Blending Assessment with Standards-Based Instruction as an Approach to Adding Equity to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) (original) (raw)

2008, Forum on Public Policy: A Journal of the Oxford Round Table

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation in the Unite States is not equivalent to a national curriculum; however, it does set forth some conditions essential for enhancing student achievement at scale (e.g., curriculum standards, assessment standards, and expectations of compliance). The missing component within these conditions is support for teachers in translating curriculum standards into instruction so students are fairly assessed through the NCLB state assessments. This paper examines some commonalities with the Education Reform Act of 1988 and the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) implemented in England in 1998 and reports on the development, implementation, and effectiveness of the Blending Assessment with Instruction Program (BAIP). BAIP is a program designed to provide support to teachers in aligning their instruction with indicators that operationally define curriculum based standards in mathematics. The online lessons for teachers are supplemented by online instructional tutorials for students that are aligned with each lesson, designed to develop competencies in the skills, and knowledge required by indicators and standards in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and high school. BAIP includes a feedback system that immediately provides individual student and aggregate performance data to teachers to enhance instructional decisions. BAIP has been beta tested in 187 schools districts with 88,700 students.