Judgements of the work of school principals may be formal through an appraisal process or informal from students, teachers, parents, and members of the community in which the school operates. This article focuses on New Zealand rural primary school principals' experiences of informal expectations--and judgements about whether they meet these…

This study was conducted to determine the most common contemporary evaluation methods used by kindergarten teachers to assess kindergarten children. The study sample consisted of 527 kindergarten teachers. A scale was developed in order to achieve the study's purposes. The results indicated that the Teacher's Practices in the Evaluation Process…

In recent years, numerous studies have been conducted on language teachers' beliefs about language assessment; however, teachers' collaborative discussion as a mediational tool has received scant attention. The present study aimed to investigate non-native language teachers' beliefs about classroom language assessment regarding features of…

Discursive formative assessment (FA) practices during instruction have grown in importance in the education literature as a way of improving teaching and learning. This study involves three years of design-based research as part of an educational project. We examine lower secondary school teachers' qualitative Informal Formative assessment (IFA)…

This study (N=196) examined the extent to which the frequency of parent-child math activities in preschool was associated with children's developmental trajectories of math skills from preschool to primary school. Parents reported the frequency of their involvement in a variety of math activities with their preschool children. Children were tested…

Anatomists often use images in assessments and examinations. This study aims to investigate the influence of different types of images on item difficulty and item discrimination in written assessments. A total of 210 of 460 students volunteered for an extra assessment in a gross anatomy course. This assessment contained 39 test items grouped in…

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 study investigated the Individual Learning Plans of eighty-eight students who were deaf and hard of hearing attending facilities and schools for the deaf in Victoria Australia. The students' assessment and planning portfolios were scrutinised for evidence of formal and informal assessment used to generate goals for the Individual Learning…

This study aimed to investigate how students' conceptions of assessment relate to one another, how students define assessment, and how student conceptions of assessment relate to their definitions of assessment. A nationally representative sample of New Zealand secondary students (N = 705) responded to a 45-item Conceptions of Assessment inventory…

In the past twelve years (1997-2009), Brunei Darussalam has implemented three major educational policies: (1) inclusive education, in 1998; (2) the National Education System for the 21st Century known in Malay as Sistem Pendidikan Negara Abad 21 or SPN21, 2008; and (3) education for the gifted / talented students, 2009. These changes are partly…

The aim of this research is to examine how social learning is connected to the acquisition of knowledge and abilities. One hundred and nineteen "A" grade students (60 boys and 59 girls) attending public primary school participated. The collection of data was carried out according to: (1) the "Athina" Test (AT) and (2) teachers'…

Interviews with 30 British primary and secondary teachers about informal math-assessment practices revealed differences in perceptions of how students can change, teaching practices, learning styles, desired outcomes, and views of math. These differences can lead to inequities in the way students are treated in educational systems. (SK)

The development of the Cambridge Assessment of Spoken English (CASE) is reviewed, with particular reference to the trialling and validation of the rating scales. The objectives of the test are to assess an individual's ability to produce and process spoken English; demonstrate the ability to communicate in English through the use of grammatical,…

Problems in improving the reliability of essay marks are examined in this Australian study that considers the markings of 338 essays, each marked by one of 13 graders. It is concluded that improvement is needed but the changes necessary for the improvement are not feasible. (LC)

A survey of 150 British teachers in schools for the severely mentally handicapped to investigate techniques used for language and communication assessment is discussed. (SB)