This study focuses on teachers' use of informal formative assessments (IFAs) aimed at improving students' learning and teachers' recognition of students' learning processes. The study was designed as an explorative case study of four middle school teachers and their students at a charter school in the northeastern U.S.A. The data collected for the…

Drawing on sociocultural approaches to literacy and literature on the communal spaces of teaching and learning of Latino/as, I share one Mexican border women's life story and analyze her literacies and ways of knowing in relation to the literacy event of giving "consejo." Using data gathered through individual interviews and…

This report describes an individualized literacy intervention program that was developed for a fifth grade boy who struggled with reading. Based upon informal assessment and evaluation procedures, the following literacy strategies were taught within a one-to-one instructional setting: Repeated Readings, Personal Vocabulary Journal, Phonemic…

Presented as the outcome of a summer institute involving 30 graduate students are case histories and educational prescriptions for 34 low functioning severely handicapped individuals ages 2 to 26 years. The case histories provide information on identification, reports of previous evaluations, other contacts and assessment of present functioning…

An approach for systematically observing and recording behavioral difference in the classroom is described, and its use with 11 behavior problem elementary students is discussed. The author points out the importance of peer sampling and the use of multiple observations to avoid erroneous conclusions. A case study of a second grade child…

Reports on a case study designed to determine whether marking standards and reliability of assessments change significantly from one occasion to another. Finds a sex bias occurs with both men and women judges, leading to significant changes in the measures for girls, but not for boys. (KO)

A study describes the process of two first-grade teachers incorporating the Reading Recovery process of "roaming around the known" in their regular classrooms. Their purpose was to assess what their students knew about print. Data collection for these case studies took place for 16 weeks late in 1992; participants included 49 first-grade…

This paper is the report of a year-long study of a mathematics teacher's attempts to document her observations of students. One goal of the project is to determine whether it is feasible for a teacher to keep a record of informal assessments such as observations and interviews. Another goal is to determine how useful such information could be to…

Conducted to define in detail the ingredients contributing to an effective classroom assessment environment, this study explored the assessment methods actually used by classroom teachers through case study observations and teacher journals. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the report. Chapter 2 presents the findings of a review of the literature…

The implementation of the Adult Degree Completion Program (ADCP) at Antioch-Yellow Springs is described. The ADCP is a transfer program designed to enable adults who have never finished colege to complete their undergraduate degree work, often without having to abandon their obligations to families or to professions. To enroll in the program,…

This paper reports on research in student self-evaluation processes. Student self-evaluation requires judgment of the "worth" of one s performance and the identification of strengths and weaknesses with a view to improving learning outcomes. Research was conducted at three sites: an Australian country secondary school; a suburban London…

This document explores the United Kingdom's developing practice of recognizing adult students' achievement in ways that make flexible use of the learning outcomes methodology, provide a mix of accredited and non-credited work, and are sensitive to the ethos of adult learning. (That ethos is often characterized by adult students' desire for…