Informal assessment can make a valuable contribution to the assessment process in special education. Informal procedures are characterized by their ability to be tailored to the needs of specific assessment situations and are especially useful in student evaluation for this reason. (Author)

Teachers can provide a much more detailed and informed diagnosis of language problems despite the continued use of inadequate standardized tests. Suggestions for teachers include arranging the classroom to provide interest centered activity areas which afford opportunities for observing student language skills. (Author/DB)

Proposes principles for classroom diagnosis: considering diagnosis as an integral part of instruction; basing diagnoses on natural language evidence gathered in real learning situations; and using the needs of individual students in performing academic tasks as a standard. Describes a model for reading diagnosis and instructional planning. Gives…

A systems perspective is offered of cooperation among various agencies providing educational and related services to severely emotionally disturbed children. The systems view is described in terms of interfaces of four subsystems which exist in each agency--structural, technological, human, and communication. The structural interface involves…

Examines two common errors in evaluation and ways to circumvent them. The first error is faulty pretesting or diagnostic evaluation. The second is failure to monitor student progress and plan instruction in relation to the specified learning goals. (SJL)

Maintains that teacher-based assessment can be a powerful tool. Defines "informed" assessment, describes its features, and discusses conditions that must occur if teacher-based assessment is to reach its full potential. Discusses strategies that help teachers make day-to-day assessment more meaningful and credible. (SR)

Argues that standards-referenced reporting frameworks, the Australian nationally developed Mathematics Profile in particular, require the use of teacher observation as an essential assessment practice if teachers are to report the full range of demonstrated student achievement. Supports student self-assessment. (14 references) (Author/MKR)

Qualitative research that takes into account children's views of themselves as well as their own assessments of their talents and capabilities in reading and other academic areas can enhance understandings already established in research and measured by standardized instruments. New avenues of qualitative research can prove amenable to assessing…

Low grades and papers overrun with corrections can discourage children from learning to write. Assuming children who write a great deal can become good writers, this article provides alternatives to grading: individual, weekly conferences; editing by peers; and use of an overhead projector. Praise and comments are considered a must. (DS)

Describes 10 methods of assessment that teachers can use alone or in combination: (1) multiple marking, (2) peer evaluation, (3) mastery learning, (4) contracted learning, (5) credit/no credit grading, (6) self-evaluation, (7) anecdotal records, (8) pupil profiles, (9) checklists, and (10) dossiers. (FL)

Describes 10 methods of assessment that teachers can use alone or in combination: (1) multiple marking, (2) peer evaluation, (3) mastery learning, (4) contracted learning, (5) credit-no credit grading, (6) self-evaluation, (7) anecdotal records, (8) pupil profiles, (9) checklists, and (10) dossiers. (FL)

Suggesting that, like the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in the United States, Britain's Assessment of Performance Unit is likely to evoke opposition, the author proposes a teacher-based assessment system as an alternative. (SJL) Aspect of National Assessment (NAEP) dealt with in this document: Procedures (Evaluation).

Maintains that continued over reliance on traditional skills-based assessment of reading abilities provides the whole-language teacher with little, if any, useful information for instructional planning. Suggests informal assessment procedures that focus on the language learner and provide a rich information source on which to base instructional…

Examines differences between tests and assessments, two incompatible models of education. Performance assessments make different demands on students than tests, with active application of knowledge and skill to problems. Assessment systems develop students' intellectual, social, and emotional abilities. They require a change in purpose and…

Discusses assessment in education, examining how the current desire to assess outcomes of significance can be incorporated into an outcomes assessment system. Assessment characteristics and how assessment fits into an outcome-based educational system are explored. (SM)