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Performance assessments provide students with authentic ways to demonstrate learning, cultivate academic knowledge and 21st-century skills, and prepare for college-level work. School, district, and network leaders should use quality criteria to examine their performance-based assessment policies and structures to foster deeper learning for all students.
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In this issue of the Reimagining College Access Newsletter: a new Complete College America report on the use of k–12 performance assessments in college advising and placement, RCA presentations at upcoming national conferences, and a newly released College Completion Strategy Guide offers direction on evidence-based strategies to advance equitable outcomes for college students.
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Because performance assessments surface examples of how students use their academic and nonacademic learning in authentic situations, they can help admission officers at higher education institutions more fully understand applicants. But a college’s abilities to effectively use reliable evidence of student learning in the admission process depends on how they frame the “ask” for these materials.
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In this issue of the Reimagining College Access Newsletter: an upcoming RCA publication, the use of k–12 performance assessments to inform college advising and placement, and recommendations for advancing equity in college admission.
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In this issue of the Reimagining College Access newsletter: Review of the 4th annual RCA convening, the feasibility of admissions lotteries in higher education admissions, and how districts are expanding the use personalized, competency-based education.
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In this issue of the Reimagining College Access newsletter: Updates on activities from regional RCA initiatives, the latest national news on performance assessment, and recent research and updates to the Common App.
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Many educators seeking to transform schools to allow more student-centered, inquiry-driven, and community-connected approaches to whole child learning face a wide range of institutional barriers. Nevertheless, thousands of schools have been redesigned to promote more student-centered principles, and these schools have created networks that provide schools with models for adopting methods that nurture the whole child.
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Early childhood assessments can provide important information to guide instruction and inform policy. Given the widespread and growing use of statewide kindergarten entry assessments, it is important to understand how to choose and use assessments wisely. This brief summarizes research and provides recommendations for state policymakers about how to select, develop, and implement high-quality assessments that can both improve policy systems and support equitable learning.
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Kindergarten entry assessments, when well designed and well used, have the potential to support high-quality equitable learning by guiding instruction and supporting whole child development. However, when poorly designed or misused they can foster poor teaching practices and exacerbate inequity. Some states and districts have developed thoughtful, holistic systems that can be used from preschool through early elementary school to support developmentally appropriate instruction.
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Thanks to unprecedented funding from the American Rescue Plan and other federal, state, and local resources, school districts across the country are leveraging several evidence-informed strategies to accelerate learning and support student wellbeing. Local initiatives include conducting formative assessments to measure and support students’ growth and health, providing high-quality tutoring that is connected to classroom instruction, and expanding learning time.
