Search

Performance assessments are part of a robust assessment system in which students show what they know by writing an essay, curating a portfolio of work, or conducting original research. Ultimately, performance assessments can allow students to demonstrate college and career readiness through a culminating assessment--such as a graduate capstone or senior portfolio defense. The report on which this brief is based documents the work of three districts involved in the California Performance Assessment Collaborative: Los Angeles (ED610904), Oakland (ED610903), and Pasadena (ED610902) Unified School Districts. Through interviews, focus groups, and observations, we identify the key conditions needed to support the implementation of culminating performance assessments at the district, school, and classroom levels. We also examine students' and educators' perceptions of outcomes related to participation in performance assessment initiatives. Finally, we summarize lessons from the districts' experiences with performance assessments and present associated recommendations to district leaders and state policymakers. [For the full report, see ED610900.]

In Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles Unified), high school seniors who attend a Linked Learning pathway--an industry-themed school or small learning community within a school--complete a portfolio and defense. Linked Learning is an approach to education, delivered in an industry-aligned "pathway," that aims to increase the relevance of education by bringing together strong academics, career and technical education, real-world learning experiences, and integrated student supports. The district adopted the Linked Learning approach in 2010, and Los Angeles Unified's Linked Learning Office has set a goal for its Linked Learning graduates, articulated through a graduate profile: They will be able to reach proficiency in content knowledge and build their critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and digital skills. The district's Linked Learning Office uses the portfolio and defense to assess how proficient its graduates are at meeting these goals, which also serve as a natural complement to this emphasis on authentic, integrated learning. The Los Angeles Unified case study is based on the analysis of a range of data sources, including documents, interviews with school- and district-level personnel, focus groups with teachers and students, observations of student performance assessments, and observations of professional learning opportunities for teachers. The study provides an in-depth description of how Los Angeles Unified has attempted to advance implementation of the portfolio and defense. The authors identified four lessons learned from Los Angeles Unified's performance assessment that are based on these findings. These lessons include: (1) Districts can establish an opt-in system for performance assessments, as well as strong onboarding, to help cultivate school-level ownership; (2) Districts can balance structured supports with flexibility that allows sites to make the performance assessment work their own; (3) Districts can establish school structures and spaces that build relationships among students and staff; and (4) Alignment of performance assessments and the broader instructional and curricular climate and practices of the district is critical. This report is part of a series of three case studies examining the key district-, school-, and classroom-level conditions necessary to support high-quality performance assessment practices. All three districts (Los Angeles, Oakland [ED610903], and Pasadena [ED610902]) actively participate in the California Performance Assessment Collaborative (CPAC), a community of educators, researchers, and technical assistance providers who are working to study and advance the use of performance assessments throughout the state. A cross-case study that accompanies this report provides insights across all three case study districts, as well as recommendations for district policymakers interested in implementing well-designed performance assessments within their own context. [For the cross-case study, see ED610900.]

Performance assessments encompass a wide variety of activities, all of which require students to show what they know, rather than selecting answers from predetermined options on a multiple-choice test. For the graduate capstone, Oakland Unified School District (Oakland Unified) seniors conduct original research, write a paper based on the findings, and reflect upon their learning process. Students then present their research and analysis to a panel of judges and an audience of peers and community members. Oakland Unified built its graduate capstone work on an existing, though loosely defined, district graduation requirement called the senior project. The graduate capstone approach is grounded in research on how performance assessments can reliably assess student learning and also help students and educators strive for meaningful learning goals. The Oakland Unified case study draws on data from a range of sources, including documents, district administrative data, interviews with a range of personnel at the district and school levels, focus groups with teachers and students, observations of student performance assessments, and observations of professional learning opportunities for teachers. The study provides an in-depth description of how Oakland Unified has worked to advance districtwide implementation of the graduate capstone. The authors identified five emerging implications of Oakland Unified's performance assessment practices for student learning and teacher practice: (1) Districts can establish a strong and shared vision for why performance assessments matter; (2) Teachers and schools need supports to implement the vision; (3) Gradually cultivating buy-in can generate strong support for this work among early adopters; (4) Districts can allow sufficient flexibility for schools to make the work their own; and (5) Participating in performance assessments can shift teacher practice when effective supports are in place. This report is part of a series of three case studies examining the key district-, school-, and classroom-level conditions necessary to support high-quality performance assessment practices. All three districts (Los Angeles [ED610904], Oakland, and Pasadena [ED610902]) actively participate in the California Performance Assessment Collaborative (CPAC), a community of educators, researchers, and technical assistance providers who are working to study and advance the use of performance assessments throughout the state. A cross-case study that accompanies this report provides insights across all three case study districts, as well as recommendations for district policymakers interested in implementing well-designed performance assessments within their own context. [For the cross-case study, see ED610900.]

Across the country, educators need ways to assess student learning that can also support students' higher-order thinking skills, help improve teachers' instructional practices, and ultimately allow students to demonstrate college and career readiness through a culminating assessment--such as a graduate capstone or senior portfolio defense. In California, some of these educators participate in the California Performance Assessment Collaborative (CPAC), a network that supports the implementation of high-quality performance assessments. A substantial body of evidence shows performance assessments are a strategy to improve educational outcomes, but relatively little research examines the key conditions needed to support the implementation of high-quality performance assessments at the district, school, and classroom levels. The current study builds upon the work of CPAC to address this issue by documenting performance assessment initiatives in three districts: (1) Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles Unified) (ED610904); (2) Oakland Unified School District (Oakland Unified) (ED610903); and (3) Pasadena Unified School District (Pasadena Unified) (ED610902). While these districts each have a unique approach, all are committed to assessing student learning in a meaningful way that is aligned to the outcomes they hope all students will achieve by graduation. A series of district-level case studies accompanies this cross-cutting report. In this study, the authors investigated how districts and schools can build systems and structures for developing and implementing performance assessment initiatives across multiple sites. The analysis took into account educator interviews, teacher and student focus groups, observations of student presentations, and district administrative data and documents. The report shows that district performance assessment initiatives can contribute to improving teachers' instructional practices and students' learning outcomes, provided that strong supports are in place for participating students and teachers. [For the research brief, see ED610901.]

The presentation is an overview of the Launch Director role for EM-1.

Advanced spaceport information management methods and systems are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method includes coupling a test system to the payload and transmitting one or more test signals that emulate an anticipated condition from the test system to the payload. One or more responsive signals are received from the payload into the test system and are analyzed to determine whether one or more of the responsive signals comprises an anomalous signal. At least one of the steps of transmitting, receiving, analyzing and determining includes transmitting at least one of the test signals and the responsive signals via a communications link from a payload processing facility to a remotely located facility. In one particular embodiment, the communications link is an Internet link from a payload processing facility to a remotely located facility (e.g. a launch facility, university, etc.).