This book examines the intersection of policy and practice in the use of student growth measures (SGMs) for high-stakes purposes as per such educator evaluation systems. The book also focuses on examinations of educators’ perceptions of and reactions to the use of SGMs; ethical implications pertaining to the use of SGMs; contextual challenges when implementing SGMs; and legal implications of SGM use. The use of student test score data has been the cornerstone of the recent transfiguration of educator evaluation systems in forty-two states and the District of Columbia. Three leading voices on SGMs—Sean Corcoran, Henry Braun, and David Berliner—also serve as section and concluding commentators.

Education is a hot topic. From the stage of presidential debates to tonight's dinner table, it is an issue that most Americans are deeply concerned about. While there are many strategies for improving the educational process, we need a way to find out what works and what doesn't work as well. Educational assessment seeks to determine just how well students are learning and is an integral part of our quest for improved education. The nation is pinning greater expectations on educational assessment than ever before. We look to these assessment tools when documenting whether students and institutions are truly meeting education goals. But we must stop and ask a crucial question: What kind of assessment is most effective? At a time when traditional testing is subject to increasing criticism, research suggests that new, exciting approaches to assessment may be on the horizon. Advances in the sciences of how people learn and how to measure such learning offer the hope of developing new kinds of assessments-assessments that help students succeed in school by making as clear as possible the nature of their accomplishments and the progress of their learning. Knowing What Students Know essentially explains how expanding knowledge in the scientific fields of human learning and educational measurement can form the foundations of an improved approach to assessment. These advances suggest ways that the targets of assessment-what students know and how well they know it-as well as the methods used to make inferences about student learning can be made more valid and instructionally useful. Principles for designing and using these new kinds of assessments are presented, and examples are used to illustrate the principles. Implications for policy, practice, and research are also explored. With the promise of a productive research-based approach to assessment of student learning, Knowing What Students Know will be important to education administrators, assessment designers, teachers and teacher educators, and education advocates.

In the music classroom, instructors who hope to receive aid are required to provide data on their classroom programs. Due to the lack of reliable, valid large-scale assessments of student achievement in music, however, music educators in schools that accept funds face a considerable challenge in finding a way to measure student learning in their classrooms. From Australia to Taiwan to the Netherlands, music teachers experience similar struggles in the quest for a definitive assessment resource that can be used by both music educators and researchers. In this two-volume Handbook, contributors from across the globe come together to provide an authority on the assessment, measurement, and evaluation of student learning in music. The Handbook's first volume emphasizes international and theoretical perspectives on music education assessment in the major world regions. This volume also looks at technical aspects of measurement in music, and outlines situations where theoretical foundations can be applied to the development of tests in music. The Handbook's second volume offers a series of practical and US-focused approaches to music education assessment. Chapters address assessment in different types of US classrooms; how to assess specific skills or requirements; and how assessment can be used in tertiary and music teacher education classrooms. Together, both volumes of The Oxford Handbook of Assessment in Music Education pave the way forward for music educators and researchers in the field.

In the music classroom, instructors who hope to receive aid are required to provide data on their classroom programs. Due to the lack of reliable, valid large-scale assessments of student achievement in music, however, music educators in schools that accept funds face a considerable challenge in finding a way to measure student learning in their classrooms. From Australia to Taiwan to the Netherlands, music teachers experience similar struggles in the quest for a definitive assessment resource that can be used by both music educators and researchers. In this two-volume Handbook, contributors from across the globe come together to provide an authority on the assessment, measurement, and evaluation of student learning in music. The Handbook's first volume emphasizes international and theoretical perspectives on music education assessment in the major world regions. This volume also looks at technical aspects of measurement in music, and outlines situations where theoretical foundations can be applied to the development of tests in music. The Handbook's second volume offers a series of practical and US-focused approaches to music education assessment. Chapters address assessment in different types of US classrooms; how to assess specific skills or requirements; and how assessment can be used in tertiary and music teacher education classrooms. Together, both volumes of The Oxford Handbook of Assessment in Music Education pave the way forward for music educators and researchers in the field.

Educational Change and the Political Process brings together key ideas on both the system of educational policy and the policy process in the United States. It provides students with a broad, methodical understanding of educational policy. No other textbook offers as comprehensive a view of the U.S. educational policy procedure and political systems. Section I discusses the actors and systems that create and implement policy on both the federal and the local level; Section II walks students through the policy process from idea to implementation to evaluation; and Section III delves into three major forces driving the creation of educational policies in the current era—accountability, equity, and market-driven reforms. Each chapter provides case studies, discussion questions, and classroom activities to scaffold learning, as well as a bibliography for further reading to deepen exploration of these topics.

The economics of education is a burgeoning area of study, employing increasingly sophisticated analytical tools to answer questions with high societal impact. Thus, the aim of this handbook is to provide readers with an up-to-date overview of the current state of the field of the economics of education and its main areas of research. This comprehensive handbook provides an authoritative overview of key theoretical and policy areas, covering topics like econometric methods for education economics, returns to education, competition in education provision, education and economic growth, and education and inequality. It reviews the current state of research from early childhood through postgraduate education as well as adult education and life-long learning. Offering a truly international perspective, the handbook benefits from a global group of contributors and attention to both developed and developing country contexts. The Routledge Handbook of the Economics of Education will be a valuable resource for advanced students, researchers, and policymakers across economics, education, and public policy.

This open access book provides insight into what it takes to actively involve teachers in the curriculum design process. It examines different aspects of teacher involvement in collaborative curriculum design, with specific attention to its implications for sustainable curriculum innovation and teacher learning. Divided into six sections, the book starts out by introducing the notion of collaborative curriculum design and discusses its historical and theoretical foundations. It describes various approaches commonly adopted to actively involve teachers in the (co-)design of curriculum materials. Sections two and three provide examples of what key phases in the curriculum design process - such as needs analysis, design and development, and implementation - look like across various collaborative curriculum design projects. Section four reports on the impact of collaborative curriculum design on student learning, teacher practices, teacher professional growth, and institutional change. Building on the research evidence about the outcomes of collaborative curriculum design, section five focuses on sustainability, scaling-up and curriculum leadership issues, which are key to the continuation and further evolution of curriculum innovations. Future perspectives are addressed in section six with emphasis on the infrastructure of a sustainable curriculum innovation.