This report describes the value-added models used as part of teacher evaluation systems in the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) and in eligible DC charter schools participating in "Race to the Top." The authors estimated: (1) teacher effectiveness in DCPS and eligible DC charter schools during the 2011-2012 school year; and (2)…

Psychometric practice does not always converge with the advances of psychometric theory. In order to investigate this gap, the authors focus on the 10 most used psychological tests in Europe, as identified by recent surveys. The article analyzes test manuals published in 6 different European countries for these 10 most used tests. A total of 32…

During school year (SY) 2012-2013, the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) continued its efforts to improve the validity and reliability of data reporting. BIE data collections are dependent on school level entry (self-reporting) into the Native American Student Information System (NASIS) or into the BIE's Academic Report (formerly the BIEs…

As states and communities invest in initiatives to improve the quality of early care and education, the measurement of quality is becoming more widespread and the importance of measuring quality well is gaining increasing attention. Within the broad context of interest in improving quality, this report seeks to differentiate among a number of…

Measures assessing the quality of children's environments and interactions in nonparental care settings were developed originally for use in child care research and as self-assessment tools for practitioners. Within the last decade, these measurement tools have moved into the public policy arena, where they are now used to make programmatic…

To many people, standardized testing means multiple-choice testing. However, some tests contain questions that require the test taker to produce the answer, rather than simply choosing it from a list. The required response can be as simple as the writing of a single word as complex as the design of a laboratory experiment to test a scientific…

Quality has clear meanings when associated with specific phenomena. The relative nature of quality in commercial contexts, specifically in relation to manufactured goods, has been studied. In service industries there is no satisfactory indicator of quality. The Likert-scale questionnaire does not allow the researcher to distinguish between…

In "Beyond Test Scores: Leading Indicators for Education," Foley and colleagues (2008) define "leading indicators" as those that "provide early signals of progress toward academic achievement" (p. 1) and stress that educators "need leading indicators to help them see the direction their efforts are going in and to take corrective action as soon as…

Effective principals are those who boost academic achievement for all students, increase the effectiveness of their teaching staffs, and consistently take leadership actions shown to improve outcomes for students. Therefore principal evaluation systems should place 70% of their weight on the ability of principals to increase student achievement…

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) funds schools located on 63 reservations in 23 states across the nation. Of the 183 schools, 59 are Bureau operated and 124 are tribally controlled. One-hundred and sixteen schools provide instructional programs, 55 provide instructional as well as boarding services and 12 peripheral dormitories provide only…

During SY 2011-2012, the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) continued their efforts to improve the validity and reliability of data reporting. BIE data collections are dependent on school level entry (self-reporting) into the Native American Student Information System (NASIS) or into the BIE's Annual Report from the schools. In addition, data…

This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of the District of Columbia's annual Race to the Top implementation. The Year 4 report for Phase 2 grantees highlights successes and accomplishments, identifies challenges, and provides lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2013 through September 2014. Given that…

This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Georgia's annual Race to the Top implementation. The Year 4 report for Phase 2 grantees highlights successes and accomplishments, identifies challenges, and provides lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2013 through September 2014. To support implementation…

This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Ohio's annual Race to the Top implementation. The Year 4 report for Phase 2 grantees highlights successes and accomplishments, identifies challenges, and provides lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2013 through September 2014. Given that Delaware and…

This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Hawaii's Year 4 Race to the Top implementation. Hawaii made tremendous progress over the course of the grant period in implementing its Strategic Plan and six priority strategies and creating an aligned organization focused on increasing student outcomes. Among some of the other…