Social capital has recently emerged as an effective approach to rethink schools as wider learning ecosystems where students, teachers and families have greater access to learning resources through social interaction. Literature has not provided research-based assessment tools that document school leaders' abilities to weave social relationships…

It is difficult to get a good grasp of the topic of kindergarten entry assessment because there are such great differences in the purpose for the instruments, how they are constructed, and how the data is used. Even so, in many states and communities, there is cause for concern. Until the paradigm of education moves from a preoccupation with…

This article presents information on the development and initial validation of the 16-item Response to Intervention (RTI) Beliefs Scale. The scale is designed to measure the extent to which educators working in schools hold beliefs consistent with the tenets of RTI. The authors administered the instrument to 2,430 educators in 62 elementary…

Conceptualisations of disability that emphasise the contextual and cultural nature of disability and the embodiment of these within a national system of data collection present a number of challenges especially where this process is devolved to schools. The requirement for measures based on contextual and subjective experiences gives rise to…

This paper represents one outcome from the "Invitational Research Symposium on Technology-Enabled and Universally Designed Assessments," which examined technology-enabled assessments (TEA) and universal design (UD) as they relate to students with disabilities (SWD). It was developed to stimulate research into TEAs designed to make tests…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of DISCOVER, a performance- based assessment in identifying gifted Lebanese students. The sample consisted of 248 students (121 boys, 127 girls) from Grades 3-5 at two private schools in Beirut, Lebanon. Students were administered DISCOVER and the Raven Standard Progressive Matrices…

In this study, we examined the characteristics of reading disability (RD) in the seventh grade of the Greek educational system and the corresponding diagnostic practice. We presented a clinically administered assessment battery, composed of typically employed tasks, and a fully automated, computer-based assessment battery that evaluates some of…

A synthesis of the report, "The Current State of Assessment in Literature," (produced by the Center for the Learning and Teaching of Literature), this digest discusses methods of evaluating students' knowledge of literature. The digest argues that, by and large, the tests that now exist in the United States do not live up to the…

An instrument was developed to assess needs of students with disabilities in regular classes and was used as the basis for providing funding support for 12,375 students. The three domains of the instrument, physical needs, learning needs, and social needs, had good construct and face validities and high score reliabilities. (Contains 10…

The United Federation of Teachers in New York City prefers to define accountability in terms that are appropriate both educationally and politically. The concept of accountability envisioned by the late Henry Dyer and nurtured by Fred McDonald and Garli A. Forehand of the Education Testing Service, with its problem solving rather than punitive…

This article discusses potential benefits and detriments of high-stakes assessment on students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). It suggests these tests are unlikely to be useful for students with EBD because they differ dramatically from validated assessment procedures for students with disabilities. These students may experience…

Test modifications and techniques that teachers can employ to adapt their tests to meet individualized needs of mainstreamed students with disabilities are considered. Suggestions are offered to assist special education teachers in helping general educators design tests; address test reliability, validity, content, and format; and develop…

This publication is designed to address new paradigms such as research, policies, and daily school practices which tend to reduce or perpetuate inequities in educational opportunities for culturally and linguistically diverse individuals with disabilities and/or gifts and talents. This particular issue includes articles that discuss referrals of…