Focusing on innovative forms of assessment in the United Kingdom, this article describes assessment strategies in mathematics, "oracy," science, and foreign languages. These strategies include not only problems in which students select a correct answer, but also practical problems in which students supply answers to open ended tasks.…

A response, by Carlson, to the National Commission on Excellence in Education's report proposes establishment of an independent agency. This entity, in conjunction with the National Assessment of Educational Progress, would define common content domains, develop calibrated normed item banks, and develop content referenced reporting systems. (DWH)

Describes a study conducted at DeKalb Community College to compare placement levels established by the college's in-house Reading, English and Mathematics (REM) Test with Scholastic Aptitude Test scores. Discusses REM placement levels and their course alignments, internal challenges to the placement levels, and correlation study findings. (DMM)

Details how England is reworking its secondary school examination system, replacing the GCE and the CSE with one examination system. (CRH)

Utah's Alternate Assessment (UAA) is one of six components of the Utah Performance Assessment System for Students (U-PASS). UAA is designed to assess the achievement of students in grades 1 through 12 with significant cognitive disabilities. It was developed to fulfill two main purposes: (1) To address federal legislative mandates that all…

For this report, CEEP staff collected information on testing timelines, subjects, grade configurations, names, and SEA testing contacts. As with the 2003 report, discussion in this report is limited to the testing components of state assessment programs, such as Indiana's ISTEP+ program, used for compliance purposes with state and federal…

The Council of Chief State School Officers worked with state departments of education to compile this summary document on the current status of state education accountability and state education indicator reports. The summary is designed to provide state-by-state information (all 50 states, the Department of Defense Dependants Schools, the Virgin…

Nearly every state is engaged in standards-based reform, as seen by the development of statewide academic goals and guidelines in core subjects and the subsequent new state tests that will measure students' progress toward achieving these goals. A Study Group on Statewide Assessment Systems formed by the National Association of State Boards of…

Evaluation studies on the long-term achievement of early intervention program participants have often found that initial student achievement gains for many students dissipate in subsequent years. This study offers some possible explanations for achievement "fadeout" and examines this phenomenon in relation to Exceptional Student…

This document contains released reading comprehension passages, test items, and writing prompts from the Colorado Student Assessment Program for 2001. The sample questions and prompts are included without answers or examples of student responses. Test materials are included for: (1) Grade 4 Reading and Writing; (2) Grade 4 Lectura y Escritura…

The National Assessment Governing Board has recognized the need to study associated policy and technical issues to ensure that the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is ready to do the best job possible if called on to confirm the results of state achievement testing under the No Child Left Behind Act. This report describes the…

The use of PLATO (registered) elementary school software in Fairview Elementary School, Dayton, Ohio, was studied. PLATO software had been used in Title I mathematics classes for the last 3 years. The Title I teacher used PLATO software as an integral part of her class instructional strategy. Mathematics achievement data were analyzed for 88 Title…

A survey of school districts across the state of Illinois in 1999 focused on three dimensions of local assessment practices: (1) why districts give tests; (2) the tests they give; and (3) what they do with test results. Telephone interviews were conducted with district assessment coordinators or superintendents from 75 school districts, including…

This report from the WisKids Count project, instead of being the usual annual data book about an array of issues affecting children, is a collection of essays that take a critical look at the practice of standardized testing and the status of testing in Wisconsin. In the 2002-2001 school year, more than 250,000 Wisconsin children in public schools…

In 1994 the State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards of the Council of Chief State School Officers began a study to examine the generalizability of performance-based assessments (PBAs) for state-mandated assessment programs. The intent was to examine the major sources of error associated with PBAs and the generalizability and…