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Book part
Publication date: 26 July 2016

Ana Campos-Holland, Grace Hall and Gina Pol

The No Child Left Behind Act (2002) and Race to the Top (2009) led to the highest rate of standardized-state testing in the history of the United States of America. As a result…

Abstract

Purpose

The No Child Left Behind Act (2002) and Race to the Top (2009) led to the highest rate of standardized-state testing in the history of the United States of America. As a result, the Every Student Succeeds Act (2015) aims to reevaluate standardized-state testing. Previous research has assessed its impact on schools, educators, and students; yet, youth’s voices are almost absent. Therefore, this qualitative analysis examines how youth of color perceive and experience standardized-state testing.

Design/methodology/approach

Seventy-three youth participated in a semistructured interview during the summer of 2015. The sample consists of 34 girls and 39 boys, 13–18 years of age, of African American, Latino/a, Jamaican American, multiracial/ethnic, and other descent. It includes 6–12th graders who attended 61 inter-district and intra-district schools during the 2014–2015 academic year in a Northeastern metropolitan area in the United States that is undergoing a racial/ethnic integration reform.

Findings

Youth experienced testing overload under conflicting adult authorities and within an academically stratified peer culture on an ever-shifting policy terrain. While the parent-adult authority remained in the periphery, the state-adult authority intrusively interrupted the teacher-student power dynamics and the disempowered teacher-adult authority held youth accountable through the “attentiveness” rhetoric. However, youth’s perspectives and lived experiences varied across grade levels, school modalities, and school-geographical locations.

Originality/value

In this adult-dominated society, the market approach to education reform ultimately placed the burden of teacher and school evaluation on youth. Most importantly, youth received variegated messages from their conflicting adult authorities that threatened their academic journeys.

Details

Education and Youth Today
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-046-6

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Education and Youth Today
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-046-6

Article
Publication date: 26 August 2014

W. James Popham, David C. Berliner, Neal M. Kingston, Susan H. Fuhrman, Steven M. Ladd, Jeffrey Charbonneau and Madhabi Chatterji

Against a backdrop of high-stakes assessment policies in the USA, this paper explores the challenges, promises and the “state of the art” with regard to designing standardized…

1965

Abstract

Purpose

Against a backdrop of high-stakes assessment policies in the USA, this paper explores the challenges, promises and the “state of the art” with regard to designing standardized achievement tests and educational assessment systems that are instructionally useful. Authors deliberate on the consequences of using inappropriately designed tests, and in particular tests that are insensitive to instruction, for teacher and/or school evaluation purposes.

Methodology/approach

The method used is a “moderated policy discussion”. The six invited commentaries represent voices of leading education scholars and measurement experts, juxtaposed against views of a prominent leader and nationally recognized teacher from two American education systems. The discussion is moderated with introductory and concluding remarks from the guest editor, and is excerpted from a recent blog published by Education Week. References and author biographies are presented at the end of the article.

Findings

In the education assessment profession, there is a promising movement toward more research and development on standardized assessment systems that are instructionally sensitive and useful for classroom teaching. However, the distinctions among different types of tests vis-à-vis their purposes are often unclear to policymakers, educators and other test users, leading to test misuses. The authors underscore issues related to validity, ethics and consequences when inappropriately designed tests are used in high-stakes policy contexts, offering recommendations for the design of instructionally sensitive tests and more comprehensive assessment systems that can serve a broader set of educational evaluation needs. As instructionally informative tests are developed and formalized, their psychometric quality and utility in school and teacher evaluation models must also be evaluated.

Originality/value

Featuring perspectives of scholars, measurement experts and educators “on the ground”, this article presents an open and balanced exchange of technical, applied and policy issues surrounding “instructionally sensitive” test design and use, along with other types of assessments needed to create comprehensive educational evaluation systems.

Book part
Publication date: 11 August 2021

Jennifer A. Kurth, Michael L. Wehmeyer, Carly A. Roberts and Elissa Lockman Turner

Assessing learners with extensive support needs has traditionally been rooted in deficit perspectives, in which student incapacities are highlighted. We start this chapter with an…

Abstract

Assessing learners with extensive support needs has traditionally been rooted in deficit perspectives, in which student incapacities are highlighted. We start this chapter with an overview of this historical view and identify its shortcomings. Next, we identify alternate assessment and progress monitoring as key efforts for shifting the lens from deficit-oriented assessment toward more grade-aligned, inclusive-, and strengths-based strategies. We also identify strategies for comprehensive assessment that can continue this shift in approach. Finally, we conclude with ideas for future directions in assessing learners with extensive support needs.

Details

Traditional and Innovative Assessment Techniques for Students with Disabilities
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83909-890-1

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Making Meaning with Readers and Texts
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80262-337-6

Article
Publication date: 18 January 2011

Stephen Jacobson

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of leadership on student achievement and sustained school success, especially in challenging, high‐poverty schools.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of leadership on student achievement and sustained school success, especially in challenging, high‐poverty schools.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper combines a review of the leadership literature with findings drawn from longitudinal studies of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP).

Findings

Direction setting, developing people and redesigning the organization were practices common to successful principals in all contexts, including those in challenging, high‐poverty schools. How these practices manifested varied in relation to national context and tradition. Distributed teacher leadership and professional self‐renewal emerged as processes central to sustaining success, and, in at least one US case, a change in organizational governance was necessary to allow these processes to continue over time.

Originality/value

The paper adds to the literature on leadership effects on student achievement and sustaining school success, especially in challenging high‐poverty schools.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 25 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 August 2019

Oluwatoyin Olubiyi, Anne Futterer and Christina D. Kang-Yi

The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively identify and synthesize the mental health care provided through diverse community schools implemented in the USA.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively identify and synthesize the mental health care provided through diverse community schools implemented in the USA.

Design/methodology/approach

Using PubMed, community school model websites and Google Search, we identified 21 community school models that publicly reported outcomes and conducted full review of these models. The authors also conducted e-mail and telephone communication with ten program directors and evaluators to gain insights into successes and lessons learned through implementing community school models based on community partnership.

Findings

Provision of mental health care though community schools leads to reducing school suspensions, disciplinary referrals, problem presentation, and risk behaviors, and improving school grades, personal responsibility, future aspiration, and family engagement.

Research limitations/implications

Developing standardized outcome measure for the evaluation of mental health care provided through community school models is important to establish evidence that leads policymakers and practitioners into action. Information toolbox to guide mental health administrators and practitioners about future funding and partnership mechanisms for successful implementation and sustained mental health care through community school models can be useful.

Originality/value

This systematic literature review provides insights into the current practice and future direction in the provision and evaluation of mental health care through community school models and addresses concrete research and practical implications to guide mental health professionals.

Details

The Journal of Mental Health Training, Education and Practice, vol. 14 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-6228

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 15 July 2015

David W. Test, Jennifer Cease-Cook and Lauren K. Bethune

Research has documented post-school outcomes for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities and learning disabilities continue to be poor. To improve student outcomes for…

Abstract

Research has documented post-school outcomes for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities and learning disabilities continue to be poor. To improve student outcomes for these populations, research has recommended implementing evidence-based practices and predictors in the classroom. The purpose of this chapter is to identify evidence-based practices and predictors targeted for students with emotional and behavioral disorders and learning disabilities in the area of secondary transition. We identify and briefly describe 12 evidence-based practices and 14 evidence-based predictors for students with emotional and behavioral disorders and learning disabilities. Implications for practice and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Details

Transition of Youth and Young Adults
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78441-933-2

Article
Publication date: 2 May 2017

Mary Hutchinson and Xenia Hadjioannou

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the public policy reshaping the assessment terrain for English learners (ELs) across the USA and to consider the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the public policy reshaping the assessment terrain for English learners (ELs) across the USA and to consider the implications and impact of these practices on sustaining and supporting a diverse student population in today’s schools.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors review the literature and publicly available policy documents to trace key policy trends over the past 15 years that have shaped the current educational landscape and assessment practices for ELs in the USA.

Findings

In the USA, the 2015 Common Core State Standards (CCSSs) assessments generated worrisome results for ELs, as significant numbers had failing scores in English language arts and math. These results are juxtaposed to public policies that impact the educational experience of ELs, including No Child Left Behind and the CCSS, and which, despite their stated intentions to ameliorate the achievement gap, are found to be assimilationist in nature. Indeed, a review of the initiatives of developing common EL standards and English language proficiency tests and the recommendations for EL accommodations in state tests suggests several areas of concern. The recently passed Every Student Succeeds Act focuses on this vulnerable population, but there are concerns that the continued focus on accountability and testing will do little to facilitate academic progress for these students.

Practical implications

The paper recommends a need to reevaluate the support and testing process for ELs to stem widespread failure and ascertain the sustenance of democratic and diversified schools.

Originality/value

The study provides an overview of key policy trends, outlines and critiques recent changes in the assessment of ELs and draws implications for practice.

Details

English Teaching: Practice & Critique, vol. 16 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1175-8708

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2008

S. G. Grant and Jill M. Gradwell

Although standardized testing of K-12 student knowledge and understanding garners considerable attention, few observers profess satisfaction with the assessments in place. In this…

Abstract

Although standardized testing of K-12 student knowledge and understanding garners considerable attention, few observers profess satisfaction with the assessments in place. In this exploratory paper, we report on the data gathered from an open-ended email survey of small, convenience samples of teachers and researchers. Although no clear consensus about alternative assessments of students’ historical knowing and understanding emerged, we argue that the potential for a consensus exists. Any emergent consensus, however, must be negotiated with several issues in mind.

Details

Social Studies Research and Practice, vol. 3 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1933-5415

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