Compared "read schema activation," in which one group of Japanese women college students of English as a Second Language read a whole text related to the target text; and "written schema activation," in which a second group wrote about the topic of the target text. A control group read the target text twice. There were no…

Describes the language-arts assessment instrument developed and piloted by a small urban school district that has a high percentage of students learning English as a Second Language. Developing the instrument, training teachers to be scorers, and the actual piloting of the reading and writing portions of the evaluation are detailed. (SLD)

Argues that synergy between computer-based instruction and automated assessment is possible because of the common needs in assessment and instruction; outlines a framework for characterizing performance; and examines procedures developed as part of an ongoing project to develop fully automated scoring of architectural design for a licensing exam.…

Presents the science demonstration assessment as an authentic- assessment technique to assess whether students understand basic science concepts and can use them to solve problems. Uses rubrics to prepare students for the assessment and to assign final grades. Provides examples of science demonstration assessments and the scoring of rubrics in the…

Examinees in a regular administration of the quantitative portion of the Graduate Record Examination responded to particular items in a machine-scannable multiple-choice format. Volunteers (n=364) used a computer to answer open-ended counterparts of these items. Scores for both formats demonstrated similar correlational patterns. (SLD)

Focusing on educational measurement that suggests an action and has an outcome, 16 problem areas are defined and grouped into the following classes: (1) validity; (2) issues of statistical adjustment; (3) data insufficiencies; (4) other issues related to standardized testing and constructed responses; and (5) technical issues of psychometrics.…

Results from the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program for 5,392 elementary school students and from the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (multiple choice) for a national sample are used to explore local item independence (LID) of test items. Some strategies are suggested for measuring LID in performance assessments. (SLD)

This article addresses an important problem that faces educators in assessing students' competence levels in learned tasks. Data from 165 students from Massachusetts and Minnesota in the United States are used to examine the validity of five assessment modes (multiple choice test, scenario, portfolio, self-assessment and supervisor rating) in…

This article describes lessons learned in a case study of three high-poverty/racially mixed elementary schools in Louisville, Ky. An approach that included: 1) setting specific, measurable goals, 2) frequent monitoring of student work, and 3) applying distributive leadership elements enabled two of the schools to significantly decrease the…

A meta-analysis of 50 studies was conducted to investigate whether juvenile delinquents use lower levels of moral judgment than their nondelinquent age-mates and, if so, what factors may influence or moderate the developmental delay. The results show a lower stage of moral judgment for juvenile delinquents (d = 0.76). Effect sizes were large for…

The Values Scale (VS) is a self-report inventory of 106 scored items yielding 21 separate scales for the individual assessment of upper elementary school and middle school students as well as adult members of semi-skilled, skilled, clerical, managerial, and professional occupations. The VS, available in seven languages, measures several intrinsic…

The Career Beliefs Inventory (CBI) is a counseling tool with the purpose of identifying beliefs as they relate to occupational choice and the pursuit of a career. The inventory can be administered individually or to a group ranging in age from grade 8 to adult. The CBI is a 96-item paper-and-pencil test written at an eighth-grade reading level.…

A new test theory for performance-based assessment is proposed. Criteria for "good" performance-based items, ways of measuring cognitive complexity, methods for determining maturity levels of understanding, and scaling systems are discussed. A performance-based task completed by 51 ninth and tenth graders in June 1993 was studied.…

The use of portfolio assessment in the Dallas (Texas) Independent School District and the future of portfolio assessment are discussed. A literature review is followed by a description of the development process that preceded the Chapter 1 portfolio assessment of the Dallas schools. Portfolio results are then compared to the standardized measures…

This literature review lists and describes current assessment methods for process writing. Writing instruction's shift of focus from product to process is part of education's greater shift of emphasis from knowledge transmission to inquiry, which allows students to become problem solvers and independent thinkers. Process writing creates…