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What is Special Education? 1
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Pre-Test
1. You can use the terms disability and handicap
interchangeably. T/F
2. The history of special education began in Europe. T/F
3. The first American legislation that protected students with
disabilities was passed in the 1950s. T/F
4. All students with disabilities should be educated in special
education classrooms. T/F
5. Special education law is constantly reinterpreted. T/F
Answers can be found at the end of the chapter.
6Curriculum and
Assessment
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Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to
• Describe the various forms a curriculum can assume in the
classroom.
• Identify and describe forces that shape curriculum
development.
• Analyze key aspects of both formative and summative

assessments, including validity, reliability, and
transparency.
• Define, compare, and contrast traditional quantitative
measures with assessment for learning and
alternative/authentic assessment.
Section 6.1Defining Curriculum
The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think,
than what
to think—rather how to improve our minds, so as to enable us to
think for
ourselves, than to load the memory with the thoughts of other
men.
—John Dewey
Teachers make important decisions about what students should
learn on a daily basis. How-
ever, they do not do so in a vacuum. In this chapter, you will
examine the meaning of curricu-
lum, the process of curriculum development, and the forces that
shape it. You will discover
that deciding what students should learn is not an easy task. It
is further complicated by the
influence and expectations of several groups in addition to
teachers. Expectations range from
standards set by state legislatures to national programs to
recommendations espoused by
professional organizations. In the midst of all these influences,
the teacher is expected to be a
pivotal player in making curricular decisions.

Teachers also determine what their students know or have
learned, and this chapter also
introduces the role of assessment in the classroom. We have all
taken assessments. In fact, a
good portion of the time you spent in school likely involved
preparing for an exam or waiting
for its results. School is typically about defined stages: pre-
assessment, teaching, learning,
and then post-assessment or evaluation. Assessments are meant
as a guide to planning for
additional teaching and learning. Thus, it is important that they
provide information that will
help teachers improve instruction. And yet, if teachers lack
understanding of assessment’s
purposes, they may focus solely on determining what students
have or have not learned, with
no plans for future learning. If teachers are to prepare students
for the changing world they
will inherit, they must help them become resourceful, creative,
lifelong learners who own
their learning by taking responsibility for it. Assessment can
play a definitive role in this pro-
cess, guiding teachers to make curricular and instructional
decisions that help their students
take responsibility for determining the next steps in their
learning journey.
6.1 Defining Curriculum
Thus far, we have been using the term curriculum to refer to
“the specific content that stu-
dents are taught.” The history of the word, however, is a bit
more complex. Originally, the
word came from the Latin verb currere, meaning “to run a
course.” Thus, the original meaning
of the word was a course of study. (Note: This Latin derivation
explains why the plural form

of curriculum is curricula.) A curriculum was originally
conceived of as a set of courses that
students would complete in a manner similar to running around
a track. Completing a course
(i.e., passing an examination) was analogous to reaching the
finish line. Many still view cur-
ricula in this manner. Perhaps you see your own college
program of study in this way. Yet,
this traditional definition overlooks other aspects of the school
curriculum. Therefore, the
term curriculum has come to mean much more than the courses
students take, even leading
to controversies as to its correct definition, with at least 120
definitions by one researcher’s
count (Marsh, 2004). Here are just a few to demonstrate the
differing views and philosophies
of those who create the definitions:
• “Permanent” subjects such as grammar, reading, logic,
rhetoric, mathematics, and
the greatest books of the Western world that best embody
essential knowledge.
• Those subjects that are most useful for living in
contemporary society.
• All planned learnings for which the school is
responsible.
• The totality of learning experiences provided to
students so that they can attain general skills
and knowledge at a variety of learning sites.

• What the student constructs from working with
the computer and its various networks, such as
the internet. (pp. 4–6)
The first of these definitions assumes that the curricu-
lum should be limited to a few, unchanging, traditional,
knowledge-based subjects. The final definition assumes
the opposite: that our future 21st century will be noth-
ing but constant change. Each of the definitions is lacking
in some fashion. For that reason, for the purposes of this
chapter the much more basicdefinition given
above―the
content that schools teach―will suffice.
Principles of Curricula
While we have chosen to use a basic definition of curricu-
lum, there are several principles that can be assigned to it:
• Planning. A curriculum results from the planning
efforts of educators. A well-designed curriculum does not just
happen. Forethought
must be given to various curricular components (e.g., content,
teaching methods,
and assessment tools).
• Purpose. The intended outcome of any planned curriculum
is for learning to occur. A
simple way to conceive of learning is as a change in some
behavior, attitude, knowl-
edge, or skill. Thus, the curriculum is designed to bring about
some kind of change.
Although learning is the primary goal, more specific objectives
(or intended out-
comes) also are part of curriculum development. What a school
or individual teacher

is trying to accomplish drives the curriculum. The basic
question in curriculum
creation is, “What do students need to know and be able to do?”
An extension of the
question might pertain to changes in attitude.
• Focus. Students are the focus of a curriculum—they are
the intended audience. Thus,
a language arts curriculum for 6-year-old learners will be
markedly different from
one for 16-year-old students. The developmental needs and
abilities of students are
a major consideration during curriculum planning.
• Philosophy or ideology. As evidenced in the curriculum
definitions mentioned, educa-
tors may have differing views about curriculum development. In
addition to those
that were listed, some may be highly prescriptive and others
more open ended as to
goals for students’ learning.
• Fluidity. A curriculum comes to life when it is enacted in
the classroom. However, the
curriculum on paper and the curriculum in action may differ
somewhat. For exam-
ple, two teachers can take the same curricular content and
implement it in their own
Album/Album/Superstock
John Dewey was the father
figure for American progressive
education, and he believed that
an educated population provided
the foundation for a civilized and
democratic society.

unique ways. Individual teaching styles (and students’ learning
styles) have a major
impact on how a particular area of the curriculum is delivered.
Types of Curriculum
Most of the time we associate the word “curriculum” with its
traditional meaning and the one
adopted by this text: the content that schools teach.
Nevertheless, it is important to note that
schools have more than one kind of curriculum, particularly
because one of them is actually
something of a secret!
The explicit curriculum is that which is openly and publicly
stated (Eisner, 1994). This for-
mal curriculum consists of the courses of study, the curriculum
guides, the content of adopted
textbooks, and the standardized tests used to measure student
achievement. The explicit cur-
riculum is that which exists on paper; it is the official
curriculum of a school or school district.
It is also made up of teachers’ lesson plans and statements about
what they intend to teach
and the intended outcomes. For example, a teacher’s
presentation to parents at the annual
“Back to School” night concerning what their children will
learn that year would constitute
the explicit curriculum.
The implicit curriculum, which some call the “hidden
curriculum” or “informal curriculum,”

consists of what is indirectly taught. The implicit curriculum is
what a school teaches “because
of the kind of place it is” (Eisner, 1994, p. 93). In other words,
if it is the “kind of place” that
values cooperative learning, desks will probably be placed in
groups that encourage working
together. If, on the other hand, the teacher wishes the students
to understand that he or she
is the authority figure, desks will be placed in rows facing the
teacher’s desk at the front. The
teacher’s desk will definitely be the largest one in the room,
while the cooperative learning
teacher may not even have a desk. In addition to furniture
configuration, methods of teach-
ing also send messages and educate.
Thus, students who are frequently
exposed to cooperative activities learn
the importance of working together
without the teacher giving them a les-
son on collaboration; those who listen
to the teacher lecture from the front of
the room don’t need to be told who is
in charge.
The null curriculum is “what schools
do not teach” (Eisner, 1994, p. 97).
Eisner pointed out that what schools
do not teach often has a more power-
ful effect than what they do teach. In
particular, he expressed concern about
the lack of attention schools give to the
“cultivation of imagination,” as well
as the neglect of such subjects as law,
anthropology, and the fine arts (Eisner,

Ann Cutting/Exactostock/Superstock
The choice of what to include or exclude from the
curriculum can be a contentious one, as seen in
the debate surrounding recent moves by states to
end the teaching of cursive handwriting in public
schools.
1979, p. 97). Therefore, the null curriculum is that which is
absent or overlooked, and Eisner’s
observations of more than 30 years ago remain true today.
Subjects most related to the cul-
tivation of imagination such as art, music, dance or movement,
and drama have continued to
disappear from many or most schools.
Educators also recognize a fourth type of curriculum—the
extracurriculum. This consists of
all the “extras” or outside activities sponsored by schools, such
as chess clubs, debate teams,
sports teams, and Spanish clubs. Many high school students find
the extracurriculum the
most powerful aspect of their school experience. A similar
model, called the co-curriculum,
includes outside activities that are tied to a school’s academic
classes, or formal curriculum.
For example, if a school teaches drama and also has a drama
club, then the club would be
co-curricular. On the other hand, a chess club at a school would
be considered extracur-
ricular because there is no corresponding chess class. Some
educators prefer co-curricular
activities to extracurricular, reasoning that they are more

integral to education and extend
student learning.
One of the most educationally powerful activities that might be
designed either as extra-
curricular or as co-curricular is service learning. Although its
roots are in the early 20th
century with John Dewey’s views on experiential education,
today’s service learning began
its development in the 1970s (Berman, 2006). As such, there are
schools, or programs
within schools, that require community service experiences for
high school, or even mid-
dle school, graduation. These may not be connected to academic
courses and can therefore
be defined as extracurricular. Alternatively and more
commonly, service learning projects
are designed as required elements within specific classes. These
then are co-curricular
activities. While there is no single model for implementing such
a service learning project,
or any specific subject area that it must be tied to, most projects
share common elements
(Berman, 2006):
1. Selecting the need for service. Teachers and students together
choose a project “that
balances student interest, community need, and authentic
learning” (p. xxiv).
2. Finding a community partner. When students help with
making final choices,
“they learn more about problem solving, decision making, and
cooperative action”
(p. xxiv).

3. Aligning the service experience with educational goals. The
teacher focuses the
students’ attention on both their service goals and the content
standards of
their course.
4. Managing the project. Berman states that “frequent
assessment, review, and revision
of the plan keep a project on course” (p. xxiv).
5. Fostering reflective student learning throughout the project.
Students keep reflective
journals and other types of documentation related to both
academics and service.
Speaking for older students in particular, one educator
(Andrews, 2013) has stated that the
skills they acquire through co-curricular activities “give
students the best chance of shaping
their future” (para. 1) because they expand on and deepen the
in-class experience. The five
steps just described demonstrate the truth of this statement.
Section 6.2Developing Curricula
Assess Yourself
1. From the several definitions given of the word, how would
you define curriculum?
2. Recall a learning experience from elementary, middle, high
school, or even college
that resulted from an implicit, or hidden, curriculum. What
effect did it have on you?
Why do you think you still remember it?

3. What extracurricular or co-curricular activities did you
participate in when you were
in school? In what ways did you feel that these activities either
enhanced or detracted
from your academic classes?
6.2 Developing Curricula
The most helpful structure for curriculum development can be
described as a framework,
particularly when it is viewed as “a springboard and focus for
teachers. To a certain extent,
[frameworks] are a tool of control and direction. Yet, they can
also be a stimulus for evoking
creative ideas and activities” (Marsh, 2004, p. 19). One such
systematic process that has been
popular in the past and is still well regarded today comes from
Ralph Tyler’s classic book
Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction (1949). This
slim volume presents what came
to be known as the “Tyler Rationale.” It was Tyler’s
observation that teachers most often got
so caught up in simply covering content that they neglected to
consider what the final, and
rational, goals of learning were to be. He concluded that most
teachers and professors “were
preoccupied with their immediate tasks and scarcely aware, if at
all, of what they wanted stu-
dents to acquire” (Finder, 2004, p. 21). Today, curriculum
design quite regularly starts with
the stated goals, and curriculum planners have Tyler to thank
for the creation of this model
of a framework. Curriculum development according to Tyler
(1949) should be based on the
following four questions:

1. What educational purposes does the school seek to attain?
2. What educational experiences can be provided that are likely
to attain these
purposes?
3. How can these educational experiences be effectively
organized?
4. How can we determine whether these purposes are being
attained? (Tyler, 1949, p. 1)
Using these questions as a guide, educators can proceed through
four stages as they develop
a curriculum. One example given by Tyler of problematic
curriculum development was that of
a second-grade teacher simply assuming the need to cover the
material in her second-grade
reader. Using Tyler’s 4-step framework (1949), here is how
plans might be developed more
effectively:
1. Selecting and defining objectives. When choosing objectives,
developers should take
into account the content to be taught as well as standards,
student needs and inter-
ests, and the influence of contemporary life. Perhaps the second
graders are due to
read a fantasy story in which dragons and frogs overcome their
self-identification as
enemies when the frogs accept an opportunity to save the life of
a baby dragon. The
teacher knows that most of the children have great interest in

dinosaurs and guesses
that this interest will transfer easily to dragons. The children’s
contemporary life is
addressed through dealing with issues related to friendship and
overcoming fear.
The teacher decides to focus on helping the children reflect on
these two issues as
her teaching objective. Of course, there are standards to meet,
and these are inserted
automatically through district and school guidelines.
2. Selecting and creating learning experiences. These should be
motivating to learners
and at an appropriate level for student capabilities. Without this
framework, the
teacher would simply have the children read the story silently,
then out loud, and
finally answer content questions to determine understanding.
This time, however,
she will have children role play the events that lead to
overcoming fear in favor of
friendship. They will themselves determine plot lines that might
differ from the
story’s and create the dialogue to match.
3. Organizing learning experiences. Plans are made to
incorporate a sequence of learn-
ing and possible opportunities for curriculum integration.
Drama is now added to
the reading assignment. In addition, an art project might be a
mural or a sequenced
set of illustrations that explore the story more fully. Entries in
the children’s daily
journals add writing.
4. Curriculum evaluation. Both student and curriculum are

evaluated to determine if
original objectives have been met. The teacher will be able to
tell, through drama,
journaling, and art, if the children are achieving a growing
understanding of overcom-
ing fear in favor of friendship. As a long-term goal, she hopes
that playground behav-
ior might actually demonstrate what they have learned. She
knows that, in a problem
situation, she might be able to say as a reminder, “Do you
remember how the dragons
and frogs showed how to be friends?”
Although Tyler’s concepts have come under criticism for their
lack of flexibility, they remain
influential even after many decades, providing a useful
framework for planners, whether
they be teachers, schools, or system-level personnel. According
to a Tyler biographer, “Ralph
Tyler’s achievements have remained unmatched. . . . It is no
wonder that governments, foun-
dations, and seven presidents of the United States sought his
counsel” (Finder, 2004, p. 6).
More modern frameworks typically contain more components,
especially if they are school-
or district-wide. A complex version would include:
• A rationale or platform
• Scope and parameters of the curriculum area
• Broad goals and purposes of subjects within the
curriculum area
• Guidelines for course design
• Content
• Teaching and learning principles
• Guidelines for evaluation of subjects

• Criteria for accreditation and certification of subjects
• Future developments for the area (Marsh, 2004, p. 21)
For a framework to be comprehensive and well developed, it
should have strong links between
theory and practice, include up-to-date resources, and be
inspiring to both teachers and stu-
dents (Marsh, 2004).
Curriculum Orientations
Another choice teachers might make when developing a
curriculum has to do with how they
want the curriculum to be organized. Curriculum development
can be subject centered, stu-
dent centered, or somewhere in between these two extremes. A
subject-centered curricu-
lum focuses on the content of various subject areas, whether
that content primarily consists
of knowledge (such as in history) or skills (such as in
keyboarding or physical education).
The teacher’s job is to deliver instruction or to model skills in
order to help students mas-
ter the content. In a subject-centered curriculum,
standardization exists whereby students
are taught uniformly a body of knowledge. Traditionally, the
curriculum of the typical high
school has been more subject centered, with content mastery
and course credits emphasized;
elementary school curriculum is traditionally less structured.
In recent years, the concept of a structured national core
curriculum for both elementary

and high school has taken hold in the United States. Known as
the Common Core State Stan-
dards Initiative (CCSSI), the end product thus far includes
curriculum goals for language arts
and literacy and for mathematics (National Governors
Association Center for Best Practices &
Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010). According to the
CCSSI, the standards are:
1. Research and evidence based
2. Clear, understandable, and consistent
3. Aligned with college and career expectations
4. Based on rigorous content and the application of knowledge
through higher-order
thinking skills
5. Built upon the strengths and lessons of current state
standards
6. Informed by other top-performing countries to prepare all
students for success in our
global economy and society (Common Core State Standards
Initiative, n.d., para. 6)
In addition, the CCSSI states that
the mastery of each standard is essential for success in college,
career, and
life in today’s global economy. . . . With students, parents, and
teachers all on
the same page and working together toward shared goals, we
can ensure that
students make progress each year and graduate from high school
prepared to
succeed in college, career, and life. (Common Core State
Standards Initiative,

2014, para. 3–4)
The approach taken by the CCSSI is a national effort that
exemplifies a subject-centered
curriculum.
A student-centered curriculum, on the other hand, focuses more
on the process of learning
and emphasizes affective goals in addition to cognitive and
psychomotor outcomes. The view
of children’s development is largely constructivist.
Constructivism, as discussed in Chapter
3, supports a student-centered curriculum whereby students
“construct” their own meaning
from knowledge. In a student-centered curriculum, there is a
greater focus on individual stu-
dent growth and subjective perspectives. The teacher’s role is
that of a facilitator who guides
students’ development. The curriculum of elementary schools
traditionally has been more
student centered, with a greater focus on designing activities
that match students’ needs and
interests.
One way to create a student-centered
curriculum is to ignore subject divi-
sions in favor of focusing on topics of
interest with what is called an inte-
grated curriculum. This approach
has long been used at early childhood
sites, was adopted somewhat later by
elementary schools, and has been

attempted most recently in secondary
education and even colleges. Its major
characteristics include being a curric-
ulum that is based on student interests
while incorporating specific subject
matter, having learning goals that per-
tain to the topic being studied instead
of relating to test preparation, and
focusing where possible on applica-
tions to real life.
Subjects can be combined at various
levels of integration. In one model,
skills are nested within an academic subject. For example, a
social studies project could be
designed to promote group work skills by having students work
in teams. In another model,
several learning experiences are gathered together based on a
theme. This model is most often
used for younger children when attention need not be paid to
specific academic subjects. A
popular choice of theme includes a focus on a current season,
for example, “The Changes We See
in Fall” or “The Flowers of Spring.” A third model of
curriculum integration is to weave a theme
or topic throughout a number of academic subjects. For
example, a scientific study of butterflies
is expanded to include experiences in art, music, and literature
(Krogh & Morehouse, 2014).
It takes creativity and extra effort, but teachers can design an
integrated curriculum while
still meeting the requirements of local, state, and national
standards. It should be noted that
the requirements of the CCSSI do not include structuring
subjects individually; rather, they do

allow for the flexibility provided by an integrated curriculum.
Nevertheless,
this approach is under siege given the issues of high stakes
testing and
accountability. The future of integration will depend on
[teachers’] commit-
ment, their ability to marry standards into curriculum
integration and the
kinds of support they receive from administrators, parents and
other stake
holders as they plan and execute integration. (Etim, 2005, p. 10)
Building Your Portfolio
One of the things that will make you stand out as a teacher will
be your ability to develop engag-
ing lessons that complement the curriculum and vision of your
district/building/grade level
team. Take some time to write down your ideas on how present
curricula should be changed
to better prepare students for living in an information age and
competitive global economy.
Associated Press
Lee Baxter, an Oklahoma State Board of Education
member, with a page from that state’s plan for
curriculum development. The path from educational
research to legislation and implementation is
complex.
Bloom’s Taxonomy: A Tool for Curriculum Development
A helpful tool for planning curriculum is Benjamin Bloom’s

(1956) Taxonomy of Educational
Objectives: Cognitive Domain, typically known as Bloom’s
taxonomy (see Figure 6.1). This
classification system offers a way of conceptualizing the
thought processes involved in dif-
ferent learning tasks. Bloom and his colleagues borrowed the
term taxonomy from biology
to ensure consistency of meanings regarding educational
objectives. They were impressed
with biologists’ use of taxonomies and their agreed-upon
terminology and definitions. Bloom
stated that his goal in helping to create the taxonomy was to
help “facilitate communication”
across the educational landscape (Bloom, 1956, p. 11).
Bloom’s work has had a far greater impact on the educational
field than simply facilitating
communication. It has become a staple in education and is still
consistently used by teachers
to define how well a skill or competency is learned or mastered.
In fact, Bloom’s work intro-
duced the idea that thinking and its related skills have a
hierarchy that moves from simple to
complex knowledge and from low- to high-order levels of
thinking. This system classifies and
defines intellectual behaviors that are important in learning. In
particular, his work focused
on classifying objectives into three overlapping domains:
cognitive, affective, and psychomo-
tor. In the cognitive domain, there are six levels in Bloom’s
original taxonomy: knowledge,
comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.
A revision of Bloom’s taxon-
omy changed the names of the levels to verbs, rather than
nouns: remembering, understand-
ing, applying, analyzing, creating, and evaluating. Each level

requires a different and, as it
moves higher, more complex thought process. In recent years,
educators have altered the tax-
onomy slightly, reversing the order of creating and evaluating.
They have become “convinced
that to come up with something new is more challenging than
evaluating what already exists”
(Heacox, 2002, p. 68).
Teachers can use Bloom’s taxonomy to make curricular
decisions that ensure students move
beyond the knowledge level and incorporate higher-order
thinking. For example, let’s say a
teacher is planning a unit on the Civil War. She could ask her
students to “list three causes
of the Civil War,” which would be a knowledge-level objective.
This might be an appropri-
ate question at the beginning of the students’ study. It would
also be the right level to ask of
a cognitively challenged student. She could also ask students to
“compare and contrast the
Civil War with the War of 1812 in terms of military equipment,
strategy, and leadership.” This
objective would be at the analysis level. Bloom’s taxonomy
helps teachers develop curricula
that challenge students to think, whether they are capable of
higher-level thought or only of
more basic levels.
Figure 6.1: Curricula and Bloom’s taxonomy
The verbs in this figure suggest what skills a student should

learn or master in relation to each
of Bloom’s six categories of educational objectives. The
revision of Bloom’s taxonomy uses verbs
rather than nouns (e.g., “creating” instead of “synthesis”) and
places “creating” above “evaluating.”
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Bloom’s revised taxonomy
of educational objectives

Remembering
Understanding
Applying
Analyzing
Evaluating
Creating
Related verbs
• copy, duplicate, list, learn, replicate, imitate, memorize,
name, order, relate, reproduce, repeat, recognize, . . .
• indicate, know, identify, locate, recognize, report, explain,
restate, review, describe, distinguish, . . .
• demonstrate, plan, draw, outline, dramatize, choose,
sketch, solve, interpret, operate, do, . . .
• calculate, check, categorize, balance, compare, contrast,
test, differentiate, examine, try, . . .
• assess, choose, appraise, price, defend, judge, rate,
calculate, support, criticize, predict, . . .
• arrange, write, produce, make, design, formulate, compose,
construct, build, generate, craft, . . .
Building Your Portfolio
Bloom’s taxonomy, although more than a half century old, is
still widely known and used
among educators. It will be helpful for you to understand and be

able to apply its ideas in your
teaching. Select a grade and subject you would like to teach.
Narrow your choice to a proj-
ect of interest to you and your potential students. List an
activity that would be appropriate
for each of the cognitive levels (remembering, understanding,
applying, analyzing, evaluating,
creating).
Influences on Curricula
Without a doubt, teachers play a critical role in making
curricular decisions. Although the
teacher may not have selected the textbook, he or she decides in
what order to present the
content, what chapters to omit, what topics to emphasize, and
how much time to spend on
each section. The teacher decides, as well, what technology will
enhance the textbook’s infor-
mation. Also of importance, according to much research, are
students’ learning styles (Marsh,
2004). When adapting available materials, teachers must be
willing and able to pass curricula
through the filter of their own students’ learning styles, needs,
interests, and abilities. They
must be able to design a curriculum, not merely implement it.
A curriculum is also shaped by a teacher’s philosophy. A
teacher who believes that the pur-
pose of education is primarily to teach students to think
critically will plan different activities
than will the teacher who thinks mastery of a body of
knowledge is most critical. A teacher

whose philosophical orientation is progressive might focus on
educating the whole child and
thus would include topics that reflect societal issues that affect
students (e.g., environmental
education). A teacher whose philosophical bent is essentialist
might stress students’ intellec-
tual development and emphasize teaching facts.
The decisions that teachers make regarding content have
implications not only for students
but also for colleagues. What if a third-grade teacher decided
not to teach a county- mandated
study of the multiplication process? What would her students do
when they reached fourth
grade? How would this teacher’s decision affect the work of the
fourth-grade teachers? (Con-
sider yet another scenario in Case in Point: A Teacher’s Right
to Choose later in this section.)
Teachers’ desire for autonomy in curriculum decision-making
must be balanced with the best
interests of students, other teachers, parents, and additional
public education stakeholders
such as future employers.
However, there are other influen-
tial factors as well. For example, one
such influence is tradition. The pub-
lic generally expects that schools will
teach the basics: reading, writing, and
arithmetic. At times, the reasoning
“We have always taught X, so it must
be important” can block curricular
reform efforts.
Another example might be called
“social forces.” Changes in society

often are reflected in the school’s cur-
riculum. When our economy was more
agriculture based, the curriculum of
the basic R’s was sufficient. The cur-
riculum must be responsive to the
changing times and demands of society. For example, units on
drug education were added to
the school curriculum in the late 1960s as a result of the
widespread use of illegal drugs in
Photosindia.com/Photosindia.com/Superstock
The decisions we make as teachers affect not only
our students, but also our colleagues; the impact of
our choices can be felt long into the future.
the United States. More recently, AIDS education has entered
the curriculum because of the
increasing number of individuals with this disease. Furthermore,
technology is changing not
only the content of curriculum but also the process of
curriculum development. With the click
of a mouse on the Internet, teachers and students have access to
information that either was
unavailable in the past or would have taken significant time and
energy to locate.
Of even greater influence on the curriculum in recent years have
been standardized tests.
From the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation of the
George W. Bush years, to the revised
version of the Obama administration known as Race to the Top

(RTTT), states are requiring
students to score well on mandated tests in order to receive
federal funding for their schools.
The content of these high-stakes tests is having an impact on the
curriculum as well. It is
often said that “what gets measured is what gets taught.” If
proper punctuation is tested, then
teachers will emphasize this skill in their teaching. The impact
of NCLB and RTTT has been
criticized by those who say that teachers feel obligated to teach
to the test. When instruc-
tional time focuses on preparing students to pass standardized
tests, other curricular areas
are neglected. The difficulty lies in the inability of tests to
measure all learning. However, the
increasing use of performance-based tests as critical to
obtaining funding is changing what
and how schools teach.
Finally, politics plays an enormous role. Until recently, each
state had adopted its own stan-
dards, so there had been little consistency across states about
what was taught at each grade
level. However, the introduction of the Common Core State
Standards Initiative (CCSSI) was
intended to replace the individual state standards currently in
place and bring consistency
regarding what students need to learn and how assessment takes
place. Proponents of coun-
trywide standards point to the fact that American students are
being outperformed by those
in other countries and that the inconsistency between state
standards is contributing to our
students being outperformed. They argue that, for our students
to be competitive in the global
economy, there must be a consistent set of standards across the

country (Common Core State
Standards Initiative, 2014).
Opponents of consistent national standards have long argued
that each state has its own
unique and diverse needs and should design its standards based
on those needs. The argu-
ment is often made that education is a fundamental right of the
state, and therefore the deci-
sion as to what the standards should be lies with how each state
defines them (Schencker,
2012). States that make this argument have often refused to join
others in the creation of a
core curriculum. In addition, other states have come to believe
that the national government
has co-opted a movement that was originally created by and
among the states without such
interference. Some of these states have subsequently also
dropped out. The ensuing politi-
cal battles have made it difficult to identify at any particular
time how many states currently
participate in the CCSSI.
The curriculum governing your state or workplace may tell you
what to teach, but remem-
ber that how you teach is up to you. As we have mentioned
earlier in this chapter, as well
as throughout Chapter 3, educators must be aware of how each
student learns best, what
motivates him or her to learn, and what environmental factors
and personality traits will
affect learning.
Section 6.3Defining Assessment

Case in Point: A Teacher’s Right to Choose?
After reading the district’s curriculum guide for 10th-grade
biology, Carla, a newly hired sci-
ence teacher, announces to a colleague next door, “I don’t care
what the school board tells me
to teach; I am going to decide what to teach my students in
biology. I’m the one who specialized
in this area; therefore, I’m the one most qualified to determine
what students need to know.
Don’t you agree with me on this?” When her colleague
expresses some doubt, Carla challenges
her to a contest: They will see whose students score best on the
state test in May. Carla is con-
fident she will win.
Questions to Consider
1. As a teacher, how much freedom do you think you will have
to make decisions like
this? If you believe that requirements from the school board,
state, or federal govern-
ment will hinder your students’ academic progress, what will
you do?
2. Do you think Carla might win? Or not? What are your
reasons?
6.3 Defining Assessment
[E]ducators must critically examine facts and theories and not
be dazzled
by tests just because they look scientific or because governors,
or legislators,
and community leaders believe that tests reveal “the truth”
about children’s
learning.

—Constance Kamii
Assessment refers to the process used
to determine, in measurable terms, the
knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs
of the learner (Poehner, 2007). For
many of us, the conventional memory
of school involves a teacher teaching
and students taking tests. There were
quizzes, pop quizzes, essay exams,
final exams, midterm exams, unit tests,
spelling tests, multiplication tests, and
so on. They all had one thing in com-
mon: They provided a mechanism for
the teacher to measure the level of
mastery of a subject or skill.
These assessments were likely seen
as being separate from the process of
iStock/Thinkstock
Strategies used to assess learning undergo a
constant process of reevaluation and revision.
teaching and learning. That is, the role of assessment was not an
integral part of learning, but
rather a separate element that came after the teaching and
learning occurred. Again, think
back to your experience in school. It was likely that at the end
of a unit of study you took a test
and received a grade. The assessment or test you took did not

change the process of teaching
and learning. That is, as far as you could tell, no changes in
instruction occurred because a
new unit of study began, and the test did little to inform the
teacher’s future practice. What
was occurring was an assessment of learning—using assessment
to measure how much stu-
dents have learned up to a particular point in time.
Times have changed—the focus of using assessments is no
longer to simply capture a point
in time, although it can be that. Now, however, we also speak of
assessment for learning. In
other words, the assessment is designed to help guide the
teaching and learning process, not
just to evaluate where a student is in his or her knowledge
acquisition.
Before we discuss the process of assessment for learning, let’s
look at common types of
assessments and how they compare to one another. In general,
assessments can be compared
through a few lenses—the frequency with which they are
administered, their use by teachers
and students, and the scope of what they cover and don’t cover.
There are two types of assess-
ments that are frequently used in education that you will need to
become familiar with. They
are called formative and summative assessments. Each has its
own important role, and both
are part of a comprehensive system of using assessment in the
classroom.
Formative Assessment
Formative assessment is used to inform future practice. Its goal
is to improve teaching and

learning. An assessment is considered formative when its
information is fed back into the
system and improves performance in some way (Wiliam &
Leahy, 2007). It is administered
during the instructional process and may be immediately used to
make adjustments to form
new learning (Shepard, 2008). Formative assessment is arguably
the most significant type of
assessment because it is used to inform learners and teachers
about the progress students
are making and about the next steps in the learning process
(Orlich, Harder, Callahan, Trev-
isan, & Brown, 2010).
Formative assessment can take the form of quizzes, anecdotal
notes written by teachers or
students, reflective journals, short tests, homework, and
assignments (see Table 6.1 for addi-
tional examples). However, it is essential to note that formative
assessment is not a prod-
uct, despite what the companies that market them as products
may say. Rather, it is how
the results are used that determines whether the assessment is
formative or not (Chappuis,
2005; Chappuis & Chappuis, 2011; Chappuis, Stiggins,
Chappuis, & Arter, 2011).
Let’s take, for example, the time-honored aspect of homework.
While its usefulness has been
hotly debated (Cooper, 2007; Cooper, Robinson, & Patall, 2006;
Kohn, 2006; Marzano & Pick-
ering, 2007), its purpose is the key area to focus on when
determining if homework is forma-
tive in nature. For example, if its purpose is simply to give
students something to complete at
home, it is not particularly useful and is not a formative

assessment. However, if students are
asked to use the homework in preparation for a class discussion,
or to analyze a concept and
bring back questions that will inform future teaching and
learning, then it is formative.
Table 6.1: Examples of formative assessment
Name of assessment Purpose Actual use in classroom
Quizzes To get a quick update on the learning
process
Teacher or students grade quizzes
and determine which types of prob-
lems they answered correctly and
which they did not. Results guide the
teacher’s decisions for next steps, and
the students learn their strengths and
weaknesses. Feedback is immediate.
Running record
reading assessment
To give an update on strengths in
reading or reading level, and what
areas need to be focused on
Students and teachers have a clear
understanding of their reading level
in order to choose “a just right” book
to read as well as which specific

areas require attention. Feedback is
immediate.
Thumbs up or
thumbs down
To give the teacher information on
whether the class understands the
topic at hand
Students put their thumbs up or
down to let the teacher know whether
they understand the concept at hand.
Teacher can shift the lesson in the
moment.
Journal reflection To provide an opportunity for stu-
dents to share their thoughts (using
blogs or paper) and for the teacher to
read student reflections
Teacher has the ability to use reflec-
tion to assess multiple aspects of
learning and hear complete thoughts
from each student. A great way to
check for misunderstandings and
clear up misconceptions in future
lessons.
Show and response Using a mobile device, slates, or indi-
vidual whiteboards, students list their
answers and show them.
Teacher receives immediate feedback
regarding a concept being taught and
an opportunity to shift lesson in the

moment.
Summative Assessment
In contrast to formative assessment, the purpose of summative
assessment is to determine
a student’s overall achievement level in a specific area of
learning at a particular time (Black,
Harrison, Hodgen, Marshall, & Serret, 2010; Harlen, 2004,
2005). Summative assessments
provide a summary of the information that students know,
understand, or can do (Black &
Wiliam, 2009).
Summative assessments include state assessments, district
benchmark or interim assess-
ments, end-of-unit or chapter tests, end-of-term or semester
exams, or records that are used
for accountability for schools (Annual Yearly Progress) and
students (report card grades).
Summative assessments are not made for adjustments in the
teacher’s curriculum design or
lesson plans; formative assessments accomplish this. Summative
assessments are tools used
to help evaluate the overall effectiveness of programs, school
improvement goals, alignment
of curriculum, or student placement in specific programs
(Garrison & Ehringhaus, 2007).
Summative assessments can take the form of examinations, term
papers, course projects,
portfolios, or even final performances. Summative assessment is
about judging the final

product or the sum of what a student has learned up to a point in
time. Put another way,
summative assessment is used to award a grade, score, rating, or
even a certificate at the
end of a time period. Table 6.2 demonstrates how and where
summative assessments might
be used.
Table 6.2: Examples of summative assessment
Name of assessment Purpose Actual use in classroom
Exam To understand the level of learning
on a unit of study or at the end of a
specific period of time by providing a
grade or performance level indicator
Students receive a grade or perfor-
mance level indicator that identifies
how well they learned the covered
material.
State standardized
test
To determine if students have learned
what they were supposed to learn in
a specific grade or content area and
to provide a comparison between
students
Results are used to gauge students
as meeting or not meeting standards
and to determine school success and
whether school will receive rewards or
consequences.

District assessment To determine student mastery of
skills based on standards or specific
outcomes
Results are used to judge student
performance and teacher success in
helping students reach academic goals
and standards.
Presentation of a
project
To determine student understanding
of an in-depth study
Oral presentations, role plays, written
reports, etc. demonstrate student
success in understanding the studied
material.
Summative feedback is high stakes when compared to formative
assessment. It goes far
beyond the teacher and students using assessments to make
curricular judgments and
adjustments. For instance, companies rely on the results of
summative assessments, such as
licensing tests, to gauge the quality of a potential employee.
Teachers have to pass a range of
high-stakes tests to prove their competency and earn a license.
Depending on whether teach-
ers want to teach multiple subjects, as one would do in
elementary school, or a single subject
in middle or high school, they are required to pass a basic skills
test, a specific subject-level
test, or courses or a test related to teaching students who are

English language learners. Each
state has different requirements, but there is often a multitude
of tests a teacher must pass in
the process of becoming licensed. This also occurs in a range of
other fields and professions.
While summative assessment occurs at the end of a unit or
course of study and formative
assessment occurs during the learning process, there are times
when the lines between what
is summative and what is formative blur. For example, the
results of a summative assessment,
while having an important element of finality to them, can still
be used to inform future teach-
ing just as the results of formative assessments do.
Case in Point: Summative or Formative?
Let’s look at two different scenarios in which an assessment
process would be used:
• Suppose you are teaching 11th graders how to create
architectural plans using 3D soft-
ware. Throughout the unit of study, you have given your
students a weekly quiz that cov-
ers the material they learned that week. You intend to use the
quizzes as a study guide
and to provide your students with sample questions that might
be on the final test. Are
these quizzes summative or formative assessments? Explain
your reasoning.
• Suppose you are teaching a group of seventh graders.
“Today our focus is on comput-

ing the mean, median, and mode,” you tell the class. As a quick
review of the previous
lesson, the class used electronic responders that digitally
recorded their answers to
the warm-up problems on the board. Virtually everyone solved
the problems correctly.
Just as you are about to switch gears, Jameka raises her hand
and asks if there are two
possible answers to problem seven. A quick poll shows that the
class is evenly split
over whether there could be two possible answers. To further
analyze the question, you
break the class into groups of three to determine if there is more
than one answer. After
20 minutes, the groups report their thinking. You record each
group’s thoughts on the
board and then engage the entire class in analyzing the problem.
Did you use a process
that was formative or summative in nature? Explain your
reasoning.
Question to Consider
1. Summative questions are often part of test design and are
used to grade students’
learning. In what ways do you think that formative questioning
can help students feel
more confident and less nervous or fearful about upcoming
summative testing?
For an interactive version of this case study, visit your e-book.
Validity, Reliability, and Transparency
What would make one assessment better than another? At one
level, we might consider which
assessment provides the most information and feedback or

which is the most efficient and
provides the most flexible way to capture students’ thinking. On
another level, we might think
about which is the easiest to grade and will provide the most
direct feedback to the teacher
and the student. Each of these factors is important and merits
consideration. But perhaps the
most important factors are whether the assessment is valid,
reliable, and transparent.
The validity of an assessment tool is the extent to which it
measures what it was designed to
measure (Kubiszyn & Borich, 2010). For example, a test of
reading comprehension should not
require students to compute mathematical formulas; a test
measuring sixth-grade scientific
skills should not include eighth- or ninth-grade science skills.
On the surface, this may seem
rather obvious. However, creating a valid test may be more
difficult than you think. Take for
example Ms. Lee, a first-grade teacher, who wants to assess her
students’ knowledge of subtrac-
tion processes. Students are given an assessment consisting of
several word problems involving
subtraction. Do you think this type of test will measure
students’ mastery of this skill? Is this
a valid test? To answer this question, picture yourself as a first
grader who is just learning to
read, although you have successfully memorized the required
subtraction facts and have a clear
understanding of the processes. Now, you are faced with an

unexpected reading challenge and
become so overwhelmed with it that you are unable to
concentrate on the subtraction. Further,
Ms. Lee’s instructions about subtraction processes did not
include making decisions related to
story problems. In two major ways, this test lacks validity;
depending on how students face up
to the reading challenge, it may or may not assess their
knowledge of the subtraction processes.
An assessment is reliable when it yields consistent results over
time. This is important
because of the need to ensure a cycle of continuous teaching
improvement. If an assessment
produces significantly different results over time, even though
it is given in similar circum-
stances, the results become questionable and data analysis
becomes ineffective. Reliability
is also important because others, such as parents, students,
governments, and the wider
community, depend on the results to make a wide range of
decisions for the future, such as
whether a student is admitted to college or is promoted to the
next grade. Ms. Lee has real-
ized that her test was not a valid one, and she has created a new
version that focuses solely
on subtraction processes. No stories are included. She is
comfortable with the test’s validity.
Meanwhile, as might be expected, the children are learning
more subtraction facts as the days
pass. Ms. Lee wants to know if her approach will stand the test
of time: Is the assessment not
only valid but also reliable? This Friday, she will give a similar
assessment incorporating this
week’s new subtraction facts. On Monday, Ms. Lee will give the
same assessment again as a

check-up. If the Monday scores are about the same as they were
on Friday, she will know that
she has created a reliable test.
Finally, an assessment must be transparent so that students,
parents, and the community are
aware of what students are expected to learn and what success
looks like. Let’s return to Ms.
Lee’s class and her subtraction lessons. It is safe to assume that
students and parents were
aware that the assessment would focus on subtraction because
the class had been working on
the unit for some time. Simply put, transparency means that
students and parents are aware
of what learning is expected and what is being assessed. Our
role as teachers, particularly
when giving assessments, is not to trick students or to create
tests that are intentionally dif-
ficult or cumbersome in nature, but rather to partner with
students and give them a clear and
transparent roadmap for learning and success.
Transparency within the community at large is also important.
This means that parents,
community members, and school board members are aware of
test results and what
schools are doing in regard to them. Part of this need is in
response to the political climate
surrounding assessments in education today. There has been
much controversy through-
out the history of assessment in the United States. A test means
something much different
in a classroom now than it likely did 40 years ago. Then, you
might have taken a teacher-
designed test every 6 weeks to evaluate your comprehension.
Today, it is likely that the

test will be standardized, with the same version given across an
entire district or state. Ms.
Lee is less likely to have created her own test, unless she did it
to prepare her class for the
upcoming standardized district assessments. Pressures from
society and parents, as well as
the increased pressure from politicians, have framed how
students’ assessments are given,
reviewed, and viewed today.
Section 6.4Using Assessment Effectively
6.4 Using Assessment Effectively
There are few areas of education that are as contentious and
often controversial as the role
of assessments. The subject evokes strong emotions and
reactions from teachers, administra-
tors, students, and the general public. For years, the controversy
over high-stakes testing has
had proponents arguing the importance of holding districts,
schools, teachers, and students
accountable for learning (Evers & Walberg, 2004; Madaus,
Russell, & Higgins, 2009). On the
other hand, opponents have argued that the emphasis on high-
stakes testing has narrowed
the focus of teaching and forced teachers to teach to the test
(Wiliam & Thompson, 2008).
Policy debates swirl at the national, state, and local levels as to
what the results imply and
whether these tests are too stringent, focus on the right factors,
or should simply be discarded.
The fervor behind these debates is not without cause;
assessment results have enormous

implications. At the state and national levels, high-stakes
assessments provide data that are
used to make decisions on a range of issues. For instance, in
addition to using data to decide
which schools may receive rewards or penalties based on test
results, realtors and businesses
tout the desirability of a neighborhood based on local school
assessment results. People move
to neighborhoods based on test scores. In today’s information
age, assessments provide more
than just data for a point in time; they serve as actionable
information for individuals—from
students to teachers, administrators, and community
stakeholders.
At the classroom level, parents and students judge progress and
success on assessment
results, while teachers use them to make a variety of judgments
and decisions regarding stu-
dent achievement and what subjects need to be the focus of
classroom instruction. Assess-
ments have an impact on students’ sense of self and on their
identities. After all, from a young
age, we are often acculturated into thinking of ourselves as
being part of the high or low
group, based on scores received on assessments. Can you recall
being in a group in school
based on your perceived learning ability? What role did
assessments play in how you, your
parents, or your teachers judged your performance and standing
in class? Assessments com-
municate important messages to us (Wiliam, 2011).
Thus, when considering assessments, we must ask some
fundamental and important ques-
tions: What is the purpose of the assessment that we are giving?

Do we want an assessment
of learning or for learning? How will the results of the
assessments be used? Who will see
the results, and will these individuals be provided any guidance
in understanding or using
the results? Lastly, will the results ultimately, and perhaps most
importantly, help students
improve and achieve greater success?
Limitations of Standardized Testing
Many states have developed accountability systems to gauge
student performance, providing
a grade for each school based on standardized test results. The
intent has been to measure
school quality and hold schools accountable for student success
in reaching state standards.
There is often a vast difference between intent and result,
unfortunately. One unintended
result has been states lowering their academic standards to
ensure an increased passing rate
on standardized tests, thus avoiding possible consequences for
falling short of the No Child
Left Behind (NCLB) Act’s Race to the Top (RTTT)
requirements. A study by the U.S. Depart-
ment of Education (2009) shows that nearly a third of states
lowered their academic profi-
ciency standards in an effort to avoid possible sanctions from
NCLB.
Consider also the effect of standardized test results on
curriculum and instruction. Each year,
students take year-end standardized tests; the intent is not only

to determine what students
have learned, but also to gauge the strengths and weaknesses in
teaching—and thus make
improvements for the following year. However, the results of
these year-end assessments
generally arrive months after the test is given, typically in the
summer. If students did poorly
in the reading comprehension section, it is too late to make
changes to instruction or to focus
students’ attention on areas of needed improvement. It is like
comparing apples and oranges:
Data are analyzed using a group of students who have moved on
and are used to plan instruc-
tion for a group of students who likely have different needs and
abilities.
Assessment for Learning
Arguably, the most important element of an assessment is how
it guides the learner and
teacher in the next steps of the learning process. Take, for
instance, a reading test a teacher
might give in first grade. Once the assessment is complete, the
teacher has current and rele-
vant information to help make instructional decisions for those
students. For example, the
teacher may realize that it will be important to focus the
children on blending sounds together,
using context clues to understand the meaning of a word, or
chunking a word into syllables to
decode it.
This is, of course, an example of forma-
tive assessment. However, while the
term has become synonymous with
assessment for learning, the principles
of assessment for learning actually run

much deeper. Assessment for learn-
ing is any assessment created to pro-
mote students’ learning, rather than
for the purposes of ranking or certi-
fying competence (Black, Harrison,
Lee, Marshall, & Wiliam, 2004). Today,
assessments must play a central role
in shaping teaching and learning and
actively engaging students in their
own learning process. Assessment in
the classroom setting must give rise
to students taking ownership of their
learning and understanding how to
learn, rather than just what to learn. In other words, it must be
personal in nature. In the case
of the first-grade reading test, the children can and should be
made aware of the concepts
that must still be mastered. Assessment for learning can be a
driving force in helping students
become lifelong learners and gets to the heart of what it means
to create a positive learning
environment.
Criteria for Effective Assessment for Learning
There are five key elements that are essential for a program that
incorporates quality assess-
ment for learning: clear purposes, clear targets, sound design,
effective communication, and
student involvement (Stiggins & Chappuis, 2006). We will
review each element in detail.
Blend Images/Blend Images/Superstock
Effective assessment helps students take control of
their own learning.

First, if our purpose is to use assessments to guide instruction
and improve student learning,
then we have to know why we are assessing students and when
it is appropriate. Teachers
make a range of decisions, some of which occur daily and some
of which occur throughout the
week, based on what they learn from their teaching experiences.
They change their lessons,
focus on targeted skills, or change student groups based on
student feedback. Other deci-
sions, such as when they give grades or seek additional support
services for students, happen
less frequently. Consequently, having a clear purpose for the
assessment and its results will be
critical to ensuring that teachers focus on the right factors and
use time and resources well.
Just as important as having a clear purpose is having clear
targets for what is to be learned,
and the assessment must match the learning target. After all,
teachers should not assess an
undefined goal or something that has not been outlined to the
students as the area of focus.
Many times, the instruction in the classroom does not match the
focus of an assessment.
The third component of an effective assessment plan is a
soundly designed assessment. When
using or creating an assessment, it is important to ask whether
the assessment will produce
accurate and usable results for both teacher and student. It is
also important to determine
whether the results will provide the type of information needed

to serve the intended pur-
pose. Given the range of assessments that are available, it is
important to ensure the right
assessment is chosen for the right purpose. Once the assessment
is complete, effectively
communicating the results is also essential to helping students
make progress. After all, the
results will be used to drive improvements in student learning
and instructional practice.
The communication must, however, be tailored to the group of
students who will receive
the results. This means teachers need to consider the level of
details to share, the language
used (technical and nontechnical), the message to share, the
timing of sharing the informa-
tion, and its format. All of these factors will have an effect on
how students internalize the
information.
Lastly, the focal point of the process should be student
involvement. In the classroom, assess-
ment is no longer something that the teacher alone should
control. In fact, students and
parents are expected to be able to use many of the assessments
given in the classroom to
understand the next steps in the learning process. Students
should be one of the primary
consumers of the assessment data. If teachers want students to
take responsibility for their
learning, students need to be engaged continuously and
consciously as instructional decision
makers, while teachers become secondary (Stiggins & Chappuis,
2006). In other words, the
students now assume responsibility alongside the teacher for
their own learning. It is impor-
tant for students to discover their own learning processes, to

assess their own progress, to be
actively engaged in learning and generating knowledge, and to
have the process become per-
sonal. Assessment activities can promote learning if they
provide feedback to help students
and teachers assess themselves and modify teaching and
learning activities appropriately
(Black et al., 2004). As we have seen in the first-grade reading
example, even very young chil-
dren are capable of this.
Or take, for example, a sixth-grade classroom that is studying
ancient civilizations. As part
of the introduction of the unit, the teacher sets out the goals for
the unit and asks students
to take a pre-assessment in which they share their knowledge
about history and also iden-
tify what they hope they will learn. As a follow-up, the teacher
shares with the students the
results of the pre-assessment and asks them to partner up to
develop a plan for what they
need and want to learn. After meeting with the teacher to clarify
their plans, the students are
then given the freedom to take off on their learning adventure.
Throughout the process, there
are interim formative assessments that help inform the students
of their progress, the knowl-
edge they have gained, and the areas where they need to dig
deeper and gain more mastery.
In this example, the ownership of the learning is shared by the
teacher and student, but the

student is empowered to seek out information and uses the
assessments as guideposts to
determine progress.
The change in philosophy that can occur in the classroom with a
shift from assessment of
learning to assessment for learning can have a definitive impact
on the minds and hearts of
students. Assessment for learning involves students in their own
assessment, which helps to
build confidence and maximize their achievement and shows
that students are also instruc-
tional decision makers (Stiggins & Chappuis, 2006).
Assessment Alternatives
While traditional quantitative measures—percentages, ordinal
rankings, percentiles—are
useful in comparing students’ performance with that of other
students, assessment for learn-
ing and authentic assessment take assessment a step further.
Authentic assessment is
understood to measure accomplishments that are worthwhile,
significant, and meaningful, as
opposed to those that are simply measured quantitatively. To
put it more succinctly, authentic
assessment “requires authentic tasks that show students’
abilities. Students receive feedback
and redirection to allow for growth; students have a part in the
process and the outcome”
(Janesick, 2006, p. 1). Additionally, authentic assessment can
be an activity or challenge “that
mirrors those faced by experts in the particular field; it is
complex and multidimensional and
requires higher levels of cognitive thinking such as problem
solving and critical thinking”
(Montgomery, 2001, p. 4).

Because an assessment frequently requires some form of
performance to qualify as authentic,
a synonym for this term is performance-based assessment. The
performance is often called a
task or a product outcome. Such tasks take more time than
quantitative assessments do and
lack their efficiency. Grading a task, for example, is not
typically a matter of just entering a
numerical score on a grade sheet. Rather, it is expected that
evaluative commentaries will
provide students with deeper and more useful information, but
this takes time. Further, such
performance evaluations are difficult to rely on when across-
grade or across-school evalu-
ations are needed. Thus, although authenticity is welcome for
both students and teachers,
it does not effectively serve the same purposes as standardized
tests. Potential examples of
authentic tasks are many and might include the following:
• Writing or directing a play
• Creating a video
• Engaging in a presentation or lecture
• Constructing some form of artwork
• Sharing a piece of writing (poetry, journal entries, essays,
short stories)
• Inventing something
• Making a computer program
• Creating, testing, and sharing a recipe
• Keeping a portfolio, either electronic or one containing
actual artifacts

Portfolios, the final example on this list, are perhaps the most
well known of the assessments.
They have long existed in fields such as commercial art for
which a demonstration of one’s
capabilities is important for employment or entry into an
academic major or institution. In
recent years, portfolios have been found useful in education at
all levels, from kindergarten
onward. There are different types, depending on their primary
goals:
• The working portfolio. For work in progress, a working
portfolio can begin as early
as kindergarten when children first learn to evaluate their own
efforts and perfor-
mance. Artifacts such as artwork and other projects, writing
samples, and math-
ematics papers can be saved for student reflection done
cooperatively with the
teacher. As students reflect on their work over time, they can
see actual evidence of
their progress.
• The record-keeping portfolio. This portfolio contains
report cards, test results,
and other records as needed. It is often inserted as a part of a
different and larger
portfolio.
• The showcase portfolio. This is the portfolio that
demonstrates a student’s or job
applicant’s capabilities. Most frequently, its contents are pulled
from the working
portfolio with only the very best examples chosen for inclusion.

• The electronic portfolio. Any of the first three models can
be kept electronically,
although the younger the student, the less likely that this will be
appropriate. Advan-
tages of an electronic portfolio include being able to easily take
records when mov-
ing from one school to another, the ability to display materials
more elegantly, and
an opportunity for students to refine their computer skills
(Janesick, 2006).
While authentic assessments are more closely tied than
quantitative assessments are to the
reality of what happens in the classroom and to what matters to
students, it is important to
remember the importance of quantitative assessments as well.
The function of portfolios can
be expanded by including within them all the results of a
student’s standardized tests that
will be needed in the months and years ahead. These will most
likely be inserted within the
electronic version of a portfolio.
Portfolios can be a useful, even essential, way of preparing for
employment as a teacher. In this
text, we have provided you with this opportunity, including
reflection questions that can be
used as entries once your portfolio graduates from being a
working portfolio to a showcase.
Combining Student-Centered Learning With Authentic
Assessment
Beginning with the ideas and philosophy of John Dewey in the
early 20th century, student-
centered learning has often taken the form of projects. At the
University of Chicago, where

Dewey created a laboratory school to test his ideas about
project learning, students from
kindergarten upward directed much of their own learning.
Arguing that such an approach
provides the deepest challenge and the most education, Dewey
said:
To satisfy an impulse or interest means to work it out, and
working it out
involves running up against obstacles, becoming acquainted
with materials,
exercising ingenuity, patience, persistence, alertness, it of
necessity involves
discipline—ordering of power—and supplies knowledge. (1900,
p. 37)
Summary & Resources
In the 1980s, the Canadian Sylvia Chard and American Lilian
Katz revisited Dewey’s project
model of education and created an updated version that consists
of three basic steps (Katz &
Chard, 2000):
• Phase I: A topic of study is chosen by the teacher, by the
students in collaboration
with the teacher, or by the students themselves with guidelines
given by the teacher.
Young students tend to choose concrete topics or objects from
nature to study. Older
students delve into more complex and sophisticated topics.
• Phase II: This is the phase where the most work is
accomplished. It involves research

done at the level appropriate for the students’ ages and abilities.
As much as possi-
ble, it takes place in the field with real people, places, and
events, rather than simply
in the classroom learning about things that are elsewhere.
• Phase III: Authentic assessment takes place in Phase III.
The previous section in this
text (“Assessment Alternatives”) lists a number of ideas that
would be appropriate
for concluding a research project of this sort. An additional and
often used assess-
ment in kindergartens and first grades is a role-play center
related to what the
children have been studying. Similar to the traditional
kindergarten housekeeping
corner, the role-play center lets children demonstrate through
their play that they
understand their project at a deep and personal level. At the
other end of the school
years, high school students might make use of PowerPoint to
present their findings
to their class or to a larger group as appropriate. The skills
involved in preparing
and presenting through this method are skills that will be useful
in both college
and career.
Despite the demands and requirements of standards and tests
associated with recent federal
legislation, student-centered teaching and assessment for
learning are recognized by knowl-
edgeable educators as the most effective route to education. It
is, in fact, possible to teach and
assess in this way and still demonstrate that students can score
as high as, if not higher than,

students who engage in more rigid approaches to their
education.
Summary & Resources
Chapter Summary
A curriculum consists of the course of study, but it is more than
that. It can be both explicit
and implicit as well as null, and each of these is important to
students’ education and to teach-
ers’ ability to teach effectively. Today’s approaches to
developing curricula were first created
in the early 20th century with influences from John Dewey and
in the mid-20th century from
Ralph Tyler. Updates since that time have come full circle, with
a return to the influence of
Dewey. Orientations to curricula include subject centered and
student centered. In recent
years, a national movement toward a core curriculum has
emerged, but objections to some
of its elements as well as political considerations have led to
difficulties in attaining the
original goals.
Assessment is an important part of a curriculum and teaching. It
too is influenced by politi-
cal issues, in that national movements favor high-stakes testing
while educational research
has led to a preference for so-called authentic assessment. For
effective assessment, it is
important to consider assessment for learning rather than
assessment of learning. This is
true whether the teacher is engaged in formative or summative
assessment, and whether

Summary & Resources
the assessment is by means of tests or by the creation of
products or performances. Authen-
tic assessment is especially effective when tied to student-
centered learning. One particu-
larly popular approach to this combination is project learning,
first introduced by Dewey and
updated in the 1980s.
Questions for Further Critical Thinking & Reflection
1. From the teacher’s standpoint, what would be the advantages
and disadvantages of
enlisting community and parental input in curricular matters?
2. How has your opinion of assessments changed or evolved by
reading this chapter?
Do you think both formative and summative assessments have a
place in the class-
room? Why or why not?
3. Do you think that homework is an appropriate tool for
formative assessment? Why
or why not? Please expound on your answer with specific
examples and reasons.
4. Other than using the assessment process as a means to have
students develop
responsibility for their own learning, what other strategies do
you think would
accomplish this goal? How would you teach these other
strategies? How would you
know if students were successful?

5. Do you think there is good reason to use assessment for
learning to support teachers
(as well as students)? That is, rather than assess a teacher at one
point in time with
a summative assessment, should we create a system of formative
assessments that
provides ongoing feedback to teachers to help guide their
improvement? Explain
your reasoning.
6. Can you think of a time that you took an assessment with
questionable validity?
What factors contributed?
7. Do you think it is possible to make each and every
assessment a valid test? When
students complain that a test was unfair, they usually mean that
it lacked validity.
What steps might you take to be sure that your tests—both those
you create and
those that are standardized—are valid?
8. Do you think a specific style of assessment, such as multiple
choice, true or false,
or essay, offers a more reliable way of assessing student
knowledge? Explain your
thinking.
9. Do you think there is a difference between the level of
reliability a national test must
have versus that of a classroom-based assessment? Explain your
thinking.
10. Do you believe there should be an element of surprise to
tests rather than complete
transparency? Explain your thinking.

Web Resources
ASCD (formerly known as The Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development). This
international organization has much information on curriculum
development, particu-
larly on integrated curriculum.
http://www.ascd.org
Bridges for Kids Resource Site. This site focuses on children
with special needs but has
resources for all others as well. It provides up-to-date
information on the No Child Left
Behind Act and other legislation.
http://www.bridges4kids.org/ESEA.html
http://www.ascd.org
http://www.bridges4kids.org/ESEA.html
Summary & Resources
A Brief History of Student Learning Assessment: How We Got
Where We Are and a Proposal for
Where to Go Next. Richard J. Shavelson’s 2007 article provides
an overview of the histori-
cal forces that have shaped our expectations and uses of
assessments and some direc-
tion for the future.
http://cae.org/images/uploads/pdf/19_A_Brief_History_of_Stud
ent_Learning_How_
we_Got_Where_We_Are_and_a_Proposal_for_Where_to_Go_N
ext.pdf
Edutopia: An Introduction to Integrated Studies. Based on the

viewpoint that integrating sub-
jects produces the best learning, this website features both an
article and a video. The
information is appropriate for any student.
http://www.edutopia.org/integrated-studies-introduction-video
Edutopia: Kindergarten Project-Based Learning. This website
contains a video about a class
of 5-year-olds who enhanced their learning through creating
projects. Edutopia’s view
is that the teacher will have set the children up for lifelong
learning by engaging in this
methodology.
http://www.edutopia.org/kindergarten-project-based-learning-
video
Additional Resources
Here are a few books that offer guidance for curriculum and
assessment development.
Although two of them have been around for quite a few years,
they are still available and are
considered useful classics.
Dueck, M. (2014). Grading smarter, not harder: Assessment
strategies that motivate kids and
help them learn. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Jacobs, H. (1995). Mapping the big picture: Integrating
curriculum and assessment k-12. Alex-
andria, VA: ASCD.
Stevenson, C., & Carr, J. (1993). Integrated studies in the
middle grades: Dancing through
walls. New York: Teachers College Press.
Key Terms

assessment The process used to determine
the knowledge, skills, or attitudes of the
learner.
assessment for learning Assessment for
the purpose of improving the curriculum,
the teacher’s teaching methodology, and the
students’ ability to learn.
authentic assessment Assessment that
requires students to perform authentic tasks
that demonstrate their abilities, rather than
take traditional tests.
Bloom’s taxonomy Created by Benjamin
Bloom in the mid-20th century, a pyramid of
cognitive activities or tasks that range from
simple to complex.
co-curriculum Outside activities and
school clubs that are tied to classes within
the formal curriculum.
core curriculum As proposed and devel-
oped by a coalition of state governments,
literacy and mathematics curricula that are
agreed upon as being essential to students’
learning. Teaching methods are not part of
the requirements.
ent_Learning_How_we_Got_Where_We_Are_and_a_Proposal_f
or_Where_to_Go_Next.pdf
ent_Learning_How_we_Got_Where_We_Are_and_a_Proposal_f
or_Where_to_Go_Next.pdf

http://www.edutopia.org/integrated-studies-introduction-video
http://www.edutopia.org/kindergarten-project-based-learning-
video
Summary & Resources
explicit curriculum The publicly stated
content that is taught.
extracurriculum Outside activities and
school clubs that are not tied to classes.
formative assessment Ongoing assess-
ment as opposed to final or evaluative
assessment.
implicit curriculum The hidden curricu-
lum, or what is taught that is not publicly
stated.
integrated curriculum Content that
crosses subject matter and focuses instead
on topics of interest.
null curriculum What is not taught in
schools that, perhaps, should be.
student-centered curriculum Content that
is at least partly chosen by students because
of their interests.
subject-centered curriculum Content
that is chosen by educators based on their
beliefs about what is important for students
to learn.

summative assessment Assessment that
comes at the end of a project, course, term,
etc. Contains an evaluative component.
Running head: [SHORTENED TITLE UP TO 50
CHARACTERS]
1
[SHORTENED TITLE UP TO 50 CHARACTERS]
4
Software Development Project
Prof. Don Morgan
Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
Name : Venkata Mamidi Rama
ID : 248315
Software Development Project
Problem/Opportunity
At the present, the organization is operating using the
traditional software development approach which seems to be
static and does not embrace change. However, the organization

needs to adopt the use of agile software development which is
more flexible adaptable to changes. Moreover, the organization
needs to find suitable ways to meet the growing customer
demands. In the traditional software development system, the
process is carried out holistically. On the other hand, the agile
software development approach adopts the use of iterations
which embraces continuous change and enable the software
development teams to break down the phases into smaller
sections in-order to frequently deliver effective software.
Goal
As identified, there is a growing need within the company to
deliver a better system which has the capability of meeting the
growing needs by the customers. Therefore, the main goal of the
project is to adopt the use of agile software development as
opposed to the traditional method.
Objectives
1. Replace the traditional software development approach with
agile development approach.
2. Ensure enhancement of the operations of the organization.
3. Ensure that customers’ needs are promptly met.
4. Come up with a long-term suitable software system for the
organization.
5. Train the staff on the newly installed software.
Success Criteria
1. All software development processes are migrated to agile
development approach.
2. All the operations of the organization are enhanced such that
the needs of the customers are fully met.
3. The entire staff of the organization can access and use the
new system.
Assumptions/Risks/Obstacles
1. The organization still functions using the traditional software
development system.
2. Migration to agile development approach will enable the
organization to meet its objectives.
3. Migration to the agile software development approach can be

costly.
4. Operations of the organization may be stalled by the
migration.
What is Special Education? 1
iStockphoto/Thinkstock
Pre-Test
1. You can use the terms disability and handicap
interchangeably. T/F
2. The history of special education began in Europe. T/F
3. The first American legislation that protected students with
disabilities was passed in the 1950s. T/F
4. All students with disabilities should be educated in special
education classrooms. T/F
5. Special education law is constantly reinterpreted. T/F
Answers can be found at the end of the chapter.
9Becoming a Teacher
David De Lossy/Exactostock-1598/Superstock
Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to
• List your own pros and cons for choosing teaching as a
career.

• Identify characteristics that distinguish most professions.
• Describe the latest developments in teacher education and
certification and their implications for teachers.
• Cite ways that teachers can continue to grow as
professionals.
• Summarize the roles and benefits of professional
organizations.
• List the components of a teaching portfolio and the
benefits of having one.
• Explain some ways to keep up to date regarding the
teaching profession and its application to you.
Section 9.1Entering the Profession
Education, to me, is not theory. It is not requirements. It is not
lesson plans.
Education is felt. It is shared. It is a commitment to all the
children of
the earth[.]
—John Donnelly
At the beginning of this text, you were asked to reflect,
throughout your reading, on the pros
and cons of joining the teaching profession. A primary goal was
to provide you with enough
information to make an informed decision. As you consider
whether teaching is right for you,
realize that learning to teach is a developmental process. Thus,

you are not expected at this
time to be an expert or even to teach at the level of a
professional. Having a career perspective
should help you realize that becoming a teacher is a journey—
not a destination. You can and
should pack your suitcase and make travel plans, but remember
that the process of getting
there is just as meaningful as having arrived. Along the way, the
pursuit of excellence (through
reflection and renewal) should guide your efforts. When you
devote time to thinking about
your teaching and you engage in activities that help you to
renew yourself, you will find that
greater energy and enthusiasm result.
As you weighed the pros and cons of a career in teaching, you
were asked to keep your per-
sonal values and background in sight. As we have learned, self-
knowledge is critical to making
a wise decision. Now consider again: What do you seek in a
career? What kind of career would
make you happy? What prior experiences have led you to
believe that you may be suited
for teaching? What experiences in your background fight
against your choice of a teaching
career? The decision to teach, as you know, is one that no one
else can make for you (although
you can certainly be influenced by others).
Although we have just described a teaching career as a journey,
an apt metaphor for mak-
ing the decision to teach might also be stepping onto a thrilling
new ride at the amusement
park. The ride is unpredictable yet exhilarating. Those who
choose teaching must commit to
a lifelong pursuit of excellence in both living and learning. As

models of the human experi-
ence, teachers accompany students on this breathtaking ride as
they prepare together for the
future. In this chapter, consider if you are willing and able to
get on board.
9.1 Entering the Profession
What is a profession? Does teaching qualify as one? When you
hear the word “profession,”
what images come to mind? You might think of the following:
advanced degrees, with diplo-
mas on the wall; high standards for admission to a program of
study; formally decorated
offices; or titles of great respect, with nameplates on the office
door. As you anticipate a career
in teaching, it is important to examine the meaning you
associate with the word profession.
How would you define the word?
Primary Aspects of the Profession
Briefly, a profession is an occupation that rests on a solid body
of knowledge and requires
specialized, advanced training and intellectual skills. In
addition, professional organizations
can be expected to define themselves
by their own specific commitment to
ethical behavior and service to society.
As applied to teaching, behaving as a
professional is “characterized by the
ability to make informed judgments
and perform important tasks in com-

plex environments. These judgments
and performances are grounded in an
identifiable, empirically supported
knowledge base” (North Central
Regional Education Laboratory, as
cited in Wilke, 2003, p. 215).
Do these professionalism character-
istics, then, indicate that teaching can
be defined as a profession? Perhaps
surprisingly, the question is one that
still, after generations of debate, can-
not be answered definitively. Much of
the nationwide discussion and debate has taken place within the
American Association of
Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), which states:
Achieving professional consensus around matters at the core of
the profes-
sional enterprise has been elusive. Debates about effective
preparation and
ongoing professional development for teachers and other school
profession-
als are ongoing, and the current debates are often focused on
what counts
as evidence of effective programs and effective teachers.
(Kinnucan-Welsch,
2010, pp. 47–48)
Necessary to future success in settling the debates will be the
willingness by all stakeholders
and participants to “embrace necessary reform and renewal that
will firmly establish teach-
ing and teacher education as a profession” (p. 48).
To define more clearly the characteristics of a profession and

their debatable application to
the field of education in the early 21st century, consider the
following questions.
Knowledge Base
Do teachers have a knowledge base? The noun profession is
built on the verb form profess,
meaning “to make a public declaration” or “to acknowledge.”
Thus, at the foundation of a pro-
fession, there must be a body of knowledge. In education, we
refer to this as a knowledge base.
Teachers, doctors, lawyers, and members of other professions
have a specialized knowledge
that members of the general public do not have. Such
knowledge is acquired through a rela-
tively lengthy period of education that is intellectually rigorous.
Because much of the practice of teaching has been based on
personal experience and conven-
tional wisdom, teachers have not always had a well-defined
body of knowledge. As research
continues to inform practice and these findings are disseminated
through professional
michaeljung/Thinkstock
Despite the rigorous training teachers must
undergo before they have access to a classroom,
debate over whether teaching is a profession
continues to be argued.
literature, the knowledge base of teaching continues to be
developed and refined. However,

we do know that the key to teaching lies in the application of
one’s knowledge. Teaching is
primarily a problem-solving venture that requires both
knowledge and skill. The complexity
of the work of teaching sets it apart from other occupations.
Service Orientation and Ethics
What is the primary orientation of teachers? A profession has a
strong service orientation—
providing an essential service to society and to the individual.
Although there may be some
practicing physicians whose primary motive is financial gain,
most doctors are committed to
helping maintain or restore the health of their patients. This
service ideal is vital to teaching.
A teacher’s primary responsibility is to serve students.
In its relationships with others, a profession is guided by ethical
standards. Even though the
teaching profession does not have a unified code of ethics,
various education organizations,
such as the National Education Association (NEA), do have
such a statement. Ethical codes
represent a consensus of what the members in any given
profession consider to be proper
principles of conduct. The following statement from the
Preamble to the NEA Code of Ethics
gives an overview of the importance of ethical behavior in
teaching according to the NEA:
The educator, believing in the worth and dignity of each human
being, recog-
nizes the supreme importance of the pursuit of truth, devotion to
excellence,
and the nurture of the democratic principles. Essential to these
goals is the

protection of freedom to learn and to teach and the guarantee of
equal educa-
tional opportunity for all. The educator accepts the
responsibility to adhere to
the highest ethical standards. (NEA, 2010, para. 2)
Take a few minutes to read the National Education Association
Code of Ethics (1975, amended
2010). You will find two lists of principles: one pertaining to
ethical commitments to students,
the other to the profession. As you read, think of specific
examples applicable to each prin-
ciple. The NEA Code of Ethics can be retrieved from
www.nea.org/handbook.
Autonomy
How much autonomy do teachers have? For the most part,
teachers have freedom within the
classroom to teach as they best see fit. This independence
influences teachers’ level of satis-
faction; overall, teachers carry out their daily duties with
minimal supervision. However, as
they make decisions, teachers must consider the expectations of
parents and the values of the
local community and school board. The freedom found in
autonomy is tempered by account-
ability to others.
Being able to make important decisions about one’s work is a
large part of what it means to
be affiliated with a profession. (See the quotation from the
North Central Regional Laboratory
at the beginning of “Primary Aspects of the Profession.”)
However, as a group, teachers have
been relatively powerless—unable to affect decisions that have
an impact on their work. For

example, creating the class schedule is usually handled by the
school principal and counselor.
In addition, selecting textbooks is typically out of the hands of
individual teachers because of
the existence of state-adopted lists with lengthy time periods
between adoption decisions.
www.nea.org/handbook
Teachers experience more self-determination in some schools
than in others. The emergence
of site-based school management (usually known as SBM), in
the 1990s, gave educators a
greater, more empowering voice in school matters. SBM
governing councils might include any
combination of teachers, principals, and community members.
Over time, SBM proved more
effective and popular in some places than others, and as a new
teacher you may or may not
find yourself employed at a site that practices this approach to
governance.
Accountability
The term for the practice of holding teachers and schools
responsible for student learning is
accountability. Do teachers have accountability? Thus far, we
have learned that teachers are
responsible to many parties for their decisions and actions; they
are accountable to their stu-
dents, the parents and guardians of their students, other
teachers, school administrators, and
the public in general. The public has entrusted its young into
teachers’ hands for the purpose

of education and has a right to expect results. The question
arises concerning how teachers
can be held accountable. The ultimate measure of accountability
rests in how well students
learn. Yet, how should learning be measured? Are standardized
tests the optimal way? Do
teachers control all the factors that affect learning and
achievement? What happens to teach-
ers when their students do not learn? Although it is true that
teachers demonstrate a level
of accountability through the learning success of their students,
the problem lies in finding
equitable ways to assess these results.
One way schools have quality control over instruction is
through their teacher evaluation
system. Teachers undergo evaluation each year (beginning
teachers have more frequent
evaluations than veteran teachers do). This evaluation is usually
conducted by the principal;
sometimes it is only a ritual encounter. Many school districts,
however, are developing more
meaningful ways to evaluate teachers involving the use of peer
observation and portfolios.
Assigning mentors to new teachers is another way to monitor
teachers’ performance. In 2011,
the National Education Association (NEA) voted to create an
updated and equitable approach
to evaluation and accountability, based on the organization’s
contention that much national
discussion on the topic was increasingly unfair and
disrespectful to teachers. Stating that “the
teaching profession is a cornerstone of society,” the NEA
proposed that the creation of “high
quality evaluation and accountability systems” was of the
highest priority (2011, para. 1). It

then laid out a full statement of the important components of
such a system. See the end of
this chapter under Web Resources for access to the full
statement. Fairness in evaluation and
accountability will be important to your successful professional
life.
We conclude this section by returning to the original question:
Does teaching qualify as a pro-
fession? Doctors, engineers, theologians, and lawyers face no
questions about their identifica-
tion as professionals. However, although teachers do belong to
professional associations and
exercise some control over their conditions, complete autonomy
does not exist. Teachers per-
haps could be more solidified if they identified as a group.
Many teachers identify more with
their individual disciplines (e.g., mathematics, language arts,
reading, or business education)
than with their profession as a whole. In spite of this limitation,
current reforms are moving
teaching forward in the direction of a profession on the
continuum. The knowledge base is
constantly changing and improving, the decision-making power
of teachers is increasing, and
the standards for admission to teacher education are being
raised.
Teacher Certification
A license is a document that allows one to practice a specified
trade or profession; it is issued
by a board or other official body. Most recently, teachers have

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