Center for Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning

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The Center for Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning (CAESL) addresses the national need for increasing the assessment capacity within the K-12 science education system. Increasing "assessment capacity" means enhancing the expertise, designs, structures and supports that enable local districts and schools to use assessment as a critical tool for enhancing science learning. The primary focus of the Center will be classroom assessment practices. However, because of the enormous pressure that standardized and/or state-mandated assessments place on students and teachers, the project also seeks to better align large-scale assessments with ongoing formative classroom assessments that inform teaching and improve learning.The Center is a collaboration among: the Concord Consortium; the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST)/University of California, Los Angeles; Stanford University; Lawrence Hall of Science; the Graduate School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley; and WestEd, who will act as the coordinator. There are several major school district partners that will collaborate with the Center and serve as testbeds for Center activities and resources. The project also works with San Jose State University, a major teacher preparation institution, to co-develop and integrate a variety of assessment resources into its preservice and graduate programs. The Center's graduate programs are aimed to make significant practical, conceptual and methodological contributions to the assessment of science learning and achievement. The Graduate Schools of Education at UC-Berkeley, UCLA and Stanford will develop a cooperative approach to the masters and doctoral programs to be called the Learning and Assessment Program (LAP) for 43 students. The LAP includes a series of core courses on science, learning, cognition and assessment; testing and assessment; and curriculum, teaching and assessment. Students can "telecommute" to take courses at institutions other than their own, and all students will participate in a practicum on assessment development.The professional development component will be led by the Lawrence Hall of Science, the Concord Consortium, and WestEd. Participating districts will be part of three-year cohorts and assemble teams of teachers and district administrators who will participate in 15 days of professional development each year over three years, along with follow-up sessions at school sites. The professional development focuses on testing and using formative classroom assessments. Experiences and products developed as part of this component will be disseminated widely to other schools or districts through the extensive networks of the Lawrence Hall and WestEd. The applied research component examines (1) the formative and summative assessment strategies that most effectively increase student learning and understanding; and (2) how educational technology can enhance assessment practices.Finally, the project targets public understanding of assessment and the Lawrence Hall of Science and CRESST/UCLA will mount a public outreach effort that translates the work of the Center for school administrators, parents and community members.