Peabody Journal of Education, Vol. 82, No. 4
Abstract
Academic Improvement Through Regular Assessment
Patrick J. Wolf
Professor of Education Reform and Endowed Chair in School Choice, University of Arkansas
Media reports are rife with claims that students in the United States are overtested and that they and their education are suffering as result. Here I argue the opposite—that students would benefit in numerous ways from more frequent assessment, especially of diagnostic testing. The regular assessment of students serves critical educational and life-learning functions. It focuses the efforts of educators and students on mastering important material. Testing provides educators with crucial intelligence about the needs and abilities of students and the performance of academic programs. Regular assessment provides students and parents with useful feedback regarding how well the student is building important skills and knowledge. It allows both parents and educators to identify motivational and learning problems with individual students at an early stage, when interventions have the greatest prospects for success. It is especially important in the areas of early reading acquisition and special education, supposedly "sensitive" areas where educators often eschew regular assessment. Finally, standardized testing provides students with an important skill—test-taking experience and facility—that will serve them well throughout their lives. A wealth of evidence confirms that testing alone boosts student achievement.
About The Author
Patrick J. Wolf is Professor of Education Reform and 21st Century Chair in School Choice at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. He is principal investigator of the School Choice Demonstration Project and is leading a national research team engaged in comprehensive evaluations of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program and the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. Wolf has authored, co-authored, or co-edited three books and nearly 30 articles and book chapters on school choice, special education, and public management. A 1987 summa cum laude graduate of the University of St. Thomas (St. Paul, MN), he received his Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard University in 1995.
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