This paper seeks to identify ways of making measurement more relevant to classroom teachers, and making classroom realities more apparent to measurement specialists. Measurement elements of teacher education textbooks and courses, nontraditional assessment topics, informal classroom measurement techniques, terminological issues, and three types of…

The crisis confronting calculus and mathematics education generally results from a number of failed assumptions implicit in the dominant lecture-homework-exam methodology used in teaching mathematics. Positive resolution of this crisis can be found in adopting a noncompetitive, collaborative approach to mathematics education. (Author)

Teacher evaluation needs to move to the next generation to become a process facilitating teacher growth and development in a supportive and collaborative way. The articles of this issue were prepared for a conversation on teacher evaluation held by four Florida school districts looking at the next generation of evaluation. (SLD)

Discussion of the assessment of students with disabilities receiving services in inclusive settings focuses on assessing for updating the Individualized Education Program (IEP) and for guiding instruction. It considers the use of norm-referenced assessment, informal assessment, assessment for instruction, teacher observation and listening skills,…

A portfolio is a meaningful collection of student work that tells the story of student achievement or growth. There are two basic reasons for doing portfolios--assessment or instruction. Benefits for using portfolios in instruction include the development of students self-reflection, critical thinking, responsibility for learning, and content area…

Various formal and informal literacy assessment measures are described and evaluated in this report. Specifically, the extent to which such measures reflect or distort the literacy performance of students from diverse linguistic, cultural, or economic background is noted. Although the report supports a flexible approach to assessment--giving…

This paper focuses on the ways in which one teacher gathered artifacts and reflected on the progress of her first-grade students at a multi-ethnic school in the East San Francisco Bay Area. The paper emphasizes the importance of considering the social beings whose voices are embedded within the artifacts being collected. The paper uses a…

This report examines the accuracy of subjective appraisals of several aspects of task performance, including proficiency, difficulty, frequency, and criticality. An introduction discusses current Army use of subjective appraisal, feedback methods, and problems with subjective appraisal. Data pertaining to the accuracy of various types of appraisal…

In 1982, a survey of California community colleges was conducted to determine the formal and informal devices used to identify and assess learning disabled average (LDA) students; the characteristics, skills, and behaviors measured; the personnel who administered the assessment instruments; and the intake process and identification and assessment…

Reported are data from a 3-year study involving criterion referenced assessment of the reading progress of nine educable retarded students. (CL)

This document presents instructor's materials for a unit on use of tests and measures for conducting needs assessment. It also contains material for 11 transparencies and 4 exhibits (list of 20 informal measures; tips on selecting and using tests; tips on selecting measures; and tips on conducting the interview). It is assumed that needs…

Divided into four sections, this monograph focuses on effective evaluation in the whole language classroom. The first section discusses the whole language philosophy and classroom, and lists the beliefs that proponents of this approach hold about whole language teaching and teachers, language, and language learners. The second section addresses…

Noting that most classroom teachers use informal reading inventories (IRI) as diagnostic instruments, a study examined what oral reading accuracy level is most appropriate for the instructional level and whether repetitions should be counted as oral reading errors. Randomly selected students from the second through fifth grades at two elementary…

Cumulative school records kept on children generally contain only standardized test scores and random notes concerning conduct, yet some theorists suggest that one of the most powerful tools of assessment is teachers' daily observation. To determine teachers' capability for evaluating their students' reading, a study examined teachers' informal…

This paper presents and discusses a conceptual model for understanding, describing, and explaining personnel selection processes and activities. Four theoretical strands--decision theory, impression formation, inference theory, and rating theory--are briefly discussed and woven together as the basis for the proposed model. The model is then used…