This report presents findings from two investigations of the use of classroom artifacts to measure the presence of reform-oriented teaching practices in middle-school science classes. It complements previous research on the use of artifacts to describe reform-oriented teaching practices in mathematics. In both studies, ratings based on collections…

The constructs used to evaluate research quality--valid, objective, reliable, generalizable, randomized, accurate, authentic--are not value-free. They all require human judgment, which is affected inevitably by cultural norms and values. In the case of research involving American Indians and Alaska Natives, assessments of research quality must be…

This essay explains the relevance of critique in rural education to novels about rural places. The most important quoted passage in the essay is from the noted physicist Richard Feynman: "Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts." Novelist-physicist C. P. Snow, historian Henry Adams, and poet and student-of-mathematics Kelly Cherry also…

In this study, the reliability of the American College Testing (ACT) Program's "Survey of Academic Advising" (SAA) was examined using both univariate and multivariate generalizability theory approaches. The primary purpose of the study was to compare the results of three generalizability theory models (a random univariate model, a mixed…

In England and Wales, a National Curriculum initiated in 1988 was designed to ensure that all schools provided a curriculum which represented different areas of knowledge. The past 20 years has increasingly seen more emphasis on the link between the financial amounts spent on education and subsequent return on this money. The impact of the…

An essay test is now an integral part of the computer based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL-CBT). This paper provides a brief overview of the current TOEFL-CBT essay test, describes the operational procedures for essay scoring, including the Online Scoring Network (OSN) of the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and discusses major…

This paper provides evidence for the reliability and validity of the Preventive Coping Resources Inventory (PCRI) instrument designed to measure coping resources useful for prevention based on previous research. It specifically looks at the construct validity of the PCRI; the convergent and discriminate validity of the PCRI with related…

Analysis of secondary data was used as a way to inform the researcher about the trends in her assessment practices over a 4-year period. This was an important initial step in an effort to develop and integrate high-quality classroom assessment tasks and make sense of assessment information for decision making. Scores from 26 groups of graduate and…

This study investigated whether raters in two different training groups would demonstrate halo error when each rater scored all five responses to five different mathematics performance-based items from each student. One group of 20 raters was trained by an experienced scoring director with item-specific scoring rubrics and the opportunity to…

The purpose of this document is to provide practical guidance and support for the design, development, and implementation of large-scale assessment systems that are grounded in research and best practice. Information is included about existing large-scale testing efforts, including national testing programs, state testing programs, and…

The research literature suggests that the mental health professionals serving lesbians, gay men, and bisexual people may not be prepared to adequately address the unique needs of the population. There is a need to study the factors that influence the degree to which therapists attitudes and behaviors are affirmative toward their gay, lesbian, and…

This study examined the use of two locus of control instruments for teachers in the Caribbean: the Adult Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Locus of Control (LOC) Scale (T. Wolf, M. Sklov, M. Hunter, and G. Berenson, 1982) and the Medway and Rose Teachers' LOC Scale (F. Medway and J. Rose, 1981). Participants were 183 teachers from 10 high…

This paper examines the use of portfolio evaluation in accrediting higher education teachers in the United Kingdom. It explains portfolios as an approach to authentic assessment and discusses the issue of reliability in portfolio assessment when teacher accreditation depends on it. Researchers investigated one course, collecting data on 53…

The study's specific goals were to adapt conventional flow methodology to define and operationalize young children's cognitive strategies exhibited during their participation in adult-guided musical activities; and develop a valid and functional method of assessing young children's musical cognition "in situ" through systematic and…

Although computer-based testing is becoming popular, many of these tests are limited to the use of selected-response item formats due to the difficulty in mechanically scoring constructed-response items. This limitation is unfortunate because many constructs, such as writing proficiency, can be measured more directly using items that require…