Data from 403 third graders were analyzed to determine relative and combined efficacy of group-administered Curriculum-Based Measures (CBMs) and Teacher Rankings of student reading and math performance taken early in the school year to predict end-of-year achievement scores. Teacher Rankings added to the power of CBMs to predict reading (R2 change…

The purpose of this study was to examine the difference in student success by retained students who participate in the Hamblen County (Tennessee) Credit Recovery Program [HCCRP] in the year prior and following their participation. HCCRP is an alternative intervention for students who have been retained in the middle grades of Hamblen County School…

This report examines the differences in impact estimates and standard errors that arise when these are derived using state achievement tests only (as pre-tests and post-tests), study-administered tests only, or some combination of state- and study-administered tests. State tests may yield different evaluation results relative to a test that is…

Recently, educational researchers and practitioners have turned to value-added models to evaluate teacher performance. Although value-added estimates depend on the assessment used to measure student achievement, the importance of outcome selection has received scant attention in the literature. Using data from a large, urban school district, I…

Value-added models measure teacher performance by the test score gains of their students, adjusted for a variety of factors such as the performance of students when they enter the class. The measures are based on desired student outcomes such as math and reading scores, but they have a number of potential drawbacks. One of them is the…

The commentary (1) uses the U. S. National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) as a prototype for examining standardized reading achievement tests at the item level, and (2) sketches an alternative based on an initiative underway in the United Kingdom.

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) focuses on accountability for student achievement by mandating higher educational standards that are monitored through required annual student testing. The Complementary Assistance Learning Program (CALP), a before and after school tutoring and mentoring service, offers a potential means of accelerating the…

The No Child Left Behind Act (2001) increased the federal presence in the test-based accountability movement with its goal of all children meeting standard by 2014. To measure progress toward this goal, each state created a series of intermediate goals. Schools or districts that attained the goal for a given year in 9 different subgroups made…

As an extension of the effort devoted to updating the questionnaires for TIMSS and PIRLS 2011, this dissertation explored a new reporting strategy for contextual questionnaire data. The study investigated the feasibility of constructing "global indicators" from a large number of diverse background variables, which could provide policy…

States and other educational entities receiving Part B funding under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) submitted their Annual Performance Reports (APRs) and Section 618 Table 6 data together to the U.S. Secretary of Education on or before February 1, 2009. These reports may have been modified during the following few months,…

Historically, researchers have identified that reading outcomes for students in upper grades who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh) have typically rested around the late 3rd to early 4th grade. In recent years, wide-scale state-level testing has called into question these prognostications. The authors conducted a descriptive, multiunit,…

To insure academic success for students with learning disabilities, it is critical that educators are able to make timely and effective instructional decisions. The focus of this study was to evaluate the relationship and effectiveness of two different progress monitoring tools, a measure of oral reading fluency and the Wilson Reading System's…

Many educational testing programs report examinee performance at more than two levels of proficiency. Whether these assessments have the capacity to support these multiple inferences, though, is a topic that has not been widely discussed. This study proposes a method for evaluating the minimum number of measurement opportunities for reporting…

We use a regression discontinuity strategy to produce causal estimates for the effect of remediation under Florida's test-based promotion policy on multiple outcomes for up to five years after the intervention. Students subjected to the policy were retained in the third grade, were required to be assigned to a high-quality teacher during the…

Nationally, Hispanic achievement lags behind non-Hispanic peers in reading proficiency scores. The gap in achievement persists through subsequent grade levels for Black, Hispanic, and poor students of all races. Current school environments present evidence of dissimilar levels of minority and poverty in schools. Identifiable differences in…