Interactive oral assessments demonstrate potential to develop graduate attributes such as critical thinking, professional communication and collaborative skills in students through authentic simulation of workplace scenarios. This study captured the design, delivery and evaluation of interactive oral assessments across three programmes --…

The principal at Dunnellon Christian Academy in Dunnellon, Florida, was tired of trying to use complicated, outdated student data to make educational decisions. She learned of the partnership between Step Up For Students (SUFS) and NWEA® that enables schools to use the MAP® Growth™ interim assessment. MAP Growth measures what students know and…

This study explored if it is possible for liberal arts students to develop engineering professional competencies without detailed engagement with the engineering sciences. Students on a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences programme were compared with their undergraduate peers in Civil Engineering. A new method for evaluating such competencies was…

Over the past decade, the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) has been documenting what colleges and universities are doing to gather evidence about student learning and helping institutions to productively use assessment data to strengthen undergraduate education. NILOA also has been monitoring how institutions communicate…

In the United States, colleges of education are responding to demands for increased accountability. The purpose of this article is to describe one teacher education program's implementation of a performance evaluation tool during final internship that measures teacher candidates' development across four domains: Planning and Preparation,…

This study examined the effects of professional development on teachers' assessment literacy between two groups of teachers: (1) teachers who were involved in ongoing and sustained professional development in designing authentic classroom assessment and rubrics; and (2) teachers who were given only short-term, one-shot professional development…

Authentic assessments are naturalistic methods to obtain functional, contextual information relevant to learning in routine activities. Seven focus groups were conducted with 73 practicing Part C early interventionists to gather their reports on authentic assessments. Participants reported various ways of applying authentic assessment methods,…

This case study examines the reasoning of a clinical supervisor as she assesses preservice teacher candidates with a state-mandated performance assessment instrument. The supervisor's evaluations were recorded using video annotation software, which allowed her to record her observations in real-time. The study reveals some of the inherent…

Teacher collaboration is a powerful form of professional learning. One focus for collaborative efforts is designing assessments. When teachers design assessments, give each other feedback through peer reviews, evaluate student work, and plan together for improvement, they are engaged in highly effective professional development. Assessments have…

This book discusses and highlights portfolios as an alternative assessment practice in the classroom. Chapters in the book address such topics as aspects of portfolios beyond a collection of student work; what to consider when evaluating portfolios; the different types and purposes of student portfolios; issues involving management and ownership…

Educators are generally untrained in sound assessment basics. They should conduct their own professional development in a total environment that demands and supports quality assessment. This environment should include a district statement of assessment policy, teacher/administrator partnerships, an integrated professional development plan, and…

Summarizes the status of assessment reform, based on visits to 14 schools. Documents key characteristics of various performance assessments (portfolios, on-demand tasks, projects, exhibitions, and teachers' structured observations); determines which factors influence their development, implementation, and effectiveness; and analyzes interactions…

Literacy portfolios were studied in two different schools (Washington and Hawaii) with four teachers from each representing primary and intermediate grades. Results suggest that portfolios contained authentic artifacts of students' literacy experiences, although a substantial amount of evidence was judged to be missing from the portfolios. (SLD)

The United States is transitioning to an information age society, requiring that the citizens and workers of the future be highly literate in their use of information. Information literacy is the ability to evaluate, analyze, and apply critical thinking to the use of information. Educators need to answer basic questions about how students become…

The Indiana State Assessment System, new for the 1995-96 school year, will emphasize student-constructed answers in both language arts and mathematics in grades 3, 4, 8, 10, and 12. Optional classroom performance assessments will be available for grades 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 11. Local diagnostic tests will be available at the same grades as the…