A central task of evaluation is to use systematic inquiry to judge the merit, worth, and significance of programs. As a field in education, evaluation began to mature during the 1960s, when policy makers began funding researchers to study the impact of Great Society programs. Since that time, evaluation and policy-making have been intertwined,…

Assessment is a hotly contested issue in education today. The education policy No Child Left Behind (NCLB) emphasizes standardized testing throughout a child's schooling as a major means of assessment. Even at Head Start an attempt was made at standardized testing using the National Reporting System (NRS). Although research indicates that these…

While much of the work in language testing is concerned with constructing quality tests in order to measure language knowledge in reliable and valid ways, there has been a significant movement in language testing research that examines tests in the context of their use in education and society. This line of research exits from the notion that…

Many investigators have documented the need for valid and credible program evaluation research of teacher professional development programs. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to conduct a comprehensive program evaluation of the Lincoln School District's Teacher Collaboration Time (TCT) staff development program. The study questions…

The field of evaluation faces a number of serious challenges in light of No Child Left Behind legislation, among them feasibility, resources, and blurring lines among research, evaluation, and assessment. At the same time, these challenges open the door for opportunities in evaluation. Now more than ever, the expertise of evaluators is needed and…

This paper presents the differing sides to the discussion of how much assessment is too much. A teacher survey was administered to practicing teachers in the Lincoln Memorial University graduate program to determine how assessment affects classroom instruction and student learning. The research reflects more often than not that assessment does…

Educators, students, and families face many challenges in responding to the testing mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA), including providing students with disabilities with individualized, approved, valid, effective, and acceptable testing…

As a result of the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2002, the field of education has seen a heavy emphasis on the use of "scientifically based research" for designing and testing the effectiveness of new and existing educational programs. According to NCLB, when addressing basic cause and effect questions scientifically based…

In this article, I specify a conceptual framework for test validity research on content assessments taken by English language learners (ELLs) in U.S. schools in grades K-12. This framework is modeled after one previously delineated by Willingham et al. (1988), which was developed to guide research on students with disabilities. In this framework…

Assessment of and for learning has occupied center stage in education reform, especially with the advent of the No Child Left Behind Federal legislation. This study examined the formative function of assessment--assessment for learning--recognizing that such assessment needs to be aligned, at least in part, with the summative function of…

The 2007 reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act in the United States has provided additional incentive to sustain attention on this law. Based on a review of the literature, this article highlights some objectives of the act and identifies shortcomings associated with the type of assessments the act endorses. Because these assessments…

The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the state of the research on testing accommodations, as well as to identify promising areas of research to further clarify and enhance understanding of current and emerging issues. The research described encompasses empirical studies of score comparability and validity studies, as well as…

Discussions about appropriate methods for education research have escalated in the wake of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 and related changes to federal policies for educational research and its funding. This legislation highlights the importance of "scientifically-based research" and in particular foregrounds the use of…

Student data are gaining increased attention in education, spurred by accountability policies such as those contained in the federal No Child Left Behind legislation. Student data are useful for informing classroom practice, and user-friendly technologies for organizing and accessing data are enabling access by all teachers. In this study, we…

On the surface, it appears that it should be quite simple to identify the characteristics of a child who is ready for school and then to assess whether or not any given child has these characteristics. But readiness is a difficult construct and one that has been the topic of great debate. Assessment of readiness is even more challenging. Policies…