The Oregon Legislature and Teacher Standards and Practices Commission has developed standards for future teachers requiring demonstration of the ability to plan, teach, and assess pupil learning in a classroom setting. The work sample consists of a series of related lessons drawn from the school curriculum where the preservice teachers are…

A statewide performance-based accreditation system began using a performance index in 1995-96 to indicate where school districts fall in the distribution of accreditation levels. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there was a significant gain in the performance index in the second year. The performance index was based on the…

This book is designed to help educators consider how assessment relates to instruction and recognize how assessment affects student learning. It intends to encourage teachers to establish a climate in which students can safely seek and use assessment information. A basic assumption is that learning occurs best in a positive setting, one that…

Intended for classroom teachers who have English Language Learners (ELLs--non-native speakers of English who are experiencing difficulty in learning academic content), this guidebook provides criteria to be included in the development of performance-based assessment tasks. It assists classroom teachers to develop assessments to: determine whether…

This is an age of backlash, as illustrated by many developments in the field of education. Backlash against performance assessment is very evident, but it must be remembered that backlash has its uses. It forces advocates to rethink, reformulate, and restate why they put so much faith in the program under attack. Events have pushed advocates to…

The purpose of the "Guide to Interpretation" is to assist Rhode Island educators in understanding the links between performance assessment and classroom instruction. This guide offers an overview of the Health Education Performance Assessment taken by all Rhode Island students in grades 5 and 9, an explanation of the scoring process, and…

This volume is a guide for assessing children with dual sensory or severe impairments between the ages of 6 and 15. It presents a functional-ecological assessment process that is individually determined, contextually based, and leads directly to intervention. It begins by discussing the benefits of this model over standardized assessment…

This book is intended to help parents understand more about the tests their children take in school. The pros and cons of different types of tests are explained, and the proper use of standardized tests is discussed. Each chapter contains a brief summary of the topic, with follow-up activities and a list of resources a parent could bring to the…

An action research project was conducted in a fourth-grade classroom (21 students) to determine whether collaboratively created rubrics and authentic assessment strategies such as simulations, portfolios, and models are valid, authentic, and equitable measurement tools that will raise a student's self-esteem through the assessment process. An…

Developed by classroom teachers during the development phase of Minnesota's Graduation Standards, this performance package is made up of locally designed assignments that, taken together, show whether a student has learned and can apply the knowledge and skills related to constructing and delivering speeches in the English language for a variety…

These two newsletters for 1997 highlight the following topics and issues. The July issue reports that community and technical colleges are moving to performance funding as a result of the 1997 Washington state legislature including a performance evaluation proviso for all public higher education institutions. Another article is featured on data…

A study was designed to assist elementary music teachers to create and/or improve methods of assessment for fifth-grade beginning band students. It was conducted from August to December 2002 and included 13 volunteer participants from a rapidly growing student population at an Illinois elementary school. As part of the research process, surveys,…

Changes in assessment policy have resulted in a proliferation of testing in Canadian schools. Advocates claim that more testing will result in greater accountability, but this book states that there is little evidence to support standardized testing from a pedagogical perspective. It examines the effects of standardized testing on educational…

As computers become an integral part of classrooms, educators need to determine if there are uses of computers that are supported by research. Recent research has examined uses of technology in the classroom for writing instruction, electronic literacy environment, and electronic portfolios. Results of these studies on writing instruction indicate…

This study investigated the opinions of college faculty and administrators regarding the purpose, control, and process of performance evaluation, hypothesizing that job orientations and expectations would influence their opinions--that administrators would favor an economic model emphasizing authoritative and quantitative measures; teachers would…