The banks provide tools for formative assessment. Recently developed resources support self- and peer-assessment.  Recent small-scale research projects provide information to support assessment and learning. Assessment Services are proactively networking and sharing information with other providers of professional development in assessment.

In this issue we continue to celebrate thirty years of set. While set has always been a refereed journal it is now officially recognised as such by the Commonwealth Department of Education Science and Training (DEST). This is a fitting milestone for a year of celebration.

Thirteen schools that produced high mean literacy scores, relative to their decile levels, in a nationwide survey were visited and studied to identify practices that might account for their students’ strong showing. Principals and teachers of Years 1 and 2 described their reading and language programmes and attempted to identify ...

This research shows that focusing on peer and teacher talk about Year 5 and 6 students’ scripts creates significant increases in the quality of the students’ written language. Students’ initial comments about their writing were largely general, affective, and unfocused. After professional development teacher support, a follow-up survey indicated a ...

Ros McLellan reports on a 10-term UK project "Raising Boys’ Achievement". She gives an overview of the research and offers a framework for thinking about strategies that have the potential to raise achievement, especially that of boys.

Research Information for Teachers, known as set, has become an iconic symbol of NZCER’s long-term services. It implements one of its key statutory obligations, it continues the priorities inherent in the Council’s most significant phase of expansion begun in the 1960s.

In a thought-provoking piece, Keith Ballard traces some of the recent changes in the language of education and raises questions about the implications for teachers and teaching.

Three key features of technology known as "components of practice" are identified here and, with levelled indicators of progression, can support teachers as they develop long-term technology programmes and report on student achievement for formative and summative purposes.

Focusing on the technology education findings of the LITE (Assessment) project shows that students learn effectively in technology when they develop a broad understanding of technology, are clear about the task goals and the task substance, and make strong links between conceptual, procedural, societal, and technical considerations. Specific examples of ...

Technology students often have widely varying knowledge and skills, so making qualification credits accessible to all is a challenge for the teacher. This study focused on real-life contexts, formative student–teacher interactions, and alternatives to written assessment to achieve this aim. The focus was on capturing evidence of learning, through techniques ...