This paper explores how mandated literacy assessment is reorganising teachers' work in the context of Australia's National Assessment Program--Literacy and Numeracy, which was implemented in 2008. Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are tested annually, with school results publicly available. The wider policy context and the emergence of different…

Educational assessment and, more broadly, educational research in the United States have entered into an era characterized by a dramatic increase in the prevalence and importance of test score use in accountability systems. This volume covers a selection of contemporary issues about testing science and practice that impact the nation's public…

Focuses on the process of evaluation capacity building (ECB) in a school district from the perspective of an internal evaluator hired to develop the evaluation function of the district. Shows how the work was originally conceived and why it changed. Emphasizes the core function of the district's Assessment Department, managing the standardized…

A case study of centralized provincial testing in Alberta (Canada) shows that teachers can retain their assessment skills and responsibility, and so do not necessarily undergo "deskilling" in the implementation of centralized testing. The teachers appear to have undergone an ideological proletarianization, with considerable technical…

The objections of testing experts to standardized testing are evaluated. The report begins with a foreword by Chester E. Finn, Jr., followed by an executive summary and an introduction. Four case studies include: (1) experts' opposition to high-stakes testing in Texas; (2) in North Carolina; (3) concerns raised in connection with the National…

This case study is part of a broader research project examining state policies and governance structures that span K-12 and postsecondary education. Florida has implemented some of the most sweeping education governance changes of any state; all levels of education are housed in the Department of Education, which is overseen by a commissioner who…

Evaluation instruments and current practices used in measuring achievement in Ontario, Canada elementary schools were examined. An analytical review of currently available achievement measures was made in relation to the objectives of "The Formative Years", a circular issued on the Ontario Minestry on Education. Results of item analyses…

This case study is part of a broader research project examining state policies and governance structures that span K-12 and postsecondary education. Georgia was the first state to have state and regional P-16 councils, and its regents' office in the University System of Georgia oversees a variety of projects that focus on connecting K-12 and…