Chapter 11: Curriculum Standards, Assessment, and Student Learning

Performance-based assessment focuses on students' ability to A) recall previously learned material B) judge the value of material based on specific criteria C) apply knowledge, skills, and work habits D) create new products

C) apply knowledge,skills, and work habits

High-stakes testing may impact all of the following except A) senior qualifying for graduation B) student participation in extracurricular activities C) an administrator being fined D) teachers receiving merit pay

C) an administrator being fined

According to the text, a standard is ____. A) a level of knowledge or skill that is necessary for a specific task B) a level of knowledge necessary for obtaining a job after high school C) a level of knowledge necessary to move a student to the next grade level D) a level of knowledge necessary for good grades on report cards

A) a level of knowledge or skill that is necessary for a specific task

An important part of Standards-Based Education (SBE) in the U.S. is ____. A) aligning curricula and textbooks B) aligning textbooks and course titles C) aligning course titles with high school graduation D) aligning textbooks with special education

A) aligning curricula and textbooks

The phrase "forms of assessment that require the active construction of meaning rather than the passive regurgitation of isolated facts" defines one of the following concepts, specifically A) alternative assessments B) formative assessments C) summative assessments D) pre- and post- test assessments

A) alternative assessments

According to the text, state departments of education, school districts, and schools routinely use standards developed by professional associations as guides for ___. A) developing curricula and assessments of student learning B) determining criteria for high school graduation C) establishing grade promotion criteria D) setting minimal standards for exceptional learners

A) developing curricula and assessments of student learning

Standards documents are routinely prepared by all of the following except _____. A) parent-teacher associations B) professional associations C) local education agencies D) state education agencies

A) parent-teacher associations

"Telling the story of a learner's growth in proficiency, long-term achievement, and significant accomplishments in a given academic area" exemplifies the benefits of A) portfolio assessment B) performance-based assessment C) formative assessment D) pre-test evaluation

A) portfolio assessment

Assessment has been defined as a A) process of observing a sample of student performance B) process of measuring a sample of student attitude C) process of requiring a student to recite D) process of learning about student capabilities

A) process of observing a sample of student performance

Which of the following does not provide a definition of a standard? A) promotion of methodological alignment B) a level of knowledge C) a level of skill D) criteria

A) promotion of methodological alignment

According to the text authors, "standards" in education have come to be seen primarily as statements that ___. A) reflect what students should know and be able to do B) describe minimal achievements C) clearly define the highest levels of academic achievement D) limit the academic growth of students

A) reflect what students should know and be able to do

An analytic rubric can be said to A) require the teacher to score separate product parts B) require the teacher to score whole group products C) require the teacher to score content organization D) require the teacher to score generic frameworks

A) require the teacher to score the separate product parts

Arguments for raising educational standards, include all of the following except ____. A) standards and assessments, however sophisticated, should not be used as a signaling device to students, parents, teachers, and others B) standards can improve achievement by defining what is to be taught C) standards are necessary to equality of opportunity D) national standards provide a valuable coordinating function

A) standards and assessments, however sophisticated, should not be used as a signaling device to students, parents, teachers, and others

The concept known as "score inflation" results in _____. A) students' scores on high-stakes tests rising faster than their scores on other standardized tests given at the same time and measuring the same subjects B) students' scores on standardized tests rising faster than their scores on high-stakes tests given at the same time and measuring the same subjects C) students' scores on high-stakes tests rising faster than their scores on other standardized tests given at different times D) students' scores on high-stakes tests rising faster than their scores on other standardized tests given at the same time but on different subjects

A) students' scores on high-stakes tests rising faster than their scores on other standardized tests given at the same time and measuring the same subjects

Vertical curriculum alignment occurs when _____. A) subjects are connected across grade levels so that students experience increasingly complex instructional programs as they move through the grades B) instructional methodologies are connected across grade levels so that students experience increasingly vague instruction as they move through the grades. C) teachers coordinate instruction across disciplines and examine curriculum to ensure that course content and instruction are compatible D) school administrators coordinate instruction across disciplines and examine curriculum to ensure that course content and instruction are compatible

A) subjects are connect across grade levels so that students experience increasingly complex instructional programs as they move through grades

"Measurement" is A) the gathering of quantitative data related to the knowledge and skills students have acquired B) the making of judgments about or assigning value student scores on a variety of standardized tests C) measuring students' attainment of qualitative goals related to classroom objectives D) the determination of students' grades at the end of an academic term

A) the gathering of quantitative data related to the knowledge and skills students have acquired

"Benchmarks" are content standards that present specific statements about what students should understand and be able to do ______. A) before graduating from high school B) at specific grade levels or developmental stages C) before experiencing significant moral growth as defined by Kohlberg D) at the end of the current academic year

B) at specific grade levels or developmental stages

Concerning national educational standards, the authors of the textbook argue that the US needs to ___. A) remain faithful to the concept of "states' rights" B) develop common, rigorous standards to promote unity C) move beyond an "obsession" with our immigrant past and present D) avoid "teaching" that promotes understanding of the AMerican democratic heritage

B) develop common, rigorous standards to promote unity

Standards-based education is seen as a way to ensure all of the following except ____. A) educational equity across all states B) educational equity in the most populous states C) educational equity for the poorest schools D) educational equity can be measured for accountability

B) educational equity in the most populous states

Innovations in assessment are partly a response to criticisms of the fairness and objectivity of standardized tests that have focused on all of the following except A) class and gender bias B) failure to measure students' general level of intelligence C) failure to accurately measure students' skills D) failure to measure students' levels of achievement

B) failure to measure students' general level of intelligence

In order to ensure strict achievement accountability among their schools, states have imposed all of the following except A) closing low-performing schools B) fining the teachers whose students perform poorly C) arranging for state takeover of low-performing schools D) ranking schools on how well students learn

B) fining the teachers whose students perform poorly

Which of the following is not something promoted by use of "project-based learning"? A) student engagement with learning B) improved memorization skills C) better school attendance D) improved cooperative learning skills

B) improved memorization skills

The authors of your text report that public's opinion about establishing educational standards has been ___. A) remarkably positive B) mixed C) cautious and nonsupportive D) negative

B) mixed

Generally,curriculum frameworks are _____. A) prepared by the U.S. Department of Education B) published by a state education agency C) superior to classroom-based curriculum development D) responsible for ending state authority over curriculum development

B) published by a state education agency

Proponents of adopting national standards cite ___ as a reason supporting their position. A) the US population's linguistic sameness B) social mobility in the US C) the already existing commonality of curriculum in the states D) the absence of racial and cultural diversity in US societ

B) social mobility in the US

When teachers in restructured schools emphasized authentic assessment, their assessments focused on all of the following except A)student's ability to think B) students' skill at reproducing given knowledge C) development of in-depth understanding D) ability to apply academic

B) students' skill at reproducing given knowledge

Classroom assessment provides information that teachers use in all of the following ways except A) to determine how well students are learning the material being taught B) to regularize feedback to students to save time for teachers C) to develop strategies for improving teacher effectiveness D) to determine if students have reached certain levels of performance

B) to regularize feedback to students to save time for teachers

Concerning equal educational opportunities in the US, Jonathan Kozol and others have pointed at what he calls the ____. A) "equalizing influence of American education on students across all socioeconomic levels" B) "Incredible incompetence and absence of concern for their children's education among America's poor and minority parents" C) "savage inequalities within American education" D) "woeful absence of humanity among poor children"

C) "savage inequalities within American education"

Content Standards are often subdivided into _____. A) World Class Standards B) State Standards C) Benchmarks D) Professional Standards

C) Benchmarks

One of the following statements most accurately reflects the meaning of "standards-based education" (SBE), specifically _____. A) using corporate business practices to manage K-12 schools B) placing more control of school curricula in the hands of classroom teachers C) basing curricula, teaching, and student assessment on rigorous standards D) returning schools to the more demanding student behavioral expectations of the past

C) basing curricula, teaching, and student assessment on rigorous standards

When teachers measure students' attainment of knowledge and skills for the purpose of making decisions about their teaching, they are engaged in A) measurement B) alternative assessment C) formative evaluation D) summative evaluation

C) formative evaluation

When teachers within a specific grade level coordinate instruction accross disciplines and examine their school's curriculum to ensure that course content and instruction mesh across and/or within subject areas, they are said to be concerned with _____. A) internal validity B) curriculum frameworks C) horizontal alignment D) curriculum resource development

C) horizontal alignment

One of the following is not a "guiding principle" associated with development of classroom assessments, and is identified as A) clear and appropriate targets B) assessments accomplished by effective communication C) quantitative not qualitative analysis D) recognition that accurate measurement is a must

C) quantitative not qualitative analysis

According to the authors of your text, when children move from one major city in the US to another, they should find in the new locations a curriculum that is A) unique to their new home B) based on local concepts of truth and justice C) recognizable from their previous school experience D) unique to their old home

C) recognizable from their previous school experience

The late Ernest Boyer, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, believed that ____. A) the federal government was too involved in the development of curriculum B) standards and goals in education promote mediocrity C) the United States needs educational standards to motivate its people to excel D) the United States should not compare its educational achievements to those in other countries

C) the United States needs educational standards to motivate its people to excel

Which of the following is not an example of authentic assessment? A) writing a brochure promoting a local school B) making a map C) writing the formula for the area of a rectangle on a test D) producing a video about the community

C) writing the formula for the area of a rectangle on a test

Which of the following is not a student perspective on standards as reported by the authors of your text? A) Curriculum should be personally relevant B) Curriculum should be interesting and meaningful C) Curriculum should help meet the demands of moving into adulthood D) Curriculum should be tied to extracurricular activities

D) Curriculum should be tied to extracurricular activities

Most assessment approaches seek to answer the question, "Do students know content?" Performance-based assessment helps to answer which other important question? A) Do students commit information to memory efficiently? B) Can students reproduce what they know on tests? C) Are students capable of creative though? D) How well can students use what they know?

D) How well can students use what they know?

Which of the following statements is not true of horizontal curriculum alignment? A) It involves teachers examining curriculum across disciplines B) It is centered within a special grade level. C) It seeks to ensure that course content and instruction match across or within subject areas. D) It ensures that subjects are connected across grade levels

D) It ensures that subjects are connected across grade levels.

The movement to assess student learning with ever-increasing numbers of tests has been brought on by A) declining test scores B) international comparisons of student achievement C) calls to hold teachers more accountable D) all of the above

D) all of the above

An alternate assessment is a(n) A) traditional large-scale assessment B) individualized diagnostic assessment C) assessment device common to all learners D) assessment of a unique array of goals and experiences

D) assessment of a unique array of goals and experiences

Encouraging students to develop their own responses to problem situations by allowing them to decide what information is relevant and how that information should be organized and used is an example of A) formative assessment B) curricular control C) summative evaluation D) authentic assessment

D) authentic assessment

The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher found that a significant majority of teachers _____. A) believe that academic standards in schools are too low B) view absenteeism as a major problem C) think that student behavior is out of control D) believe that academic standards are high

D) believe that academic standards high

The facts of life during your tenure as a teacher will include all of the following except _____. A) high-stakes testing for students B) standards set for student achievement C) teachers being held accountable for student learning D) communities losing interest in educational issues

D) communities losing interest in educational issues

Efforts to make curriculum and textbooks parallel national and state standards and "curriculum frameworks" are known as ___. A) curricular parallelism B) vertical adjustment C) curriculum balancing D) curriculum alignment

D) curriculum alignment

One of the following is not a "work habits" disposition as defined by the Coalition of Essential Schools, identified as A) reflecting critically on one's own work B) willingness to work hard C) ability to manage time effectively D) developing dependence on others

D) developing dependence on others

Test score gains attribute to the standards movement ____. A) reflect "real" gains in knowledge the tests were designed to measure B) reflect "real" gains in skills the tests were designed to measure C) do not reflect gains in knowledge, but do indicate moderate gains in skills the tests were designed to measure D) do not reflect "real" gains in the knowledge and skills the tests were designed to measure

D) do not reflect "real" gains in the knowledge and skills the tests were designed to measure

According to the authors of your text, the use of educational sanctions for poor performance by schools may A) significantly improve education in the US B) not improve schools, but will do nothing to harm students C) lead to much more student-friendly classrooms D) present some risk of harm to students

D) present some risk of harm to students

Professional associations have developed specific, grade-level "performance expectations" that establish all of the following except _____. A) levels of achievement B) quality of performance C) levels of proficiency D) quality of character

D) quality of character

According to the authors of your text, a society like the United States, "rich in eithnicities, religions, nationalities, and language groups," needs standards that are _____. A) rigorous and unique to each societal group B) easy to accomplish in order to promote a sens of "I can do it" in all students C) as diverse as the population D) rigorous and common to all

D) rigorous and common to all