In this essay, Randall Curren addresses four basic questions about transformative experiences in education: Is education necessarily transformative? What must education provide for it to be personally transformative? What standard should educators use in determining whether engaging students in potentially transformative experiences is beneficial…

Background/Context: School transitions pose a variety of social-emotional and academic challenges to students, especially those who are more vulnerable due to home, health, or academic challenges (Eccles et al., 1997; Felmlee, 2018). With this awareness, a growing number of school districts have developed and implemented early warning indicator…

We investigated whether evidence direction (incriminating versus exonerating) moderated the influence of intergroup bias on alibi credibility assessments. Israeli-Jewish participants (n = 160) assessed the credibility of an alibi statement provided by either an Israeli-Jewish or an Israeli-Arab suspect. Along with the alibi statement, half of the…

Count responses with grouping and right censoring have long been used in surveys to study a variety of behaviors, status, and attitudes. Yet grouping or right-censoring decisions of count responses still rely on arbitrary choices made by researchers. We develop a new method for evaluating grouping and right-censoring decisions of count responses…

Multilevel structural equation models (MSEM) are typically evaluated on the basis of goodness of fit indices. A problem with these indices is that they pertain to the entire model, reflecting simultaneously the degree of fit for all levels in the model. Consequently, in cases that lack model fit, it is unclear which level model is misspecified.…

A new index of item discrimination power (IDP), dimension-corrected Somers' D (D2) is proposed. Somers' D is one of the superior alternatives for item-total- (Rit) and item-rest correlation (Rir) in reflecting the real IDP with items with scales 0/1 and 0/1/2, that is, up to three categories. D also reaches the extreme value +1 and -1 correctly…

There is growing interest in how various technical tools can be used to leverage the instructional process for both teaching and learning. Digital badges are a visual representation of learning and skills. Digital badges have been used as a way to reduce gaps in knowledge (Bowen and Thomas "Change," 46(1), 21-25, 2014; Guskey…

Classroom assessment techniques (CATs) provide instructors with the opportunity to get feedback about what students are learning, where they need help, and provide instructors with an important tool to tailor course design and student learning.

Researchers have documented the impact of rater effects, or raters' tendencies to give different ratings than would be expected given examinee achievement levels, in performance assessments. However, the degree to which rater effects influence person fit, or the reasonableness of test-takers' achievement estimates given their response patterns,…

Today, talking about educational planning generates a certain vital importance for the achievement of the goals and objectives previously established, as well as the definition of the steps and means necessary to carry out this process. However, we cannot talk about planning without addressing the assessment process as an essential element to…

In this commentary, the authors suggest that a paramount job for adolescent literacy assessment is to create more equitable outcomes for all students. The authors propose that the use of learning scales and micro-progressions fills a void and demonstrate how their use can provide better information to teachers and yield information that can…

Reality TV -- or certain design-oriented TV shows -- may be better known for their focus on competition, but what we actually see when we look more closely are models of collaboration and assessment that can illuminate important principles of classroom learning. Erin Furtak reflects on the ways that three of these shows -- The Great British Baking…

Advocacy outcomes are not self-evident. Identifying advocacy outcomes is extremely difficult because they are often intangible, arising from (personal) interactions, and they are not always traceable. This challenges conventional evaluation methods, which is recognized in the advocacy evaluation literature. However, current evaluation methods…

Drawing on an actor-network articulation of evaluation theory, this article examines the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's transition from a punitive teacher evaluation model to a promising new development and support model, which focuses on teacher growth and environmental adjustments. Supported by dozens of interviews and observations…

Goal attainment scaling (GAS) is an internationally recognized measure that is widely used in educational, counseling, and clinical settings to identify and evaluate relevant goals for an individual. The GAS is an unusual measure because its content, which consists of goals, is formed by the respondent and/or users in the process of completing the…