CHAPTER 3 Bridging the Conceptual Gap between Classroom Assessment and System Accountability

part of the chapter we tell the story of our experiences over the past decade in supporting the work of classroom teachers and the system-wide monitoring of student achievement. In the second part of the chapter we reflect on the connections between the pieces of this nar-rative. It is these connections that provide us with a framework that bridges the apparent conceptual gap between teachers ’ classroom assessments and assessments undertaken for system accountability. The story begins with the development of a set of resource materi-als designed to support teachers in their assessment of students’ English literacy skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and view-ing. Each resource was built around a theme, used multiple assessment methods, and was designed so that it could be integrated into regular classroom activities. The approach underpinning the materials was subsequently used as a model for a national sample survey of literacy achievement in Australian schools. In sampled classrooms, teachers were trained to make judgments of students ’ responses and perfor-mances, and their judgments provided the national survey data. Fol-lowing the survey, Australian state and territory governments funded a national Web site to support teachers in their classroom use of an emerging assessment system, and they provided a complementary resource kit to assist teachers in understanding assessment principles and practice