Assessment has become one of the key issues in primary education over the past 10 years. This edited volume of essays brings together perspectives from all the significant participants involved in assessment in the primary school: teachers, headteachers, LEA advisors, inspectors, pupils, academics and researchers. The contributions illustrate effective assessment, and examine how it is, and can be, achieved. It will be of interest to school assessment co-ordinators, deputies and heads following NPQH courses, and lecturers on IE courses.

Score reporting research is no longer limited to the psychometric properties of scores and subscores. Today, it encompasses design and evaluation for particular audiences, appropriate use of assessment outcomes, the utility and cognitive affordances of graphical representations, interactive report systems, and more. By studying how audiences understand the intended messages conveyed by score reports, researchers and industry professionals can develop more effective mechanisms for interpreting and using assessment data. Score Reporting Research and Applications brings together experts who design and evaluate score reports in both K-12 and higher education contexts and who conduct foundational research in related areas. The first section covers foundational validity issues in the use and interpretation of test scores; design principles drawn from related areas including cognitive science, human-computer interaction, and data visualization; and research on presenting specific types of assessment information to various audiences. The second section presents real-world applications of score report design and evaluation and of the presentation of assessment information. Across ten chapters, this volume offers a comprehensive overview of new techniques and possibilities in score reporting. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

This book will provide higher education teachers with an overview of the many approaches to setting, marking and reviewing coursework, assignments, tests and examinations used in programmes for certificates, diplomas, first degrees or higher degrees. It discusses the strong influence that assessment has on the way students approach their learning tasks. The book looks at how the subject has been written about - rather than how to do it - and includes references to Dearing. The book is truly international in focus, and the authors hve experience of HE institutions in Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, England, Canada, Hong Kong, USA and Thailand

This volume explores the recent national trend toward adoption of performance assessments. Embraced at all levels of educational decision-making--state, district, school, and teacher--the shapes these assessments take and the affects they have at the classroom level can differ significantly from one setting to another. Based on case studies of 16 schools, this study describes what performance assessments actually look like--the types of tasks they pose to children, the scoring methods used, the purposes to which they are put, and how they fit in with other components of assessment systems. It also shows how they differ when they are introduced by state departments of education, districts, and schools themselves. Factors that affect policymakers' and educators' abilities to successfully design and introduce performance assessments are also explored. These include the purposeful coordination of performance assessment with related education reforms, such as the adoption of content and student performance standards, and the professional development for teachers necessary to the successful implementation of performance assessments. Barriers to adoption, most notably the challenges of developing a technically sound performance assessment, are discussed as well. Crucial to teachers' ability to appropriate performance assessments for use in their own classrooms is their invovlement in designing and implementing them. Although it would be impossible for a state or school district to involve all teachers in the design of a performance assessment, they can take steps to foster teachers' understanding of the purposes and methods of the assessment, thereby supporting their ability to use similar methods in their daily teaching. Toward that end, this book describes the experiences of teachers and students with a range of assessments that all fall under the umbrella of performance assessment. In addition, it provides: *rich illustrations of those experiences across a diverse group of schools; *descriptions of the trade-offs inherent in developing a student assessment system; *demonstrations of why no single assessment can be "all things to all people;" and *valuable insights for teachers, administrators, policymakers, and researchers who want to improve their understanding of how performance assessments work in practice and how they may best serve to improve teaching and learning.

"Assessment in Higher Education" brings together in one place most of the major issues confronting higher education in the 1990s. These include enhancing student access, development, and success in higher education; transforming admissions testing to meet expanding educational needs; resolving the politics of accountability by assessing quality outcomes of higher education; assuring fair assessment responsive to human diversity; and facing the technological future of higher education. An integrative thread that weaves through all of these issues is the concept of equity, especially as it bears on social justice in education and on fairness in assessment. Another integrative thread is the role of computer and multimedia technology not only in improving the efficiency and power of all the functions of higher education assessment, but also in revolutionizing the delivery of higher education itself.

All schools are required, at present, to choose and implement an accredited scheme for Baseline Assessment, a legal requirement for all children as they enter schooling from five years of age. This book examines the purposes of Baseline Assessment and provides practical guidance on the approaches available and the nature of recommended schemes. It should be of interest to early years and primary teachers, students and lecturers as well as educational psychologists, administrators and inspectors with responsibility for early years and primary National Curriculum assessment.

This title outlines a set of principles and analytical methods that can be adapted to different assessment scenarios designed to enable readers to construct their own effective methods for assessment. Guidelines for design and methods of planning, choosing and implementation are provided.

Social and personal development of pupils is an area of growing interest. However, while much has been done in relation to provision for development, there is little available on how teachers might assess the development of pupils, be it spiritual, moral, social or cultural. The contributors also examine how we might accredit such development. With provision for development on the national agenda, this title looks at the repercussions and examines the difficult issues raised by assessment and accreditation - and the problems with which teachers will inevitably be faced.

Social and personal development of pupils is an area of growing interest. However, while much has been done in relation to provision for development, there is little available on how teachers might assess the development of pupils, be it spiritual, moral, social or cultural. The contributors also examine how we might accredit such development. With provision for development on the national agenda, this title looks at the repercussions and examines the difficult issues raised by assessment and accreditation - and the problems with which teachers will inevitably be faced.

Intended as a reference for all those teaching and working with children and adults with severe and profound learning difficulties, this work addresses the theoretical aspects of the development of communication up to and including the beginnings of speech in normally developing children, and those with severe learning difficulties. It also includes an approach to practical assessment.

As student learning objectives become an increasingly prominent approach to setting goals and growth measures in schools, teachers' competence in formative assessment is essential. Using Formative Assessment to Support Student Learning Objectives introduces current and future educators to SLOs as tools for shaping career- and college-ready students. Written in concise and straightforward language, and replete with step-by-step exercises, real-life examples, and illustrative charts, this useful guide provides pre- and in-service educators with the theoretical background and practical tools needed to implement the latest SLO research in their classrooms.

There is increasingly strong evidence that K-12 learners who assess each other's work and then engage in related reflections, discussions, and negotiations benefit mutually from the process. In this practical volume, Keith J. Topping provides suggestions for implementing effective peer assessment across many classroom contexts and subjects. Using Peer Assessment to Inspire Reflection and Learning offers pre- and in-service teachers a variety of teaching strategies to best fit their particular students and school environments along with straightforward tools to evaluate peer assessment's impact on their classrooms.

An issue in the current push for reform in mathematics education is the call to address statistics at the precollege level. This volume represents the emerging findings of an interdisciplinary collaboration among a group of mathematics educators, cognitive scientists, teachers, and statisticians to construct an understanding of how to introduce statistics education and assessment for students in elementary and secondary schools. A premise shared by the contributors to this volume is that when students are introduced to statistics at the K-12 level and provided with opportunities to "do" statistics that are related to actual life situations, they will be better prepared for decision making in the real world.
The interdisciplinary nature of the group of researchers stimulated a lively interchange of ideas for enhancing the learning, teaching, and assessment of statistical understanding, which is reflected in this volume. Mathematics educators contribute their insights into how teachers teach mathematical ideas and heighten our awareness of the ecological needs of the current mathematics classroom. Cognitive scientists share their understanding of developmental differences in learning and present theoretical perspectives that contribute to the design of effective learning environments. Classroom teachers share their ideas about classroom activities and assessment of student learning, as well as their concerns for in-service training and workshops to help teachers acquire skills in this new content area. Statisticians offer their understanding of what is feasible to teach in the early grades, and what their view is of statistical literacy.
The book is organized around four interdependent themes: content, teaching, learning, and assessment. By focusing their respective chapters on particular themes, the authors intend to cultivate a better understanding of how each relates to improvements in statistics education. This is the first book to:
* address statistics learning in grades K-12,
* address issues of statistical curriculum content in grades K-12,
* address issues of assessment of statistics learning in grades K-12,
* bring issues of technology instruction and assessment in statistics education in grades K-12, and
* look at teacher education for statistics instruction in grades K-12.
This is a must-read book for both practitioners and researchers involved in K-12 mathematics education.

An issue in the current push for reform in mathematics education is the call to address statistics at the precollege level. This volume represents the emerging findings of an interdisciplinary collaboration among a group of mathematics educators, cognitive scientists, teachers, and statisticians to construct an understanding of how to introduce statistics education and assessment for students in elementary and secondary schools. A premise shared by the contributors to this volume is that when students are introduced to statistics at the K-12 level and provided with opportunities to "do" statistics that are related to actual life situations, they will be better prepared for decision making in the real world.
The interdisciplinary nature of the group of researchers stimulated a lively interchange of ideas for enhancing the learning, teaching, and assessment of statistical understanding, which is reflected in this volume. Mathematics educators contribute their insights into how teachers teach mathematical ideas and heighten our awareness of the ecological needs of the current mathematics classroom. Cognitive scientists share their understanding of developmental differences in learning and present theoretical perspectives that contribute to the design of effective learning environments. Classroom teachers share their ideas about classroom activities and assessment of student learning, as well as their concerns for in-service training and workshops to help teachers acquire skills in this new content area. Statisticians offer their understanding of what is feasible to teach in the early grades, and what their view is of statistical literacy.
The book is organized around four interdependent themes: content, teaching, learning, and assessment. By focusing their respective chapters on particular themes, the authors intend to cultivate a better understanding of how each relates to improvements in statistics education. This is the first book to:
* address statistics learning in grades K-12,
* address issues of statistical curriculum content in grades K-12,
* address issues of assessment of statistics learning in grades K-12,
* bring issues of technology instruction and assessment in statistics education in grades K-12, and
* look at teacher education for statistics instruction in grades K-12.
This is a must-read book for both practitioners and researchers involved in K-12 mathematics education.

This second book focuses directly on the classroom, on the challenges individual teachers face in the classroom-based assessment, and how these challenges have been and are being met in a range of international contexts.

This special issue is based on a workshop which began with a description and examination of the current National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) standard-setting model, then looked to standard-setting applications outside of education. These applications included those that focus on human performance and the adequacy of human performance; in these contexts, raters were asked to focus on the knowledge and skills that underlie competent performance. Researchers also examined applications that focus on the impact of environmental agents on life and the ecology; in these cases, raters began with the knowledge that more (or less) of a substance is better and, as for NAEP, the judgment task was to determine "how good is good enough." They wished to examine parallels in the objectives, empirical grounding, judgmental requirements, and policy tensions for standard setting in NAEP and in other domains. These papers were commissioned to examine the current state of affairs and residual issues with respect to achievement-level setting in NAEP and to help determine whether the models and methods used in other disciplines have useful application to education. It is important to note that the papers represent the authors' views, not necessarily those of the committee or National Research Council. This issue and the workshop discussion point out a number of analogies between the objectives, requisite data, judgment requirements and policy issues for NAEP and other applications. The editors hope that this issue and wide distribution of these papers will prompt others to join in this interesting analysis and debate.

Full Contributors:
Donna E. Alvermann, University of Georgia, USA, Mary Bailey, University of Nottingham, UK, Paul Brock, NSW Department of Training and Education, Australia, Greg Brooks, National Foundation for Educational Research, UK, Jay Campbell, Education Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey, USA, Michelle Commeyras, University of Georgia, USA, Lizanne DeStefano University of Illinois, USA, Alan Dewar, Dukeries Community College, Nottinghamshire, UK, Beverly Falk Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, USA, Georgia Ernest Garcia, University of Illinois, USA, Colin Harrison University of Nottingham, UK, Louise Hayward St Andrew's College, Glasgow, UK, Jim Hoffman, University of Texas, USA, Sue Horner, Schools Curriculum and Assessment Authority, UK, P. David Pearson, Michigan State University, USA, Terry Salinger, International Reading Association, USA, Ernie Spencer, Scottish Office Education and Industry Department, UK, Denis Vincent, University of East London, UK

This volume provides in-depth coverage of a key piece of today's human resource selection technology--the viability of alternatives to paper and pencil multiple-choice selection tests. Each chapter of this edited volume presents an intensive examination of a key "alternative to multiple-choice testing." The content of the book's chapters ranges from reviews of issues associated with, and evidence available for, the use of particular selection text alternatives (computerized testing, performance assessments) to empirical investigation of other alternatives (biodata, creative skills); from examination of standards for choosing among selection tests to practitioners' and test takers' perspectives. This book is important for researchers and practitioners in the human resource selection field who have wanted a resource that provides a comprehensive examination of multiple-choice selection testing and its alternatives.

Owing to daily work pressures and concerns, many teachers have little opportunity for considering and furthering their understanding of different issues surrounding assessment. Written in a user-friendly, jargon-free style, this text provides the reader with points of growth or change in the field of assessment. Each chapter in the text ends with a section on questions/exercises and further reading.

This text puts forward the argument that higher education must develop better and more consistent practices with regards to the evaluation of training and development. Most evaluations are valueless unless they start by clarifying the puropse they are intended to serve, and this usually means clarifying whose puropses are being served. This text provides a guide to best practices and uses examples and case studies from both the UK and abroad to show the benefits that can be gained from using evaluation effectively.

Educational assessment, at one time a relatively uncontroversial subject, is now riven by a diversity of views. The most crucial division is between those who continue to believe in the effectiveness of objective assessment techniques and those who favour alternative methods. This book presents an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses and rationales for both.

Educational assessment, at one time a relatively uncontroversial subject, is now riven by a diversity of views. The most crucial division is between those who continue to believe in the effectiveness of objective assessment techniques and those who favour alternative methods. This book presents an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses and rationales for both.

With the Common Core poised to markedly amplify the accountability stakes in public education, the pressure to post steep outcomes gains has never been fiercer. Unsurprisingly, flashy and expensive school improvement initiatives that promise quick fix solutions have become pervasively en vogue across the K-12 landscape. As Justin A. Collins compellingly demonstrates in Burning Cash, these flashy acronym reform plans provide for abundantly vivid theatre, but offer no muscle for the heavy lifting required to transform instructional quality. Collins pens a forceful case that despite the dizzying change swirling around the classroom walls, student engagement remains a fixture of a paramount importance. Taking a decided detour from the student engagement literature to date, Burning Cash spells out an entirely fresh means of numerically charting student engagement levels across all classrooms over time. Were the status quo to instead persist, a high school diploma will remain the end of the educational line for millions of schoolchildren. By reliably quantifying the nature of student engagement at the classroom level, teachers and administrators are supplied a powerfully telling barometer by which to gauge educational quality. Also left at educational leaders' disposal are data-informed guideposts that illuminate the improvement work left to be done. As Los Angeles Schools' John Deasy champions in the book's foreword, when student higher-order thinking balloons and disengagement is eradicated, test score spikes are extreme and sustained, no matter the school district's zip code. And that means the promise of the American dream is enlivened without additionally burdening deficit-riddled budgets.

In a time of declining resources in institutions of higher education, we grapple with how priorities are to be set for the limited resources available. Most vulnerable are those students labeled underprepared by colleges and universities. Should we argue that the limited resources available ought to be used to support these students through their undergraduate years? And, if we decide that we want to do that, what evidence of their potential for success can we provide that will justify the use of these resources? Through longitudinal research that follows students who have been so labeled over all their college years, we can begin to find answers to these questions.
"Time to Know Them" is the first book that follows the experiences of a group of students over their entire academic experience. No previous studies have brought together the factors incorporated in this study:
*examining writing and learning on a true longitudinal basis;
*studying a multicultural urban population;
*investigating the relationship between writing and learning by examining papers written over time for regularly assigned academic courses across a range of disciplines; and
*taking into consideration non-academic factors that influence academic performance such as race, gender, socio-economic status, and ideological orientation.
Through interviews twice a semester over six years, the collection of papers written for all courses, observations of instructional settings, and analysis of required institutional tests of writing, the author has been able to pull together a more complete picture of writing and intellectual development over the college years than has previously been available in any study. Students are seen to acquire the ability to handle more complex reasoning tasks as they find themselves in more challenging intellectual settings and where risk-taking and exploration of new ideas are valued. The integration of students' previous life experiences into their academic studies allows them to analyze, critique, modify, and apply their previously held world views to their new learning. These changes are seen to occur over time with instructional settings and support providing key roles in writing development. Personal factors in students' lives present difficulties that require persistence and dedication to overcome. Never before have the complexities of real individual lives as they affect academic performance been so clearly presented.

In a time of declining resources in institutions of higher education, we grapple with how priorities are to be set for the limited resources available. Most vulnerable are those students labeled underprepared by colleges and universities. Should we argue that the limited resources available ought to be used to support these students through their undergraduate years? And, if we decide that we want to do that, what evidence of their potential for success can we provide that will justify the use of these resources? Through longitudinal research that follows students who have been so labeled over all their college years, we can begin to find answers to these questions.
"Time to Know Them" is the first book that follows the experiences of a group of students over their entire academic experience. No previous studies have brought together the factors incorporated in this study:
*examining writing and learning on a true longitudinal basis;
*studying a multicultural urban population;
*investigating the relationship between writing and learning by examining papers written over time for regularly assigned academic courses across a range of disciplines; and
*taking into consideration non-academic factors that influence academic performance such as race, gender, socio-economic status, and ideological orientation.
Through interviews twice a semester over six years, the collection of papers written for all courses, observations of instructional settings, and analysis of required institutional tests of writing, the author has been able to pull together a more complete picture of writing and intellectual development over the college years than has previously been available in any study. Students are seen to acquire the ability to handle more complex reasoning tasks as they find themselves in more challenging intellectual settings and where risk-taking and exploration of new ideas are valued. The integration of students' previous life experiences into their academic studies allows them to analyze, critique, modify, and apply their previously held world views to their new learning. These changes are seen to occur over time with instructional settings and support providing key roles in writing development. Personal factors in students' lives present difficulties that require persistence and dedication to overcome. Never before have the complexities of real individual lives as they affect academic performance been so clearly presented.