《改善大规模教育评估:理论、问题与实践》述评

《改善大规模教育评估:理论、问题与实践》一书从理论、方法论、技术和统计等方面对研究者、实践者和决策者所关心的大规模评估问题进行了探讨。该书主要有4个部分,分别围绕"评估设计、开发及施考"、"评估多样化的人群"、"评分、分数报告和分数使用"以及"心理测量模型和统计分析",对大规模教育评估中的关键问题进行了探讨。本文对该书的主要内容进行了介绍,并就该书提出的若干理念和方法对于改革我国现有的高中学业水平考试的借鉴作用进行了探讨。     

Ethnic Cleansing,Yes; Genocide,No: Textbook Coverage of Ethnic Violence in the Former Yugoslavia

The ethnic violence that occurred in the former Yugoslavia during the mid-1990s has become one of the defining events of recent history. As such, today's students should develop an awareness of the history of that situation and its implications for contemporary society. Because textbooks provide the structure of most high school history courses, an analysis of textbook coverage of the Bosnian and Kosovar situations should provide critical information regarding what students learn about the events that occurred in those regions. This article analyzes how six frequently used history textbooks cover ethnic violence in the former Yugoslavia, thus providing data regarding what students learn about those situations.     

‘But sir,I lied’ – the value of autobiographical discourse in the classroom

This article aims to examine the benefits of teachers using their own autobiographical writing in the classroom. It explores the blurring of truth and fiction in autobiographical writing and argues that teachers can help students if they provide students with the cloak of fiction when writing about their own lives. Furthermore, it puts forward the case that when teachers share pertinent autobiographical episodes then pupils are more willing to respond in an engaged and passionate fashion. In developing my argument, I suggest that autobiographical writing can be therapeutic in certain classroom contexts. The data sources for this article are the author's own life and two case studies: an 11‐year‐old boy, George, and a 15‐year‐old girl, Eloise, both of whom were pupils of the author and wrote autobiographically for him. The methodological approach is that of bricolage: chiefly, the article combines ethnographical observation with interviews and discourse analysis. I also examine quantitative studies which look at the therapeutic dimensions of autobiographical writing. Theoretically I draw on Friere's concept of ‘conscientization’ (Friere 1985: 49) in order to critique the ‘banking’ concept of education, which would close down opportunities for pupils to write freely about their own lives.     

The 'freedom to frame questions … worth asking', or three stories and three (other) fragments of research

In our state of centralised control of the curriculum and high-stakes testing an examination subject's assessment objectives have become high profile. Some of the anomalous effects of this profile are shown in the teaching, question-setting, and marking of English literature. Glimpses of earlier times are revealed, all three secondary school key stages are considered, examination performances are discussed, and the views of beginning teachers about teaching to the test are sought.     

'Bringing Me More Than I Contain …': Discourse, Subjectivity and the Scene of Teaching in Totality and Infinity

This paper explores the relationship between language, subjectivity and teaching in Emmanuel Levinas's Totality and Infinity . It aims to elucidate Levinas's presentation of language as always already predicated on a relationship of responsibility towards that which is beyond the self and the idea that it is only in this condition of being responsible that we are subjects. Levinas suggests that the relation with the Other through which I am a subject as one uniquely responsible is also the scene of teaching. Through examining these ethical conditions of subjectivity, I suggest that this notion of the self as oriented towards the Other in a relation of passivity presents a challenge to many of the standard topoi of teaching and learning and invites us to consider the nature of teaching in a provocative new manner.     

Quality Assessment and 'Self-regulation': the English Experience, 1992–94

This paper examines issues in the debate on quality assurance in the English system of higher education as they have developed between the Further and Higher Education Act of 1992 and the review proposed by the Secretary of State at the end of 1994. The main focus is on the development by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) of its method of quality assessment and the call for the restoration of 'self-regulation' in such matters to the institutions. The role of the institutions in developing the methods adopted by the Funding Council is outlined, and the chief criticisms of its effects evaluated. The paper concludes by reviewing options for change in the immediate future and the conditions that will have to be met. It is argued that systems could undoubtedly be improved, but that key elements of 'self-regulation' have already been won in the continuation of external peer review.     

Assessment matters—Trial,error, triumph: A college rethinks its core curriculum

When students and faculty alike rejected the College of Mount St. Joseph's revised core curriculum, no one dug in their heels to wait out the dissatisfaction.The entire campus engaged in a second round of good, hard discussions about scrapping the new for the newer.     

Quality Assessment with National Institutional Rankings and Performance Funding: The Australian Experiment, 1993–1995

This paper provides a case-study of the Australian quality assurance or quality assessment program which ran for three years from 1993 to 1995. The program was somewhat unusual among recent experiments with quality assurance in OECD countries in that, while it was based on annual academic audits of participating institutions, it also included publication of detailed annual reports on each institution, national rankings of institutions, and performance funding with additional funds coming from a special additional government allocation. In each of the first two years of the program, the most highly rated universities received an amount of additional funding equal to three per cent of their annual government operating grant.     

Introduction of External,Independent Testing in “New Countries”: Successes and Defeats of the Introduction of Modern Educational Assessment Techniques in Former Soviet and Socialist Countries

A particular trait of the educational system under socialist reign was accountability at the input side—appropriate facilities, centrally decided curriculum, approved text‐books, and uniformly trained teachers—but no control on the output. It was simply assumed that it met the agreed standards, which was, in turn, proven by the statistics provided by authorities. The introduction of professional testing methods for national large‐scale assessment efforts and participation in international surveys such as Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) unveiled the myth of the traditional “all is good” message spread by the former party rulers. But another aspect of the introduction of external independent testing has probably even had a bigger impact: the fight against the pervasive corruption in student admission it became part of. If any, the successful use of independent external testing in this struggle has done a lot to have its methods accepted by the audience at large. The article describes the experiences of the author as a senior consultant to ministries and newly established testing institutes in former Soviet and socialist republics.     

Griffin,Patrick & Care,Esther ed (2015) Assessment and teaching of 21st century skills Springer (Berlin) isbn 978‐94‐017‐9395‐7 310 pp €99.99 (ebook €83.29) http://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978‐94‐017‐9395‐7

While learning methods and approaches have changed dramatically in the 21^st century, assessment—especially standardised testing—has remained almost untouched. This volume presents a collection of papers on an innovative approach to collaborative testing. It describes the theoretical framework of an international project and reflects on a challenging perspective of what learning and teaching mean today and will mean tomorrow. If the book sounds likely to be close to your needs, I strongly suggest you buy a copy. Jesús García Laborda