Jl. Herman et Dcd. Klein, EVALUATING EQUITY IN ALTERNATIVE ASSESSMENT - AN ILLUSTRATION OF OPPORTUNITY-TO-LEARN ISSUES, The Journal of educational research, 89(4), 1996, pp. 246-256
Based on the 1993 California Learning Assessment System (CLAS) Middle
Grades Mathematics Performance Assessment, an innovative alternative a
ssessment, the study explores whether all schools, regardless of the c
ultural, ethnic, or socioeconomic background of the students they serv
e, provide students with equal opportunity to learn that which is asse
ssed. Opportunity to learn was defined to include a range of variables
likely to influence student performance, including access to resource
s, access to high-quality instructional content and processes, extra-s
chool opportunities, and direct preparation for the CLAS. Data collect
ion efforts included teacher interviews, student surveys, student retr
ospective think-aloud interviews, and classroom observations of the as
sessment administration. Researchers chose 13 schools across the state
to represent three broad categories of schools: affluent suburban; lo
w-socioeconomic-status (SES) urban; and remote, mixed SES rural school
s. Findings highlight some differences between school types in various
opportunity-to-learn measures and suggest directions for future resea
rch.