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April 1, 1998
Assessment
by Roger Gottlieb
How do we know the benefits of technology integration? How can we measure student
learning? What's important for students to know and be able to do? These are just a few
questions that emerge from technology's emergence in the classroom. Assessment is an
important issue. Quite a bit of work has been done concerning assessment and the sites listed
below include much of the information. Two sites are the benchmarks for Assessment -
CRESST and the ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation. You'll find links for
these two sites and more below. Hopefully you'll find enough assessment resources so any
question on assessment can be answered well.
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Please note: In order to view any of the pdf files listed, you can download a free copy of
Adobe Acrobat Reader http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html
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Annenburg Institute for School Reform
Because old models of education no longer address the realities of most students' lives in our
rapidly changing technological, multicultural society, the Annenberg Institute for School
Reform promotes and advocates the serious redesign of American schooling. By supporting
a variety of promising efforts in school reform, the Institute strives for better schools and a
better education for every student. The Institute concerns itself with all the elements of
schooling -- from understanding the needs of students and their families to changing the way
teachers teach and students learn to formulating supportive education policy and fostering
public engagement. Because there is more than "one right solution" to the problems of
education, the Institute brings together the broadest possible range of teachers, schools and
school reform initiatives to share ideas and to make the best practices of reform more
accessible to school communities.
CRESST
Funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and
Improvement, the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student
Testing (CRESST) is a unique partnership of UCLA's Graduate School of Education &
Information Studies and its Center for the Study of Evaluation. The CRESST mission focuses
on the assessment of educational quality, addressing persistent problems in the design and
use of assessment systems to serve multiple purposes.
Sample Assessments:
Below are performance assessments for history, science, and mathematics.
Guidebooks:
The guidebooks available were written to help teachers and administrators implement
assessment reform practices.
Alternative Assessments in Practice Database
Containing listings of over 300 developers of new assessments, the Alternative Assessments
in Practice Database (AAIP) will be of special interest to teachers, school districts, and
assessment developers who are looking for new methods to assess student growth. The
database presents detailed information about assessment type and purpose, scoring and
availability, subject matter, and skills measured. The database entries are approximately 18
months old and may not necessarily reflect currently available assessments.
Audience Search:
CRESST has arranged its assessment materials for different audience needs. Select an
audience and read relevant information about the topics you are interested in.
ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation
The ERICıClearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation (ERIC/AE) provides balanced
information concerning educational assessment and resources to encourage responsible test
use.
You can search all the web sites listed in this pathfinder.
Categories of Internet resources for assessment and evaluation at this site include:
Pathways to School Improvement
North Central Regional Education Laboratory
Whether you're trying to improve math education or assessment practices, reaching "at risk"
students, integrating technology, or all the above, NCREL's Pathways to School Improvement
can simplify the process. Pathways helps you use research and the experiences of other
schools/communities to make sound decisions affecting the classroom, the school or district,
and the community.
Critical Issues in Assessment:
- Ensuring Equity with Alternative Assessments
- Rethinking Assessment and Its Role in Supporting Educational Reform
- Integrating Assessment and Instruction in Ways That Support Learning
- Reporting Assessment Results
- Assessing Young Children's Progress Appropriately
- The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory
NWREL's mission is to improve educational results for children, youth, and adults by
providing research and development assistance in delivering equitable, high-quality
educational programs. The Lab provides research and development assistance to
education, government, community agencies, business, and labor. It's primary service
area is the Northwest states of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington.
- NWREL Assessment and Accountibility Bibliographies:
- Grading
- Math
- Portfolio
- Reading
- Science
- Social Studies
- Factors that Influence Achievement
Secondary Mathematics Assessment and Resource Database (SMARD)
SMARD provides an opportunity for secondary math teachers to share quality assessment
and resources. Most of the assessment and resources available from this site have been
classroom-tested, and much of it is non-traditional. You can browse through the collection
and are also invited to contribute to the database!
Improving America's Schools: A Newsletter on Issues in School Reform
Funded and Distributed by the U.S. Department of Education Spring 1996
This is the one in a series of newsletters intended to help school, district, and state leaders
explore key topics in educational reform. This edition provides an overview of the issues
affecting state student assessment systems. The issue describes: challenges to creating new
assessments to reflect state content and student performance standards; assessment
requirements under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1994;
alternatives to traditional forms of assessment; and what the research says about student
assessment.
E-Mail: Roger Gottlieb
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