The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is mandated by the United States Congress to survey the educational accomplishments of U.S. students and monitor changes in those accomplishments. For more than 25 years, NAEP has assessed the educational achievement of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade students in selected subject areas, making it…

A survey of minimum competency requirements of state education departments shows that, in 13 states, teacher training institutions must verify students' competencies, and that in four states, teachers must pass the National Teachers' Examination. Florida and Georgia teachers must pass competency tests and demonstrate skills during their first year…

Two central aspects of the teacher-testing movement are addressed: (1) assumptions that form the basis for the prescription that teachers should be tested; and (2) the various domains in which testing might take place. Recommendations for teacher education institutions concerning appropriate use of competency testing are given. (PP)

South Carolina's Educator Improvement Act provides for a "cradle-to-grave" system of training, certification, employment, and evaluation of teachers. The author fears this type of legislation is the precursor of a nationwide shift in the locus of policy making. (Author/WD)

Argues against the development of national tests, standards, and curriculum. Proposes that standardized tests be replaced with assessment procedures that are compatible with a process-oriented curriculum. (MG)

Analyzing Test of Economic Literacy (TEL) scores, examines how extent of teacher course work influences student achievement. Concludes student learning improves when instructors had a minimum of four economics courses. States results are most significant in teaching macroeconomics with implications for citizenship education. (CH)

This article explores the relationship between the inclusion movement and the development of national standards for "all students," and outlines their implications for technology-assisted improvements in assessment of students with disabilities. Testing accommodations, such as input/output adaptations, can be facilitated with technology, and new…

The background of practice and ideology that led to the national curriculum and national assessment in England and Wales is traced, along with the development of national assessment policy. The breakdown, which has resulted in teachers who refuse to conduct the prescribed testing, is described. (SLD)

Describes the administration of the U.S. Test of Economic Literacy (TEL) to eleventh and twelfth grade students in the United Kingdom and the United States. Compares British and U.S. test results. Reports that British students performed better than their U.S. counterparts. Discusses differences between British and U.S. research in economics…

National testing will not improve teacher's genius, students' prospects in life, or learning opportunities in school's immediate surroundings. Too much emphasis will be placed on comparisons among districts, counties, and states. Money will be pumped into raising scores, not decreasing class size or giving teachers more time to work with children.…

Discusses the proposed development of voluntary national tests in fourth-grade reading and eighth-grade mathematics. Explains that these tests will be based on the content and performance standards used in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). (DDR)

Background: Phonological awareness is known to be an excellent predictor of later reading acquisition. It remains unclear, however, whether phoneme manipulation alone best explains this association or whether an additional direct contribution of onset-rime awareness is predictive. This issue is explored here. Method: A longitudinal study is…

Inter- and intra-district public school choice, vouchers, tuition tax credits and other forms of school choice have been advocated for decades, in large part on grounds that the market forces engendered will improve public education. There are many studies of school choice policies and programs and a large theoretical literature on school choice,…

This report launches the second volume of the Brown Center Report on American Education. The five issues of volume one were published from 2000 to 2004. Volume one included regular reports on data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and state assessments, analysis of student achievement in charter schools, a study of trends…

This report presents results for three years of trial school-district-level reading assessments in NAEP at grades 4 and 8. Five urban public-school districts voluntarily participated in NAEP in 2002 and 2003: Atlanta City, City of Chicago School District 299, Houston ISD, Los Angeles Unified, and New York City Public Schools. In 2003 four…