Hamilton (2003)
What are the major elements of the test-based accountability system? Which element(s) can be used to distinguish high-stakes tests from low-stakes tests?
How does a teacher’s reallocation of efforts toward tested content strengthen/weaken the instructional practice? If you are going to teach K-12 students in an exam-oriented context, what will you emphasize in your classroom instruction?
In which aspects did some state accountability systems contribute to educational equity? Why did some testing critics and researchers claim that accountability policies may negatively affect educational equity?
Taking NCLB as an example, illustrate how test-based accountability systems affect the validity and utility of data gathered from the
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Will the limitations of such tests be neutralized by incorporating classroom-based assessments into the test-based accountability systems?
Airasian (1988)
Why did the public support state-mandated, high-stakes tests in 1980s, when little empirical evidence of their effectiveness was provided? What types of socially desired symbols did these tests possess?
Identify 1-2 cultural symbols of one particular high-stakes test perceived by people in your country, and explain how the symbol(s) contribute to “the confusion between what the high-stakes tests are actually measuring and what they are assumed to be measuring” (p. 308).
Do you agree with the perception that high-stakes tests are motivators of hard work? What kind of motivation (or demotivation) can they provide?
According to Airasian (1988), what are the “dangers” created by the socially perceived symbolic richness of high-stakes tests?
Linn (2000)
As “the darling of policymakers”, what are the strengths of using assessment as an agent of educational reform? What are the frequently ignored cautions for current assessment and accountability