What has been said about what teachers do and know is integrated into a theoretical framework for the education and assessment of teachers, addressing (1) why a theoretical framework is necessary; (2) what a comprehensive framework might be; and (3) how the proposed framework might be used. (SLD)

Several techniques for conducting studies of measurement integrity are explained and illustrated using a heuristic data set from a study of teachers' participation in decision making (D. L. Taylor, 1991). The sample consisted of 637 teachers. It is emphasized that validity and reliability are characteristics of data, and do not inure to tests as…

Teacher knowledge is examined as a joint construction of teachers and researchers by analyzing contrasting narrative practices in the research interview in terms of how two teachers formulate versions of self. Seeing the narratives as representational technologies locates these teachers differently in the knowledge-constitutive networks of…

Seven papers focus on the relationship between research on effective instruction and teacher evaluation (TE). The first two articles depart from previous articles by M. Scriven; the others reflect new research. Topics include using rating scales in TE, improving instruction, at-risk and expert teachers, and supervisor critiquing. (SLD)

The effects of performance assessments on student learning were examined in a year-long project to help teachers in 13 third-grade classrooms begin to use performance assessments as part of regular instruction in reading and mathematics. The essential research question was whether students learned more or developed qualitatively different…

A key objective of a federally funded grant received by the Wake County Public Schools (North Carolina) was to develop new methods of assessment. The school district decided to fulfill this objective by developing student electronic portfolios. In spite of careful planning, the development of the electronic portfolios was filled with difficulties.…