State test scores administered for accountability purposes are regularly used to adjust instruction in nuanced ways. This is no accident--No Child Left Behind demanded that students' scores be returned quickly to teachers in order that this might be the case, and the idea of data-driven decision making continues as one way the promise of education…

Test accommodations are changes in standardized test conditions to equalize opportunities between students with or without disabilities by achieving valid scores. The Individuals with Disabilities Act 1997 amendments require states and districts to include disabled students in accountability programs. Assumptions, practical implications,…

Out-of-level testing in state and district assessments is becoming more popular under the reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This practice (and use of different norm-referenced tests) confounds interdistrict comparisons and contributes to inequitable assessment practices. Proper scaling can remedy this situation. (MLH)

Conflicting policy decisions, scaling difficulties, teacher resistance, and mediocre results are slowing adoption of authentic student-evaluation measures. With more conservative state leadership, California and Arizona rejected performance assessment, and other states have followed. Despite various setbacks, new assessments are becoming the norm.…

Although educator cheating (mostly to "help" students) is more commonplace, it should not be tolerated. The best course is building assessment systems with integrity. Several cheating types, such as the self-aggrandizing teacher and pocket-lining administrator, are explained. A sidebar lists eight systemic problems with testing. (MLH)

Concerned about inappropriate uses of the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills, the Leander Independent School District developed a Total Quality application to guide instruction for individual students. Focusing on learning instead of testing, the new system consists of comprehensive language arts and mathematics assessments completed by students…

Responding to concerns over the lack of statewide assessment, Vermont educators, with citizen support, have decided to use portfolios of student work, beginning with writing and mathematics and expanding into other curriculum areas. Standardized tests will play an important, although secondary role. Student and teacher responsibility will increase…

A Vermont elementary school principal offers advice to other schools attempting to revise their assessment approaches and stack their bulky armfuls (student portfolios) in a better load. Educators are advised to integrate portfolios into current classroom practices, share both the burden and the benefits, adapt portfolios to their own needs and…

Howard Gardner is known for his theory of multiple intelligences, which holds that each individual's unique smartness cannot be measured by conventional IQ tests. Even the best students have flawed theories about existence and human behavior. Schools teach and assess everybody as though each has the same kind of mind. The ATLAS project respects…

A big problem with performance tests and standards is their specificity, or lack of generalizability. "Keeping no secrets" and "teaching to the test" for performance tasks and traditional tests are absolutely necessary if schools are to prepare students adequately to meet performance standards. This nontraditional approach…

Rather than establish a national test, we should examine what other industrialized nations require of their children. Persistence and creativity are not easily tested, and results are bound to be oversimplified. Developing basic American education standards is appropriate only if every public school is equipped with adequate resources. (MLH)

Since 1987, Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Public Schools' Propel project has been using student portfolios to integrate assessment with learning and is now piloting portfolio assessment for public accountability. Unlike Vermont's system, which asks for students' best work, Pittsburgh's assessment reflects what the community typically expects from its…

By their very nature, grades undermine learning. In schools that constantly emphasize the importance of success, students may regard learning as a chore, avoid challenging tasks, think superficially, and value ability more than effort. Students should be able to think, write, and explore without worrying how good they are. (MLH)

Because educators have unrealistic expectations about tests, they use them inappropriately and draw inaccurate conclusions from results. This article debunks five myths about test-score comparisons: valid measurement of school quality; declining international competitiveness; "fixing" schools with more tests; development of new, improved…

The question of validity, or how high-stakes tests are being used and interpreted, threatens to undermine the entire standards movement. Joint standards developed by three professional associations say decisions affecting students' life chances should not be based on test scores alone. Objectivity and teaching to tests are real concerns. (MLH)