning. In addition to clear and concise guidelines on how to develop and use quality classroom assessments, the author also focuses on the teaching…

With new state assessments kicking into full swing across the country, schools are seeing more and more parents wanting to opt out their children. Determining whether states allow assessment opt-outs can be complex and is constantly evolving. In some states the answer is clear: State policies either allow or prohibit state assessment opt-outs, or…

Currently, too few people have too much influence over those who control the education research purse strings. And, those who control the purse strings have too much influence over policy decisions. Until folk at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the US Education Department--to mention just a couple of consistent funders of education…

Legislation leading to the mandating of accountability testing in schools was chronicled between the publication of "A Nation at Risk" (1983) to the conclusion of No Child Left Behind (2016). Involvement in education by the federal government increased throughout the educational legislation during this time period. The Omnibus Trade and…

Current debates about test-based accountability policies revolve around questions of how to ensure that all students have access to high-quality schools and teachers. Whether and how one can meet this goal depend, in part, on the nature of the arguments that policy proponents and opponents mobilize in these debates. This article examines these…

Current educational policies rely on educational assessments. However, the technical aspects of assessments are often unknown to policy makers, which is dangerous because sound assessment policy requires knowledge of the strengths and limitations of educational tests. In this article, we discuss the importance of informing policy makers of…

In the 2014-15 school year, 47 states are administering high school assessments to gauge students' mastery of college and career readiness standards in English language arts (ELA) and math. These new assessments represent a departure from prior high school exams that measured acquisition of high school (or lower) content but provided no actionable…

In the present offering we challenge the presumption that the educational testing of students provides objective information about such students. This presumption largely rests on an empiricist account of science. In light of mounting criticism, however, empiricist foundationalism has given way to a social epistemology. From this standpoint,…

Examining education policy, specifically policy related to standards, testing and accountability, from a critical perspective reveals the dominance of neoliberal perspectives. Trends of individual motivators in the educational system limit the democratic curriculum development process. "Feel good" moments for policy makers lead to…

This article reveals perspectives based on experiences from twentieth-century Danish educational history by outlining contemporary, test-based accountability regime characteristics and their implications for education policy. The article introduces one such characteristic, followed by an empirical analysis of the origins and impacts of test-based…

Developed jointly by the American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education, "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing" (Revised 2014) addresses professional and technical issues of test development and use in education, psychology, and…

The first large-scale, nationwide academic achievement testing program using Stanford Achievement Test (Stanford) for deaf and hard-of-hearing children in the United States started in 1969. Over the past three decades, the Stanford has served as a benchmark in the field of deaf education for assessing student academic achievement. However, the…

The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) is one of the world's leading educational research centres. ACER's mission is to create and promote research-based knowledge, products and services that can be used to improve learning across the life span. This annual report describes ACER's milestones and accomplishments for the 2013-2014…

Since the time of Sputnik, American educators and policymakers have recognized the need to raise expectations by increasing rigor in high schools across the United States. Copious studies attest to the fact that students who take Advanced Placement coursework experience success in college (Adelman, 1999; Camara, 2003; College Board, 2005;…