scholarly journals An Alternative Vision for Large-scale Assessment in Canada

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Volante
Keyword(s):  
Student Achievement ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Achievement Testing ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
Alternative Vision ◽  
Large Scale Testing ◽  
International Testing ◽  
The Impact

Concern over the quality of education has prompted virtually every Canadian province and territory to develop large-scale assessment programs to measure student achievement. The approach of individual provinces and territories varies according to the grades tested, sample size, test format, and frequency of administration. Many provinces also participate in national and international testing programs. This paper provides a general overview of the various large-scale assessment programs across Canada and outlines central arguments for and against student achievement testing. Research documenting the impact of large-scale testing on students and teachers is also reported. The discussion proposes an alternative vision for large-scale assessment aimed at supporting teachers’ instructional practices and student learning. A set of key considerations within this vision serve as a basis for assessment policy reform.

Teacher Decision Making in Participation of Students with Disabilities in Large-Scale Assessment

2001 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lizanne Destefano ◽  
James G. Shriner ◽  
Claire A. Lloyd
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
High Confidence ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Teacher Decision Making ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
Instructional Needs ◽  
Teacher's Knowledge ◽  
The Impact

This article reports on the findings of a study to test the effectiveness of an intervention with teachers and administrators to improve decision making regarding participation and accommodation for students with disabilities in large-scale assessments. Using a pretest/posttest, multiple measures design involving more than 80 teachers, the study assessed the impact of training on teacher's knowledge and confidence about participation and accommodation, accommodation decisions for hypothetical students, and actual accommodation decisions the following year. Results indicate that after training, there was a stronger relationship among participation/accommodation, curriculum, and instructional needs. Teachers expressed high confidence in their ability to make accommodation decisions after training.

“Classroometrics”: The Validity, Reliability, and Fairness of Classroom Music Assessments

2020 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-37
Author(s):  
Brian C. Wesolowski
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Classroom Assessments ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
Technical Properties

Validity, reliability, and fairness are three prominent indicators for evaluating the quality of assessment processes. Each of the indicators is most often written about and applied in the context of large-scale assessment. As a result, the technical properties of these indicators make them limited in both their practicality and relevance for classroom assessments. The purpose of this article is to describe validity, reliability, and fairness in a way that is meaningful and applicable toward improving the quality of classroom music assessments.

scholarly journals The impact of teacher attitudes and beliefs about large-scale assessment on the use of provincial data for instructional change

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek T. Copp
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
School Improvement ◽  
Teacher Attitudes ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Instructional Change ◽  
Assessment Data ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
The Impact

In the quest to improve measured educational outcomes national governments across the OECD and beyond have instituted large-scale assessment (LSA) policies in their public schools. Controversy almost universally follows the implementation of such testing, related to such topics as: a) the uncertain quality of the tests themselves as psychometrics measures; b) the uses to which the data can and should be put; c) the unintended consequences of test-preparation activities and resulting score inflation; and d) the effects of high-stakes tests on students. Debates of this nature naturally involve and impact the attitudes and opinions of teachers related to their collection and use of these data. This paper examines the impact of these attitudes using both the qualitative and quantitative data from a large-scale research study on Canadian provincial assessment. Data were collected from nation-wide teacher surveys as well as interviews with teachers, administrators and district-level staff. Results show that teacher attitudes about these assessments are strongly correlated to classroom-level instructional change. Three attitudinal factors have significant effects on teaching (to) the provincial curricula, yet none significantly affects the use of less constructive instructional strategies also known as ‘teaching to the test.’ Specifically, the belief that large-scale assessment data have more appropriate uses and the belief that these data could lead to school improvement were significant factors in facilitating change. The implications of these findings are profound in that large-scale assessment policy cannot succeed even by its own standards without more buy in from teaching professionals.

Using Web-based Testing for Large-Scale Assessment

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura S. Hamilton ◽  
Stephen P. Klein ◽  
William Lorie
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment

scholarly journals Predicting Shifts in Land Suitability for Maize Cultivation Worldwide Due to Climate Change: A Modeling Approach

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 295
Author(s):  
Yuan Gao ◽  
Anyu Zhang ◽  
Yaojie Yue ◽  
Jing’ai Wang ◽  
Peng Su
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Land Suitability ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
Maize Cultivation ◽  
Large Scale Screening ◽  
Selection Of

Suitable land is an important prerequisite for crop cultivation and, given the prospect of climate change, it is essential to assess such suitability to minimize crop production risks and to ensure food security. Although a variety of methods to assess the suitability are available, a comprehensive, objective, and large-scale screening of environmental variables that influence the results—and therefore their accuracy—of these methods has rarely been explored. An approach to the selection of such variables is proposed and the criteria established for large-scale assessment of land, based on big data, for its suitability to maize (Zea mays L.) cultivation as a case study. The predicted suitability matched the past distribution of maize with an overall accuracy of 79% and a Kappa coefficient of 0.72. The land suitability for maize is likely to decrease markedly at low latitudes and even at mid latitudes. The total area suitable for maize globally and in most major maize-producing countries will decrease, the decrease being particularly steep in those regions optimally suited for maize at present. Compared with earlier research, the method proposed in the present paper is simple yet objective, comprehensive, and reliable for large-scale assessment. The findings of the study highlight the necessity of adopting relevant strategies to cope with the adverse impacts of climate change.

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