English language proficiency (ELP) assessment scores are used by states to make high-stakes decisions related to linguistic support in instruction and assessment for English learner (EL) students and for EL student reclassification. Changes to both academic content standards and ELP academic standards within the last decade have resulted in…

Higher-order thinking has been promoted in the American classroom for several decades. Summative assessments have the dual role of ascertaining the student's proficiency and also providing them with opportunities to employ various cognitive behaviors and to offer them with opportunities to demonstrate their ability to think in complex ways. The…

The assessment landscape is varied and complex. Because assessments serve many purposes, they can take multiple forms depending on what they are measuring and how they are used. The intended purpose behind each assessment influences its design, and the design influences how assessment data can be used by students and their families, school,…

From uneven digital access and growing academic gaps to reports of students missing or disengaged since March 2020, it is evident that English Learners (ELs) have endured some of the pandemic's gravest impacts on students across the United States. But because the pandemic has affected state assessment systems as well as instruction, it is…

This quantitative correlational non-experimental study examined the predictable relationship between the ACCESS for English Language Learners scale score and the Georgia Milestones English Language Arts (GMAS-ELA) standardized assessment for reclassified fifth-grade English language learners during the 2018-2019 school year. The problem addressed…

In this study we investigated how English learners (ELs) interacted with "®" summative English language arts (ELA) and mathematics items, the embedded online tools, and accessibility features. We focused on how EL students navigated the assessment items; how they selected or constructed their responses; how they interacted with the…

Alaska has implemented an innovative approach to a balanced assessment system called the Alaska System of Academic Readiness (AK STAR). The AK STAR summative assessments are administered each spring to students in grades 3-9. The AK STAR assessments were developed to provide information on student achievement, areas of strength and need, and…

In this study we evaluated the stability of item parameters and student scores, using the pre-equated (pre-pandemic) parameters from Spring 2019 and post-equated (post-pandemic) parameters from Spring 2021 in two calibration and equating designs related to item parameter treatment: re-estimating all anchor parameters (Design 1) and holding the…

Research Findings: Kindergarten is the gateway to education and a point of great variability in children's knowledge and skills. As a result, there is keen interest in kindergarten entry assessments (KEAs) to understand and address gaps in early skills. This study rigorously investigated the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Kindergarten Entry…

In this study the effects of the use of digital student monitoring tools for teachers (DMTs) on student achievement (primary and secondary schools, mathematics, reading, and language) were investigated through a meta-analysis (n = 14). The studies were also coded for feedback and intervention features, which resulted in three groups of…

The Performance Evaluation for Alaska's Schools (PEAKS) assessment is administered annually statewide to students in grades 3 through 9 in ELA and mathematics. It provides students the opportunity to show their understanding of "Alaska's English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics Standards." The assessments provide information to…

It is not uncommon for randomised trials in education to have the performance of sample members in national examinations as their primary outcome. In many cases, examination results are available as summary measures only. Taking the example of GCSE examination results in England, this paper shows that using summary measures of an underlying score…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states to outline their academic and English language proficiency goals and provide a detailed proposal for the statewide accountability system in a state ESSA plan. This brief, a collaboration between Achieve and UnidosUS, provides a two-part analysis of states' goals for English learners (ELs) in…

Building upon the theoretical and practical foundation outlined in their previous book, "Educating English Learners", the authors show classroom teachers how to develop a repertoire of instructional techniques that address K-12 English learners (ELs) at different English proficiency and grade levels, and across subject areas. "Show,…

Previous writings focus on why centering assessment design around students' cultural, social, and/or linguistic diversity is important and how performance-based assessment can support such aims. This article extends previous work by describing how a culturally responsive classroom assessment framework was created from a culturally responsive…