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This study, a post hoc observational one, attempted to determine if career and technical education (CTE) students in the state of Mississippi would academically benefit from taking multiple formative assessments in an online format prior to completing their summative exams. Most CTE students in the state of Mississippi are required to take an end-of-course exam cataloged as the Mississippi Career and Planning Assessment System (MS-CPAS). Previously, MS-CPAS test score results did not impact school-wide accountability scores, but in recent years, some of the guidelines were changed so that these summative test scores now play a vital role in school accountability and rankings.

This study examines both formative and summative online exam scores for more than 13,000 students who have taken an MS-CPAS assessment in the 2018 and 2019 school years.

The results of this study revealed that there were significant differences in summative exam scores for students who took two online formative practice tests when compared to groups of students who did not take any formative practice tests. This study also illustrated a positive correlation between those students' final online practice test scores and their summative exam scores.

These results would prove very beneficial to both CTE teachers and directors in helping them understand the benefits of introducing formative practice tests into their programs to boost student understanding.

The purpose of this paper is to compare two years of results for one state’s performance-based assessments for principal licensure Performance Assessment for Leaders (PAL). This includes the field trial (2014–2015) and first year of statewide implementation (2015–2016) when passing score requirements and fees were added. Survey results on candidates’ career aspirations provide concurrent validation.

Two years of PAL submissions (n=569 candidates) were scored by trained, certified scorers. Task and total score results were compared by year, preparation pathway and gender. Online feedback survey results on career aspirations for (n=146 candidates) were compared by year.

The results show that PAL assessments measure independent dimensions of leadership, differentiate candidates on leadership knowledge and skills, and confirm PAL’s internal validity. Implementation year scores were higher than field trial scores, and preparation program candidates scored better than non-program candidates did. Candidate career aspirations were stronger in the implementation year than during the field trial.

The study is limited to one state’s candidates, but findings are generalizable based on the wide range among candidates’ districts (demographically and economically).

The results are promising for the leadership preparation and assessment field, demonstrating the effectiveness of performance assessment for authentic evaluation of leadership candidates’ knowledge and skill and overall readiness for initial leadership work.

This is the first large scale performance assessment for aspiring leaders designed for state licensure decisions. It is being replicated in another state and shown promise for both formative and summative leadership assessment.

The purpose of this paper is to describe an American healthcare organization's experience creating the first multi-facility trauma system managed by a private, nonprofit organization.

A leadership structure was established to initiate the first steps of system development, followed by needs assessments that identified key components essential to creating the interconnected system. The key components were applied as a result of evidence-based system development. After system implementation, early benefits were explored.

Data collection and research, prehospital support, system-wide quality improvement, rural outreach, communication, and system evaluation were identified as key components essential to creating an interconnected trauma system. The system currently connects 12 trauma centers throughout the state of Colorado while working within the parameters of an established statewide system. Early benefits included improved designation review results, the utilization of system-wide best practice protocols, a rich trauma registry, and closer relations with rural, out-of-network facilities.

This study describes the process undertaken to implement a unique medical system that provides regionalized care and complements an existing statewide trauma system. The authors hope their experience may serve as a roadmap for healthcare professionals wishing to develop an integrated, patient-centered model of care.

The development of this multi-facility trauma system within a private, not-for-profit healthcare organization is the first of its kind.

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a statewide assessment of worksite health promotion (WHP) programs to identify the number of comprehensive programs and the health needs of worksites in Kentucky.

A random sample of 1,200 worksites in Kentucky was selected to receive the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Worksite Health ScoreCard to collect cross-sectional information on their health promotion practices.

Few worksites in Kentucky have WHP programs and even fewer have comprehensive programs. More businesses rely on health insurance to treat chronic diseases than WHP programs to reduce chronic diseases. Small companies were less likely than larger companies to have WHP programs and less likely to have intentions of starting a program.

The response rate of 37 percent was a potential threat to external validity. Respondents had to recall activities conducted during the past 12 months, which could have led to recall bias. Response bias was a potential, as many of the respondents were human resources personnel who may not be as familiar with WHP programs in their worksites. Lastly, four sections of the survey had yet to be validated.

WHP programs, if accessible and comprehensive, have the potential to improve the working population’s health status.

Very little information on the availability and effectiveness of health promotion programs at worksites is available. A statewide assessment on WHP programs has never been conducted in Kentucky.

The purpose this study was to determine currency of print health materials readily available in North Carolina public libraries, through a statewide assessment. Two subject areas were examined: health reference and diabetes.

In total, 30 randomly selected public libraries were visited and unobtrusive stacks assessments were completed. Some months later, the libraries’ websites were examined for collection development policies, and online catalogs were searched using the keyword diabetes to identify possible discrepancies and additions.

For visits, publication dates for reference books ranged from 1899-2014 and the average number of holdings was 10 (range 0-30). The most common reference item, the AMA Family Medical Guide (2005), was available in 6 of 30 libraries. In diabetes collections, publication dates ranged from 1983-2013; the average number of books was nine (range 0-26). The Atkins Diabetes Revolution (2004) was the most common, available in 9 of 30 libraries. Two-thirds of libraries did not have a collection development policy online. Catalog searches revealed 10 titles prior to 1983 and 18 titles (non-cook books) from 2014-2016.

The study found overall that print health reference books were outdated. In diabetes collections, there were also many outdated items. It appears that regular weeding to assure currency of print health literature is not taking place.

The study demonstrates that public libraries may not be providing optimal print health information. With unprecedented access, it is imperative that librarians in all types of settings aid in health literacy promotion by assuring access to reliable and timely health information.

Why create another collection assessment tool? One reason is the highly personal nature of the assessment process. Each local library describes and evaluates its own collection in relation to the library's goals for meeting the needs of its local clients. In our times of focusing on local needs, each library wants to customize the assessment process to meet local challenges as closely as possible. These local needs are greatly felt in the data collection step of the assessment process. An intermediate tool is helpful for collecting and organizing appropriate categories of data to prepare information for entry onto the WLN Conspectus worksheets and database, or into other assessment methods if desired.

Teacher assessments are becoming increasingly popular in public school improvement plans. These assessments may inadvertently diminish the amount of time and attention teachers perceive they can devote to a traditionally non-tested subject such as social studies. Would teachers’ orientations toward social studies change in a manner that would elevate its status if an assessment resulted in the teachers recognizing they have more direct say over the manner in which they allocate their instructional time? In this paper, we explore this and other questions to investigate how elementary teachers imagine social studies in an age of teacher assessments.

This study describes the Illinois State capital budget process and explains why traditional capital planning has not been adopted in Illinois. The state uses non-accounting techniques and multi-attribute judgment criteria, including political and social values, to make decisions. The case suggests that regardless of their sophistication, accounting methods are, relatively, not useful in ranking capital projects across functions. The methods compare "pples" and "oranges." A comparison of capital projects across functions may be impossible with any set of methods. Intelligent sub-optimization within given functions may be the best academics and practitioners can hope for in rationalizing project choice and maintenance, particularly in large cities or state governments. Public capital-budgeting educators might shift their focus in training prospective public budgeters, from accounting methods to critical thinking, through multi-attribute analysis methods.

In Germany, principals’ working environments are data-rich for school improvement purposes in a rather low-stakes test-regime. An effective use of externally as well as internally generated data, also known as data wise leadership, is considered to be a key competence of successful principals. The purpose of this paper is to describe data use practices in German schools, especially focussing on schools facing challenging circumstances.

The paper draws on findings from two projects funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. A standardized questionnaire study was conducted to measure the usage of available data for school improvement quantitatively. The perceived usefulness, the reflection upon, and the use of information sources by principals were measured. Moreover, semi-structured interviews with school leaders from schools in deprived areas were conducted, transcribed and analyzed by means of qualitative content analysis.

The results showed that internal sources of information were used frequently while (international) student assessment, statewide comparative tests, and school inspections proved to be of relatively little use for the principals’ professional practice. Moreover, there was a discrepancy between the perceived usefulness of information sources and the actual use of the data.

In contrast to the USA, for example, research on educational leadership and principals’ data use – particularly at schools in challenging circumstances – is rather limited in Germany. This paper seeks to take up this desideratum.