This paper discusses the use of portfolios, performance assessments, and standards-based learning. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and other professional groups call for performance assessments that are as authentic as possible, and authenticity, in this context, means resembling real-world challenges. A portfolio is…

This set of mini-lessons contains staff meeting activities to help a school's staff understand large-scale standards-based assessment and promote student achievement through improved classroom assessment practice. These lessons contain a clear statement of what teachers need to know and be able to do with respect to student assessment. They…

This book provides an overview of the rationale for and strengths and limitations of the use of performance tasks to assess student progress in mathematics. It also offers a field-tested process for developing performance tasks and rubrics, along with practical advice for evaluating student work and 20 sample tasks. The chapters are: (1)…

This handbook for parents begins with an overview of academic standards: how Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's standards compare to standards set at the state, national, and international levels; how parents can use standards to help their children; and how parents will know if their children's work meets these standards. The handbook goes on to present…

The traditional "black box" approach to evaluation of assignments in educational research courses has at least two effects: (1) products that fail to meet the expectations of the instructor; and (2) frustration on the part of students who do not know exactly what is expected, and who are consequently confused about or disappointed in the grades…

To assist teachers in achieving "highly qualified" status, the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) has created a single document that will give teachers the information they need to interpret the requirements of HOUSSE; assess their credentials, course work, experience, and professional activities; complete the HOUSSE rubric to achieve…

Portfolios are one of the assessment tools used in Pacesetter® Spanish. In Phase I of this study, conducted in 1995-96, a first attempt was made to develop a standardized portfolio assessment system. As part of this system, a set of guidelines and an assessment matrix were prepared. In Phase II of our research, in consultation with participating…

Education remains heavily shackled by punitive, test-driven reform. Despite reasonable alternatives, testing increasingly drives educational accountability and reform. Standardization of direct writing assessments promotes scoring reliability and facilitates educational comparisons and rankings. However, standardized writing is not good writing,…

Presents findings of a year-long study of a language arts portfolio-assessment system in a California middle school in which an external evaluation committee applied a rubric to student portfolios from three teachers' classes. Discusses reasons the school board chose not to adopt the portfolio system. Contains over 60 references. (SLD)

Suggests that assessing problem-solving activities is more complex than assessing other activities. Addresses one method of assessment for a particular mathematical problem-solving activity that is an analytic scoring rubric. (ASK)

Describes an educational strategy that uses current multimedia resources to combine sounds and images important to students. States that the arts can provide students with the opportunity to create and share new perspectives about their worlds with their peers and others. Provides a scoring rubric and steps for a middle school project. (CMK)

Instructional rubrics, concerned with gradations of quality, are easy to use and explain, communicate teacher expectations clearly, provide students with constructive feedback, and support learning, skill development, understanding, and good thinking. Tips for constructing rubrics and encouraging student participation and self-evaluation are…

Across five continents, operant testing schemes are the assessment equivalent of an English jumble sale. Test types, rationales, preparation times, and scoring practices are equally diverse in Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, England, Germany, Israel, and Japan. Most systems are in flux or under scrutiny. (MLH)

This article presents a procedure found effective for including students with special needs in daily instructional activities within a general classroom. Steps in the procedure include individualized instruction incorporating student choice of materials, feedback from teacher-designed rubrics, application of student-constructed reading logs, and…

Suggests that scoring criteria should be used in order to reduce teacher subjectivity in scoring classroom assessments. Describes scoring criteria as specific expectations made clear in task instructions used to evaluate student work. Provides an example assessment task for high school geography and addresses three common teacher errors. (CMK)