The Intersection of Instruction and Assessment: The Classroom.

Educators and educational policymakers increasingly express the belief that assessment should not be used merely to judge how much students know, but also to illuminate the nature of their knowledge and understandings in order to help them learn. The role of classroom-based assessment in this process is explored considering such forms of alternative assessment as portfolios, naturalistic assessment, and documentation. The road to assessment reform begins and ends in the classroom. A few important points in the intersection of instruction and assessment are noted. It is critical to understand and respect local culture and to build on the experiences of teachers, administrators, and parents in the local community. It is also essential to provide teachers with opportunities to develop as professionals so that they can expand their subject matter and teaching expertise and exchange ideas and experiences. It will also be vital to explore and develop a variety of ways to communicate assessment results, aggregating information at different levels for different users. (Contains 16 references.) (SLD)