Use of Alternate Assessment Results in Reporting and Accountability Systems: Conditions for Use Based on Research and Practice (NCEO Synthesis Report)
TITLE Use of Alternate Assessment Results in Reporting and Accountability Systems: Conditions for Use Based on Research and Practice. Synthesis Report. INSTITUTION National Center on Educational Outcomes, Minneapolis, MN. SPONS AGENCY Special Education Programs (ED/OSERS), Washington, DC. REPORT NO NCEO-43 PUB DATE 2002-05-00 NOTE 37p.; In collaboration with: the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE). CONTRACT H326G000001 AVAILABLE FROM National Center on Educational Outcomes, University of Minnesota, 350 Elliott Hall, 75 East River Rd., Minneapolis, MN 55455. For full text: http://education.umn.edu/NCEO/OnlinePubs/ Synthesis43.html. PUB TYPE Guides Non-Classroom (055) EDRS PRICE EDRS Price MF01/PCO2 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Accountability; *Disabilities; Educational Assessment; *Educational Testing; Elementary Secondary Education; *Evaluation Methods; Program Development; Scoring; Standards; Student Evaluation; Student Participation; Testing Accommodations IDENTIFIERS Kentucky; North Carolina; Wyoming
A Validation Study of the Performance Indicators and Learner Outcomes of Kentucky's Alternate Assessment for Students with Significant Disabilities
The purpose of this study was to conduct an expert validation of Kentucky's alternate assessment for students with significant disabilities. Since 1992, this has been the only fully operational, statewide alternate assessment system in the nation. A total of 44 national authorities in best practices for students with moderate and severe cognitive disabilities responded to this validation. This study revealed a high degree of professional congruence on the core of best practices embodied in the performance criteria for Kentucky's alternate assessment. However, respondents raised concerns about the extent to which more limited learner outcomes had been identified for students with significant disabilities, and whether the alternate assessment was sufficiently aligned to the general curricular expectations for all students. Finally, we present considerations for other states and local school districts in the design of alternate assessments, as well as the specific revisions in content and scoring standards Kentucky has made to more clearly address the relationship of its alternate assessment to the state's learning outcomes for all students.
The Prevalence of Dietary Supplement Use among College Students: A Nationwide Survey in Japan
To clarify the prevalence of dietary supplement use among college students, we conducted Internet-based nationwide questionnaire surveys with 157,595 Japanese college students aged between 18 to 24 years old who were registrants of Macromill Inc. (Tokyo, Japan). Among the 9066 respondents (response rate 5.8%), 16.8% were currently using dietary supplements. The prevalence of dietary supplement use did not differ significantly between males (17.1%) and females (16.7%). However, it increased according to their grade (13.1% to 20.5%), and it was higher in medical and pharmaceutical college students (22.0%) compared to others (16.7%). The main purpose of dietary supplement use was for the health benefits in both males and females. Other reasons were to build muscle in males, and as a beauty supplement and for weight loss in females. According to the purpose of dietary supplement use, the most commonly-used dietary supplements were vitamin/mineral supplements in both males and females, then protein and weight loss supplements in males and females, respectively. Although most students obtained information about dietary supplements via the Internet, they typically purchased the supplements from drug stores. Of the students surveyed, 7.5% who were currently using or used to use dietary supplements experienced adverse effects, with no significant difference between genders (8.8% in male, 7.0% in female). In conclusion, the prevalence of dietary supplement use increased with grade among college students in Japan. Some of them experienced adverse effects. Education may be important to prevent adverse effects resulting from supplement use in college.