The New Mexico Portfolio Writing Assessment for grades 4 and 6 (optional for grade 8) is to be conducted in the 1991-92 school year, with a call for "best piece" in April of 1992. All students in New Mexico in grades 4 and 6 will participate. This manual provides instruction for procedures to be followed in the school year. Guidelines…

Recent documents like the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics'"Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics" have described coming changes in the mathematics curriculum and evaluation. Operating from the point of view that instruction and assessment are closely linked, that good teachers constantly assess students…

Since 1988, Vermont has been developing a state assessment program, the centerpiece of which is the student portfolio and "best pieces" drawn from it. The state's use of portfolio results will be limited to reporting aggregates, but within schools, teachers and principals may use the portfolios as they choose. The assessment program,…

This 1992 yearbook presents the following 26 articles: "Tensions between Numbers and Knowing: A Study of Changes in Assessment during Implementation of Literature-Based Reading Instruction" (P. L. Scharer); "Story Reading in Daycare: A Help or a Hindrance?" (F. K. Hurley); "Preservice Teachers' Reminiscences of Positive and Negative Reading…

In 1991-92 Vermont initiated a statewide portfolio assessment program in mathematics and writing in grades 4 and 8. An evaluation of the program found mixed results--although the portfolio scores were unreliable for individual or school-level reporting and teachers had concerns about implementation, the assessment had marked positive effects on…

This digest focuses on going beyond multiple choice testing to the development of methods for assessing complex knowledge and performances. Newly designed assessment systems must accurately measure and promote the complex thinking and learning goals that are known to be critical to students' academic success and their eventual sustained…

This paper reports on a pilot project conducted at the College of Education, Wayne State University (Michigan), to explore the potential of the portfolio process as a tool for assessing the professional skill development of student teachers and the effectiveness of the teacher preparation program. Project goals included the promotion and…

The manual is addressed to teachers, administrators, and teacher trainers helping students learn through a non-native language by integrating language and content. This audience may include English-as-a-Second-Language, bilingual education, or content (e.g., science, math, social studies) teachers with limited-English-proficient students in…

Alternative assessments, also called authentic or performance assessments, have first the common notion of a meaningful performance or product. The use of such alternatives with students belonging to nondominant language and cultural groups is of interest because of the hope that this type of assessment can show what these students can really do…

This document reports good practice as learned in Britain's FEU (Further Education Unit) and NIACE (National Institute of Adult Continuing Education) programs aimed at providing educational opportunities for unemployed adults. Section 1 describes the review of projects that resulted in the document; mentions specific issues and problems relating…

This practicum was designed to improve the congruency of resources, activities, and assessment strategies in intermediate-level language arts programs with a holistic process-oriented perspective on literacy development. Taking place in a large public elementary school in Vancouver, Canada, the practicum's goals were: (1) to implement…

This curriculum guide contains materials for use in helping tenth grade students acquire career skills in English courses. Addressed in the individual sections of the guide are the following topics: self-awareness, application forms, letters of application, resume writing, the interview process, and sources of career information. Each unit…

This booklet is designed to assist students participating in supervised training experiences at the primary or preschool levels in such settings as a day care center or Head Start agency. The purpose of this document is to adapt the content of the Early Childhood Education courses at Bellevue Community College to a competency based program such as…

The Webfolio project was developed at James Cook University to extend students' professional learning beyond what is taught in lectures or gleaned through the practicum. The Webfolio project trialled alternative platforms and approaches to teaching and learning. It was developed as an online learning environment that incorporated both real people…

A model for assessing and awarding credit for prior experiential learning is presented; the adult student's experiences are summarized in a portfolio. The model incorporates eight stages: facilitating the construction and assessment of a portfolio, identifying significant prior experiences, expressing the learning outcomes of prior experiences,…