How portfolio-based conclusions about student learning might be used to communicate with audiences outside the classroom is explored. Procedures and criteria for investigating validity in portfolio use are discussed. Ten portfolios from an eighth grade language arts class are used as an example. (SLD)

Current national efforts to expand the role of educational assessment and change the nature of assessments are discussed. Rationales for expectations that a new national examination would spur educational reform are analyzed; and the challenges of performance-based assessment, particularly in its validation, are examined. (Author/SLD)

The development of a hypothetical testing program designed to provide optimum information about student achievement is chronicled. Computer adaptive testing and performance testing are postulated as part of the program. What optimum information really means is discussed. Optimum is only optimal when theory and application are balanced. (SLD)

Explores the potential of portfolios for science education by examining issues related to purpose, structure, and authenticity. Illustrates portfolio applications in student assessment, prospective science teacher education programs, and the assessment of practicing science teachers. (MDH)

Conceptual differences between two popular alternative assessment methods must be clearly differentiated. Portfolios reflect individual development, whereas performance-based assessments reflect curriculum mastery. In combination, these methods provide a complete picture of the student as a learner and constitute a rigorous alternative to…

Argues that institutional effectiveness is a multidimensional construct that varies according to the perspective of the stakeholder. Identifies core effectiveness indicators derived from a survey given to a wide range of college staff in three key areas: student outcomes, institutional processes, and fiscal and human resources. Contains four data…

Describes how education and training providers can use organizational assessments to pinpoint a company's performance problems and deliver training services to help solve them. Assessments also help instructors understand the business context in which their company customers are operating, and to learn and use that business' particular "language."…

Describes seven defining characteristics of "authentic" assessment and how they have been operationalized in an interactive multimedia learning environment in preservice teacher education. A study showed students responded favorably to the elements of authentic assessment and had a good understanding of the software's content; this was…

As an alternative form of mathematics assessment for use with limited-English-proficient students, 14 mathematics tasks using manipulatives were administered to 45 Hispanic students in grades 1-3 and readministered 2-3 weeks later. Test reliability and validity, task difficulty, and the relationship among test subscales across grades were…

Both traditional instruction and student evaluation have become more a measure of recognition and recall ability than a genuine understanding of concepts. To move schools toward a greater sensitivity in cognitive processing, new views of time, curriculum, learning, and teachers' roles must be adopted. This will require major changes, including a…

Examines trends related to media and technology that are affecting formal education and corporate training/development. Discusses incorporation of audiovisual, computer-based, and telecommunications-based media into mainstream instruction; application of advanced interactive technologies; acceptance/support of educational technology; the home as…

The articles of this special issue focus on problems and deficiencies in the evaluation of school superintendents. They explore ways to improve superintendent evaluation, drawing on the literature, political realities, educational philosophy, and the theory and practice considered essential for good evaluation. (SLD)

An alternative high school teacher examined whether her students could be motivated to achieve higher performance levels, testing a theory that performance would improve if students were asked to meet detailed standards rather than be rewarded for class attendance and assignment completion. The experiment had mixed results. (Author/SM)

In a cooperative research program, classroom teachers and university researchers developed and implemented a contextualized performance-based assessment in mathematics. The assessments were intended to model what students may do in the course of daily activity and designed to assess problem solving, and conceptual and procedural understanding.…

Describes how to design a Web portfolio system that teachers can use in learning assessment. Evaluation of the Web portfolio system by students indicates that the applied technologies help students control their learning processes through developing portfolios. Students also believe Web portfolios serve as an effective communication channel and…