Forty Years of Assessment Issues: Looking Back at the Nineteen 90’s

1. Forty Years of Assessment Issues: Looking Back at the Nineteen 90’s John F. Olson, Ph.D. Olson Educational Measurement & Assessment Services Assessment Solutions Group CCSSO National Conference on Student Assessment June 20, 2010

2. Overview • The 1990s – A Time for Change • Changes in Large-Scale Assessments • Impact of Federal Legislation • Changing Focus in State Assessments • Changes in the CCSSO Large Scale Assessment Conference

3. The 1990s – A Time for Change • Bush  Clinton • No more USSR  End of Cold War • The Gulf War • NAFTA • The Internet, Netscape Navigator • Email and AOL (“You’ve got mail”) • CD burners and DVDs

4. The 1990s – A Time for Change • Dolly the sheep – 1st cloned animal • Hubble Space Telescope launched • Titanic, Forrest Gump, Pulp Fiction… • The Simpsons, Seinfeld, Friends… • Grunge music • End of the 2nd Millennium  Y2K

5. Changes in Large-Scale Assessments in the 90’s • Growth of NAEP • Advent of the Trial State Assessment • Increased state assessments over the years at grades 4 and 8 • NAGB and NAEP achievement levels • More constructed response and performance items, hands on science tasks, arts assessment with performances

6. Impact of Federal Legislation • 1994 ESEA “Improving America's Schools Act” • Challenging academic content standards in Reading, Math, and Science • Assessments aligned to standards • Achievement/performance standards • Accountability systems • Assess all students

7. Impact of Federal Legislation • Peer reviews • Goals 2000 • Voluntary National Test

8. Changing Focus in State Assessments • Authentic assessments • Performance assessments • Inclusion of SWD and LEP students and use of test accommodations • State collaborations and creation of the SCASS projects • Early stages of CBT, CAT and use of other technologies for testing

9. Changes in the CCSSO Large Scale Assessment Conference • Big growth in the CCSSO LSAC  moving out of Boulder • Other sites tried out (Breckenridge, Albuquerque, Phoenix, Colorado Springs, Snowbird) but not always for the better • Changes in large-scale assessment  reflected in the conference program

10. Changes in the LSAC Program • Examples of Topics in 1995 Program: • Portfolio assessment • Performance-based assessment • Assessing LEP students • Including SWDs in state and national assessments • Assessment accommodations; legal perspectives and policy implications

11. More Changes in the LSAC Program • More Examples of Topics in 1995: • Collaborative development of assessments (SCASS) • Validating NAEP achievement levels • Evidence of alignment • Establishing performance standards • Strategies for promoting Goals 2000 • [40 sessions in 1990  80+ in 1999]

12. By the End of 1999 – Some Trends Foretelling the 21st Century • More and more testing being added to state programs • All really means all • Increased accountability • TX assessment program (a model?) • Better and better technology • The next generation of measurement experts and psychometricians – where?

13. Questions? • Contact John F. Olson Olson Educational Measurement & Assessment Services jmclkolson@yahoo.com Assessment Solutions Group jolson@assessmentgroup.org