Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 2 January 2009:
Vol. 323. no. 5910, pp. 75 - 79
DOI: 10.1126/science.1168046
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Perspective

Technology and Testing

Edys S. Quellmalz1* and James W. Pellegrino2

Large-scale testing of educational outcomes benefits already from technological applications that address logistics such as development, administration, and scoring of tests, as well as reporting of results. Innovative applications of technology also provide rich, authentic tasks that challenge the sorts of integrated knowledge, critical thinking, and problem solving seldom well addressed in paper-based tests. Such tasks can be used on both large-scale and classroom-based assessments. Balanced assessment systems can be developed that integrate curriculum-embedded, benchmark, and summative assessments across classroom, district, state, national, and international levels. We discuss here the potential of technology to launch a new era of integrated, learning-centered assessment systems.

1 WestEd, 400 Seaport Court, Suite 222, Redwood City, CA 94063, USA.
2 Learning Sciences Research Institute, MC 057, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1007 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL 60607–7137, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: equellm{at}wested.org

Read the Full Text


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
The Nation's Report Card: A Vision of Large-Scale Science Assessment.
A. C. Fu, S. A. Raizen, and R. J. Shavelson (2009)
Science 326, 1637-1638
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)