Assessment Education

Using assessment systems to improve student outcomes requires shared understanding and collaboration among education stakeholders at multiple levels. Assessment Education: Bridging Research, Theory, and Practice to Promote Equity and Student Learning presents a powerful call to action for an assessment system that advances equity and offers educators practical applications that promote sound instructional decision making. Each section outlines a research-based approach that supports classroom teaching and student learning. We then draw on the expertise of various education leaders (most notably members of the National Taskforce on Assessment Education) to provide case studies of on-the-ground examples of what these strategies look like in different settings. Every chapter includes stories from the field from various perspectives—teachers, principals, district administrators, and other educational leaders. We conclude with reflection questions that provide an opportunity for readers to examine how the chapter connects to their own context.

The book interweaves practitioner and research perspectives across a number of foundational assessment concepts, presenting a clear perspective on the importance of formative assessment and the role of meaningful teacher and leader collaboration to support growth in assessment literacy. In addition this book provides a clear reminder of the importance of communication with families to help them understand the assessment processes used to support student learning., The authors present a clear picture of how of assessment can support all students’ learning. With examples of educators’ effective use of different types of assessment, they illustrate how professional collaboration maximizes their value to improving student outcomes., Cara Jackson, Beth Tarasawa, and Amelia Gotwals have created an accessible resource that educators will find very useful when thinking/planning/implementing student assessments - which is something we teachers are obviously doing a lot of the time!

Beth Tarasawa is the Vice President of Research at NWEA, where she collaborates with universities, foundations, and school districts to produce rigorous and accessible educational policy research. Her scholarship focuses on issues related to educational equity, particularly those concerning social class, race, and linguistic diversity. Amelia Wenk Gotwals is an Associate Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Michigan State University, where she supports the professional development of preservice and inservice teachers. Her current scholarship focuses on the use of discourse as a formative assessment strategy and ways to promote productive disciplinary discourse in classrooms. Cara Jackson is an Associate Partner at Bellwether Education Partners, where she collaborates with schools, networks, and nonprofits to plan and conduct evaluations of education programs. Cara is particularly interested in using research and evaluation to support improvement efforts in schools and districts.