"Some of the conclusions from the review include:
* Assessments appear to be more successful in placing academically prepared students than in placing academically underprepared students.
* Students who narrowly miss an assessment "cutoff" score and who complete remedial courses are no more likely to complete credit coursework than students with similar scores who continue straight to credit coursework without taking remedial classes first.
* Multiple measures for placement, such as high school transcripts and written essays in addition to assessments, may improve placement accuracy, as might the use of more diagnostic and affective assessments.
"What we found is that assessment does not appear to be an effective means of placement for all students," said Dr. Hughes. "States may want to do more research in this area before relying too much on one measure, an assessment score in this instance, for placing community college students.""
The Web site for the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) that was funded by the U.S. Department of Education to develop assessments aligned with the Common Core Standards.
"The Learning Assessment in Missouri Postsecondary Education (LAMP) Advisory Council was created to consider statewide issues surrounding learning assessment in Missouri and to make policy recommendations. "
The Educational Planning and Assessment System (EPAS) provides a longitudinal, systematic approach to educational and career planning, assessment, instructional support, and evaluation.
Automated essay scoring (AES) has many benefits such as immediate grading, reliable reporting, and diagnostic feedback. While automation poses certain operational and technical challenges, more states are adopting AES for both formative and summative assessments. This presentation presents empirical data from the state of West Virginia online writing assessments on the reliability and validity of machine scores.
Study by MDRC looking at the assessment and placement practices of three community colleges. Findings include tremendous variations in approaches to assess and place students in remedial education.
Research done by MDRC looking at the assessment and placement process at three community colleges. It highlights several issues and challenges, including a lack of consensus about the standard for college-level work, the high-stakes nature of the assessments, and the minimal relationship between assessment for placement and diagnosis for instruction.
The report from the Community College Research Center studies the validity of developmental education assessments in predicting retention and student completion odds. While many have focused on instructional innovations, few have studied the empirical power of assessments to predict future performance.
Examines the experiences of Florida, North Carolina, and Virginia in developing statewide diagnostic assessments for course placement at their community colleges. Looks at the implications for California's community colleges, which have been charged with developing diagnostic exams. (EdSource and Learning Works, June 2012)
This report proposes a new opposing forces framework for understanding the dysfunction of the developmental system. Looks at three sets of opposing forces: system-wide consistency versus institutional autonomy; efficient versus effective assessment; and promotion of student progression versus enforcement of academic standards. (Center for Community College Research, November 2011)
Examines the assessment and course placement practices across California's community colleges for incoming students and recommends strategies for overall improvement. (WestEd, September 2010)
California State's early assessment program provides opportunities for students to assess college readiness and take steps to be academically prepared while still in high school
The Early Assessment Program is a collaborative effort between the California State University (CSU), the California Department of Education (CDE), and the State Board of Education to determine a high school students' readiness to do college-level work in English language arts and math and to provide students opportunities to improve skills during their senior year.
Thomas Nenon, the Vice Provost for Assessment, Institutional Research and Reporting, served as a resource expert for GPG's second online Jam, "The Heart of the Matter: Assessment, Placement and Delivery in Developmental Education," in April 2010.