The heart of effective programming for gifted students lies in the integration of advanced curricula with effective instructional strategies to develop leaning activities that will enhance student learning outcomes. However, empirical evidence of the effectiveness of units based on such curricular and instructional interventions from large-scale…

The 2011 study, "Benefits of Practicing 4 = 2 + 2: Nontraditional Problem Formats Facilitate Children's Understanding of Mathematical Equivalence," examined the effects of addition practice using nontraditional problem formats on students' understanding of mathematical equivalence. In nontraditional problem formats, operations appear on…

A socially moderated link was established between statewide achievement results and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) by using the same achievement level descriptions in an Iowa Test of Basic Skills standard-setting and an NAEP standard setting study. A statistically moderated link was established through an equipercentile…

One of the consequences of Ohio's educational accountability efforts mandated under Ohio Senate Bill 55 (SB 55) and the traditional testing programs of Ohio school districts is the generation of huge amounts of data. In order for school-based educators to organize and explore these voluminous amounts of information, they need exposure to…

The Des Moines (Iowa) Public Schools continually evaluate the process of teaching for learning in order to provide quality programming for its diverse student body. Different methods of student outcome assessment are used to identify areas for study and analysis. This report provides information about the achievement of district students on: (1)…

This paper argues that the standard "When it is expected that a test will be used to make norm-referenced assessments of groups rather than individuals, normative data based on appropriate group statistics should be provided," which was considered secondary in the 1985 "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing" and…

Technical problems with norm-referenced achievement testing that can lead to the erroneous evaluation of schools for Chapter 1 Program improvement is discussed, and an alternative testing model is presented. The history of Chapter 1 testing and evaluation policies is briefly reviewed, and problems with the norm-referenced model are explored. Data…

In April of 1986-87, the School Board approved a student assignment plan which returned most elementary students to their neighborhood schools, creating 16 predominantly minority schools with many students from low-income families. To assure the quality of education in these schools, a 5-year plan was developed. This report summarizes results in…