A survey of 368 elementary and secondary regular education teachers and a survey of 274 high school students with and without disabilities examined the acceptability of report card grading adaptations for students with disabilities. Teachers were willing to make adaptations but students perceived use of individualized adaptations as unfair. (CR)

This study took place at a newly formed charter school serving 150 students in a large metropolitan city in the southwest. Students were mostly Hispanic (98%), and all were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected in interviews with 45 sixth- (n = 28), seventh- (n = 10), and eighth- (n = 7) grade…

The leadership of Qatar has a social and political vision that calls for improving the outcomes of the Qatari K-12 education system. With this vision in mind, the leadership asked RAND to examine Qatar's K-12 education system, to recommend options for building a world-class system, and, subsequently, to develop the chosen option and support its…

The assessment conundrum results from the fact that students almost always know, understand, and have learned more than they can demonstrate on any tests administered. This book is about confronting current knowledge about assessment and applying it to restructuring the assessment process in schools so that assessment can become a means for…

Data from the 1990-91 Tennessee school district report cards are used to reexamine some relationships noted in previous studies (G. C. Bobbett and others, 1992) and to gain new insights because of modifications to Tennessee's report cards from 1989 to 1991. Report cards now report the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment results and have added more…

Louisiana is one of the few states that uses indicator data to produce school report cards for statewide distribution to parents. The system, the Progress Profiles Program, produces report cards that must be accessible, meaningful, and understandable to a lay audience. An evaluation of the 1991-92 report cards was undertaken in 1993. In Phase 1…

This study uses data from a national survey of principals of public schools with a 7th grade to document and analyze the variation in the types of marks and evaluations included on report cards issued to young adolescents in the United States. The analyses examine the prevalence of report card entries of various types and the antecedents and…

To find out what kinds of information parents regularly get from schools on the progress of their children, the Southwest Regional Laboratory surveyed a sample of public school districts in California, Arizona, and Nevada. Responses were received from 18 school districts ranging in size from fewer than 300 students to more than half a million. The…

An analysis of criticism leveled against student grading is presented, and a rebuttal is offered. Twenty-two criticisms of grades are divided into four categories; that grades are meaningless, unimportant, unnecessary, and harmful. In response to the criticism, it is pointed out that grading tends to motivate student achievement, provides rewards…

"Alabama Education News" is published monthly except for June, July, and December by the Alabama Department of Education. This publication, authorized by Section 16-2-4 of the "Code of Alabama," as recompiled in 1975, is a public service of the Alabama Department of Education designed to inform citizens and educators about…

Discusses parents' responses to open-ended questions about changes in early elementary programs initiated by the Kentucky Education Reform Act. Changes include ungraded primary programs and student progress reports to parents. (BB)

Reports on a study of the factors upon which teachers base student evaluations among 77 Italian students and 5 teachers. Presents a two-level model illustrating seven major topics used by teachers for their evaluations. Includes two tables, two figures, and two appendixes illustrating the model. (CFR)

In Texas, which has minimal child care standards, extensive alternative care arrangements were associated with pervasive negative effects in third graders. Children with the alternative care background received more negative ratings from parents and teachers, poorer grades, lower standardized test scores, and more negative sociometric nominations…

Answers parents' most common questions about alternative assessment. Discusses: why there is a need for change in the way students are evaluated; what alternative assessment is; how parents can recognize the components of an alternative assessment; when alternative assessment occurs; and how alternative assessment contributes to children's…

The development of valid and reliable instruments for attitudes' measurement has been proven crucial for the quality of research. This study is dealing with the development and validation of an attitude toward chemistry instrument. By using this instrument, 11th grade Greek students' attitudes regarding the difficulty, the interest, the usefulness…