The Student Evaluation Standards: How to Improve Evaluations of Students

“Assessment help for teachers on way,” was the front-page headline of Education Week on May 8, 2002, as Ed Week announced the planned publication of this important volume, which has been approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). This comprehensive framework was created by the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation (http:/jc.wmich.edu/) to guide educators in designing and assessing student appraisals that are fair, useful, feasible, and accurate. Carefully written to ensure their relevance at the classroom level, these Standards were developed with assistance from members of sixteen professional societies: – American Association of School Administrators – American Counseling Association – American Educational Research Association – American Evaluation Association – American Psychological Association – Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development – Canadian Evaluation Society – Canadian Society for the Study of Education – Consortium for Research on Educational Accountability and Teacher Evaluation – Council of Chief State School Officers -National Association of Elementary School Principals – National Association of Secondary School Principals National Council on Measurement in Education – National Education Association – National Legislative Program Evaluation Society – National School Boards Association Arlen R. Gullickson is director of The Evaluation Center and professor of education at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan. Since 1998, he has served as chair of the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation. His and the Center’s work focuses on improving the theory and practice of evaluation.  His writing includes books, chapters, and articles on evaluation. Much of his writing has focused on teacher preparation and practices for evaluation of students and on improving teachers’ assessment practices. He directs an annual national institute on evaluation. Functional Table of Contents The Joint Committee Acknowledgments Invitation to Users Preface Introduction Applying the Standards The Standards 1. Proprietary Standards Service to Students Appropriate Policies and Procedures Access to Evaluation Information Treatment of Students Rights of Students Balanced Evaluation Conflict of Interest 2. Utility Standards Constructive Orientation Defined Users and Uses Information Scope Evaluator Qualifications Explicit Values Effective Reporting Follow-Up 3. Feasibility Standards Practical Orientation Political Viability Evaluation Support 4. Accuracy Standards Validity Orientation Defined Expectations for Students Context Analysis Documented Procedures Defensible Information Reliable Information Bias Identification and Management Handling Information and Quality Control Analysis of Information Justified Conclusions Metaevaluation Appendix: The Support Groups Appendix: Checklist for Applying the Standards Glossary Index