The "CURA Reporter" is published quarterly to provide information about the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA), an all-University applied research and technical assistance center at the University of Minnesota that connects faculty and students with community organizations and public institutions working on significant public…

FORMS USED TO EVALUATE THE PROGRESS OF STUDENTS IN ADJUSTMENT, CURRICULUM COMPREHENSION, AND CULTURAL PROGRESS ARE INCLUDED. TEACHERS EVALUATED EACH CHILD IN FEBRUARY AND JUNE OF 1961 IN SUCH AREAS AS SOCIAL ACCEPTABILITY, MATURITY, DEPENDABILITY, LEADERSHIP, ATTENTION, WORK HABITS, CONDUCT, AND MOTIVATION. IN THE CURRICULUM AREAS, TEACHERS RATED…

This article analyzed the work currently under way with regard to cognitive mapping of vocational students in Oregon community colleges. The primary focus of the study was to determine if the cognitive mapping efforts of selected Oregon community colleges were contributing to student success in vocational classes. (Author)

Notes that comprehension problems can be difficult to detect and treat. Suggests that comprehension instruction should be more tailored to the needs of the individual. Explains that strategy instruction allows the teacher to model and assist students to use a range of reading strategies. Offers suggestions for catching students' reading problems…

Progress assessment aims to assess students' performance and progress during a course of study. Its purpose is primarily developmental--to help students improve learning. Progress assessment is of special value in distance education in that it can motivate or pace distance learners throughout their course of study. It can help the tutor monitor…

This book explores the key issues of learner assessment in terms of who it is for, what modes of assessment exist, what makes for sound assessment, why assessment is done, what agencies are promoting innovative methods of assessment, and the catalysts for change. Practical suggestions on how to assess more effectively are provided, including…

Six anomalies in achievement test scores encountered by the Austin Independent School District are described. These include crossing gaps with uninterpolated medians; total group median declines while all subgroups' medians rise; outlying total percentiles; percentile and grade equivalent growth antithesis; same grade equivalent earning a…

This book is a short guide presenting an objective and systematic self-evaluation and self-improvement plan for students. The guide is divided into two sections. The first section is a self evaluation checklist which is divided into several areas. Each area includes a series of evaluation items which the student rates in terms of importance and…

This is a brief overview of a study used as an example of how a computerized, longitudinal description and analysis of student responses to questions and statements about the teaching process can help answer the question, "Am I doing a good job of teaching?" Questions and statements for the example were taken primarily from "The…

Reported is a study exploring the hypothesis that gains in reading achievement result when teachers assess the students and predict improvements in reading ability. (GW)

Argues that the first and primary focus of assessment should be the learner and that student feedback on their learning process and the inclusion of any presentations, products, or exhibitions produced along the way are essential. The author presents personal experiences using this assessment practice involving an English class. (GR)

Teachers are not adequately engaged in collaborative inquiry where it matters most, in the daily learning-teaching interactions between students and teachers, leading to failure in developing true learning communities by majority of school improvement efforts. Collaborative analysis of student learning (CASL), a particular form of learning…

Theoretical background for researching student learning, engagement, and collaboration through the development of electronic portfolios is described in this article. After providing an overview of the limited research on portfolios in education, the author discusses the accepted definitions, multiple purposes, and conflicting theoretical paradigms…

In 1992, the authors collaborated to develop a set of norms for oral reading fluency for grades 2-5. Since then, interest in and awareness of fluency has greatly increased, and Hasbrouck and Tindal have collaborated further to compile an updated and expanded set of norms for grades 1-8. This article discusses the application of these norms to…

One of the biggest problems in education is that of showing the necessity for the provision of library services and demonstrating the difference it makes in academic achievement. An even bigger difficulty, perhaps, has been the existence and application of instruments capable of giving statistical evidence. The problem of this study was to…