This book is the culmination of extensive discussion among a panel of economists led by Eric A. Hanushek. The panel argues that improvement of schools depends more on better uses of resources than on the provision of added funds. The book outlines a plan to improve school performance without increasing expenditures. Specifically, it calls for more…

The first objective of a two-phase project was to clarify the policy rationale and intervention model for state-financed workplace-based retraining programs in terms of their two objectives of retaining jobs and preventing unemployment. The second objective was to develop: (1) an evaluation system for these programs that was composed of business…

In 1991, a study was conducted of Miami-Dade Community College students' classroom experiences. The process involved randomly selecting one section for each full-time faculty member and administering the surveys prior to the final course withdrawal date. Surveys were returned from 640 sections (84% of those initially selected), and responses were…

Drawing tests are often used to provide confirmatory and supporting evidence of intelligence or intellectual functioning. The relationship between scores on these types of instruments and academic achievement was studied among graduate students seeking degrees in education. The sample consisted of 125 graduate students in education (93 women and…

Whether questions embedded in expository text could improve the correspondence between adult readers' subjective assessments of test readiness and their objective test performance (prediction calibration) was studied with 168 undergraduates. In order to minimize the confounding effects of prior knowledge, the subjects were asked to read a text…

The Advisory Committee on Federal Workforce Quality Assessment was chartered to examine various work force quality assessment efforts in the federal government and provide advice on their adequacy and suggestions on their improvement or expansion. Objective data in recent research suggested that a universal decline in work force quality might not…

This Summary Guide to the third Annual Report of the National Education Goals Panel continues the commitment of the Panel to let the American people know the results being achieved in education. Facts about performance are presented, with tangible guidance about what each citizen can do to make the Goals a reality. The National Education Goals…

An analysis was made of the methods being used to assess the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) of 1990. Although no single assessment plan has been developed, various activities are aimed at studying both the implementation and the impact of the law. Four assessment efforts are described as conducted by the following groups: (1) the Office of…

Describing the various forms evaluation can take, this book delineates problems in evaluating writing faculty and sets the stage for reconsidering the entire process to produce a fair, equitable, and appropriate system. The book discusses evaluation through real-life examples: evaluation of writing faculty by literature faculty, student…

It is important to develop instructional sequences that build on students' current understandings and support shifts in their current ways of thinking. As part of the pilot work for a project on mathematics teaching, classroom performance assessments were conducted to obtain baseline data on students' current statistical understandings. The…

This study examined the effects of self-evaluation on student performance in mathematics. Grade 5 and 6 students (N=300) were randomly assigned in intact classes to treatment and control groups. In both conditions a 2-week cooperative learning unit on probability was implemented. In the treatment condition, students received training in…

This paper examines whether graduate record examination (GRE) scores are a legitimate assessment tool for measuring institutional accountability and effectiveness that is, how well its graduates will do after having attended the institution for four or more years. Following a discussion of the various pros and cons of using the GRE as an…

This paper examines the role played by an office of institutional research in developing a new student evaluation of teaching protocol. At Southeastern Louisiana University, a comprehensive 4-year public institution, the administration appointed a campus-wide committee to study the student evaluations of teaching and to make recommendations for…

This guide is designed to help teachers create test items that measure a variety of higher level thinking abilities. Part One, "Foundations for Item Writing," provides a context for item writing. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the book and defines basic concepts, principles, and terminology. Chapter 2 integrates research literature to…

This book explores ways to design courses and units to emphasize understanding and uncoverage rather than coverage, offering practical solutions for teacher-designers. It focuses on a different use for performance assessment, concluding that performance is the key to assessing understanding. The book analyzes the logic of backward design as an…