This Research-to-Policy Resource List provides resources in the "Research Connections" library on statewide KEAs [Kindergarten entry assessments]. It does not address local KEA efforts or broader issues related to child assessment more generally. The first section presents publications that discuss issues surrounding the development and…

With scant research to draw upon with respect to the maintenance of vertical scales over time, decisions around the creation and performance of vertical scales over time necessarily suffers due to the lack of information. Undetected item parameter drift (IPD) presents one of the greatest threats to scale maintenance within an item response theory…

The focus article "Road Maps for Learning: A Guide to the Navigation of Learning Progressions" by Black, Wilson, and Yao (this issue) is a veritable tour-de-force, covering a great deal of education ground while spanning the heights from models of the interplay among curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment to interpretations of student…

Student success is at the heart of both institutional effectiveness and the community college mission, yet measuring such success at community colleges is problematic. This article highlights three efforts to grapple with this problem--a multistate work group of system- and state-level policymakers to create an improved set of student success…

The purpose of this article is to describe the process and development of English Language Proficiency (ELP) standards and assessment in Ohio and to discuss issues related to alignment. The article addresses the importance of alignment among standards, instruction, and assessment, as well as the effect of alignment on students' academic…

This handbook describes the responsibilities of district and school assessment coordinators in the administration of the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). This updated guidebook contains the following sections: (1) General Assessment Guidelines for All Assessments; (2) Writing Specific Guidelines; (3) Reading and Mathematics…

This brief enhances recommendations and policy strategies from the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) publication "Reading to Achieve: A Governor's Guide to Adolescent Literacy". It reflects lessons from recent research and best practices from states selected to receive NGA Center support to develop statewide…

Six principles for statewide assessment are discussed: (1) involve the community; (2) specify and define goals; (3) use measuring devices with face and content validity; (4) take noncognitive effects of school into account; (5) design data presentation for lay understanding; and (6) do not let assessment be an end in itself. Decisions to be made…

The progress of students and schools in California is examined by reviewing the state's recent test history and the state's progress in creating a sound, standards-based assessment system. The story about California is mixed. Overall performance on the Stanford Achievement Test, ninth edition (SAT-9) shows that the state average, overall grades…

Discusses the roles played by participants and the processes involved in a provincial standards-setting exercise for a large-scale assessment of student skills. Offers perspectives of a policy maker outside the exercise and an insider participant. Describes alternate notions of representativeness, stakes, and significance. (SLD)

Beginning in 1998, a state program called Reaching for Results began focusing on raising achievement for all Louisiana students. This program includes two different approaches: (1) teaching strategies that support students in meeting educational outcomes that will prepare them for life after school; and (2) assessments that evaluate student…

This booklet is designed to assist schools or school systems in analyzing and evaluating student writing, writing instruction, and the writing program. The basic assumption is that improving the writing program needs to be a school-wide effort coordinated across K-12 grade levels, not an individual or isolated effort. After an overview and advice…

This article describes the development of Kentucky's alternative assessment for students with disabilities, including the content and scoring standards for the Alternate Portfolio. Specific examples of entries at each grade are given. Initial implementation data are presented, and critical issues in the development of alternate statewide…

This report describes the model used by the Oregon State System for Higher Education to assess the impact of higher education on the growth and change in students as a result of participation in higher education. The model prescribes assessments of general knowledge and abilities, learning environment, major field knowledge, degree completion,…

The probability sample was a two-stage stratified sample. The first-stage units were schools and the second-stage units were students. Because certain subpopulations were oversampled, the data had to be weighted for analysis purposes. The analyses concerned contrasting North Carolina and its various subpopulations with the nation on standardized…