Beyond the Bubble Test: How Performance Assessments Support 21st Century Learning

Chapter 8A New Conceptual Framework for Cost Analysis

Lawrence O. Picus, Frank Adamson, William Montague, and Margaret Owens

The use of assessments in schools continues to expand alongside our growing expectations of what school children need to know and be able to do when they graduate. The standards-based approach to education reform has focused attention on the role of standardized tests and created higher stakes for both students and the education professionals who serve them. At the same time, the press for continued improvement in student learning, as measured by state-established learning and performance standards, has caused schools to rely more heavily on assessment tools as part of data-driven decision-making processes. Despite the ...