With the continual progress of computer technologies, computer automated scoring (CAS) has become a popular tool for evaluating writing assessments. Research of applications of these methodologies to new types of performance assessments is still emerging. While research has generally shown a high agreement of CAS system generated scores with those…

Teacher candidates rated their self-perceptions of performance on the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium principles at the beginning and end of their 16-week student teaching semester to determine whether there was any significant difference between pre- and post-student-teaching self-ratings. Findings indicate that…

As the World Wide Web becomes an integral part of higher education, universities must determine the viability of using the Internet for their student evaluation systems. This chapter highlights important online-student-rating issues raised in this volume and in other research through a case study of Murdoch University's (Perth, Australia) online…

Research findings demonstrate that PDSs effectively prepare general education teachers and lead to increased student academic outcomes. Previous studies within the extant literature have investigated the application of the PDS model with traditional credential candidates. Acute teacher shortages and the implementation of alternative credential…

With a new governor in Albany and a brand-new interagency group working on early childhood policy in the Mayor's office, early childhood advocates across the city were already pondering what changes might be afoot--and whether the time had come for the city to move toward a more integrated, high-quality system of early care and education. Given…

In spring 2005, the Educational Policy Institute was contracted by an anonymous, non-profit, Missouri-based organization to conduct analysis of data from a series of focus groups of 7th, 9th, and 11th grade students. The purpose of the focus groups, conducted by the Change and Innovation Agency in Jefferson City, was to examine the postsecondary…

This report presents findings from the second year of a multi-year evaluation of the Texas Educator Excellence Grant (TEEG) program and background information about the design and implementation of the District Awards for Teacher Excellence (DATE) program. The TEEG and DATE programs operating in Texas make up the largest state-funded performance…

In July 2001, the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) agreed to the development of assessment instruments and key performance measures for reporting on student skills, knowledge and understandings in primary science. It directed the newly established Performance Measurement and Reporting Taskforce…

This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

Recent research on vocabulary development is reviewed, highlighting issues related to diverse learners. The review included studies of students who are low performers; learning or reading disabled; remedial readers; high achievers; and students who are culturally disadvantaged, language delayed, and linguistically diverse. Areas of convergence in…

This packet includes reprints of journal articles and other resources concerning the assessment of science and math in small, rural elementary schools. Articles include: (1) "Standards, Assessment, and Educational Quality" (Lauren B. Resnick); (2) "A True Test: Toward More Authentic and Equitable Assessment" (Grant Wiggins);…

The overall assessment of teacher education students by means of testing may not be the best indicator of competence in a professional field. Assessors must possess both valid and reliable ways of discerning which students have the necessary skills to be effective in the classroom. Portfolio analysis is one way to get better, more valid data about…

Alternative assessment not only offers the opportunity to assess what students know, it also can more fully engage students in their own learning. When properly implemented, alternative assessment has the potential to: be a useful classroom tool, stimulate student participation; form a communication bridge with parents; and measure specific types…

This manual presents the trainee's workbook and the trainer's guidelines for the third of six modules in a teacher inservice series developed to promote the unified effort of both regular and special education personnel in understanding and applying nationally recognized practices to implement fully inclusive education for student with diverse…

This booklet reports on the 1994 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in geography for 4th, 8th, and 12th grade students, a test given for the first time to establish baseline data for measuring student progress in geography well into the future. The booklet contains the following sections: (1) Why We Assess Geography; (2) The 1994…