Argues that grading and evaluation need not be as pervasive as they seem. Explores ways teachers can step outside grading: nongraded writing assignments, portfolios, and grading contracts. Explores how it is possible to go further and step outside the mentality of evaluation by using certain descriptive and analytic responses to student writing.…

Addresses issues in the inclusion of students with disabilities in educational assessments. Distinguishes between accountability and assessment and describes a framework of educational accountability with domains, indicators, and sources of information. Also considered are alternative assessments and accommodations and public reporting on the…

Analyzes two students' responses to a self-diagnostic writing prompt. Finds that the essays are effective in allowing the reader to perform an accurate "diagnosis" and in allowing students the opportunity to articulate their own interests and concerns about their writing. (RS)

Describes an alternative assessment approach to measure the knowledge and skills of students at the end of a hands-on, process-, and concept-oriented science program. Four segments of the evaluation are: general knowledge, laboratory skills, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and teacher-specific assessments. Emphasizes retention of…

Investigates the possible link between a classroom teacher's implementation of alternative literacy assessment and her classroom instruction. Illuminates the role that alternative literacy assessments can play in the classroom in terms of reflecting literacy task performance, presenting information on students' strengths and weaknesses, and…

Describes the history, goals, and applications of the teaching portfolio as an alternative teaching assessment. (EV)

Compares rationale, strengths, and weaknesses of four assessment methods used in English-as-a-Second-Language: standardized, student centered, curriculum based, and performance based. Provides a framework for developing alternative assessments that respond to audience needs, allow learner participation, and capture the richness of literacy…

Explains how to use posters as an alternative assessment method in place of traditional written exams in an integrated chemistry, physics, and mathematics course. Investigates the effectiveness of poster exams on student learning. (YDS)

This article describes a SAS macro to assess model fit of structural equation models by employing a test of the model-implied vanishing tetrads. Use of this test has been limited in the past, in part due to the lack of software that fully automates the test in a user-friendly way. The current SAS macro provides a straightforward method for…

The No Child Left Behind Act specifies schools' responsibilities for including special education students in their overall assessment programs. These students must be assessed under a standardized test that is used for all students within a district--a test that is designed to show whether a student is meeting that state's standards for learning.…

Teachers face at least two dilemmas in our work to meet the academic needs of our students. The first dilemma is how to prepare our students to pass state-mandated tests without driving them away, given that many already see school as a place where they fail. The traditional "drill and practice" approach to remediation for low-performing…

Norway has a long tradition of using external examiners during examinations and grading. However, a recently passed higher education reform requires a different use for external examiners. The Quality Reform of Higher Education calls for more learning-oriented assessment methods, allowing more feedback for students during the course of their…

The author has always been weary of multiple-choice tests. When she started her teaching career, she was determined to find alternatives to multiple-choice tests. She read as much as she could on alternative assessment. Her interest in developing alternative methods of assessment was further spurred by her teaching mentor, who introduced her to a…

Three experiments investigated the effects of rime consistency on reading and spelling among developing readers ranging in age from 7 to 11 years. Experiment 1 found that children read words with inconsistent feedforward mappings between orthography and phonology (O [right arrow] P) less accurately than consistent words. OP consistency interacted…

The present study examined the comparability of 4 alternate forms of the Digit Symbol Substitution test and the Symbol Digit Modalities (written) test, including the original versions. Male contact-sport athletes (N=112) were assessed on 1 of the 4 forms of each test. Reasonable alternate form comparability was demonstrated through establishing…