Online learning is one of the most important topics in distance learning, but practitioners and researchers have experienced difficulty in defining the process. "Online Assessment and Measurement: Foundations and Challenges" approaches the topic by finding a common ground to properly analyze online assessment and measurement. "Online Assessment…

The current trend toward site-based management in education, with its accompanying shift toward decision making at the individual school level, means new responsibilities and roles for principals. Principals are now required to be intimately involved in budgeting, personnel recruitment and hiring, selection of curricula and textbooks, and many…

A variety of methods are examined that teachers from preschool to graduate school levels can use in assessing their students; the common principles underlying classroom assessment are explored. The first principle is that the primary purpose of classroom assessment is to inform teaching and improve learning. A second principle is that multiple…

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 this non-experimental study, a model was developed for portfolio assessment based on definitions and applications in the assessment literature. This model describes portfolio components, scores to be computed, and uses to be made of the scores. The literature was then reviewed to find examples of actual applications that would provide realistic…

Despite a history of conflicting research on its reliability and validity, student evaluation of faculty (SEF) has typically not been viewed as an infringement on academic freedom; it has generally been taken for granted that SEF is appropriate and necessary. However, informal and reasoned analyses of the issue indicate that because SEF is used…

The effect of testing accommodations, such as extra time, oral reading of the assessment, or small group testing, on the participation and performance levels of limited-English-proficient students (LEP) on the Rhode Island Grade 4 Mathematics Performance Assessment was studied. A pilot study was conducted with 22 classes of students to provide…

This paper summarizes major research and development activities and reports the results of the development and validation of a comprehensive on-the-job statewide teacher assessment system designed to make inferences about enhancing student learning through classroom observation data--the System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review…

State practices affecting the reporting of Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) data were surveyed. Although all but three states coordinated the HEGIS collection and reporting effort for at least some group of institutions in the state, the survey revealed a relatively weak state role in editing the data collected from the…

A comparison is presented of alternate-choice and true-false item forms used in an undergraduate natural science course. The alternate-choice item is a modified two-choice multiple-choice item in which the two responses are included within the question stem. This study (1) compared the difficulty level, discrimination level, reliability, and…

A dilemma arises in the attempt to establish procedures for valid assessment of academic learning. Measures of learning with high pedagogical validity often have poor psychometric properties. Conversely, tests that are well-constructed by psychometric standards may succeed in sorting and ordering students or schools, but have little pedagogical…

A 4-year study was conducted to determine whether the selection criteria for entrance into the 17 Regional Vocational Technical Schools of Connecticut were fair to all applicants of various races and both sexes and predictive of students' success in school programs. The evaluation process consisted of reviewing and applying students' grades and…

The long-term stability of students' evaluations of instructional effectiveness was investigated. The focus was on the extent and nature of realtionships between end-of-term and retrospective ratings. Ratings given by alumni one year after program completion were compared with ratings given by these individuals in 85 undergraduate and graduate…

The final chapter of a seven-section report that examined the assessment of occupational competence, this chapter explores the key patterns and commonalities that have emerged from the study of occupational competency assessment. The chapter begins with a synthesis of the state of the art of competency definition and measurement under four topic…

Strengths and weaknesses of systems for evaluating teaching in medical schools are reviewed, and a framework for dealing with issues and critical questions is presented. The model addresses the following areas: goals of the school, the purpose of evaluating teaching, standards that characterize the quality of teaching evaluation measures, measures…