Project MTS - Metaevaluation, Training and Support Services [http://www.wmich.edu/evalctr/mts/]
Two of the purposes of this project, sponsored in part by The Evaluation Center at Western Michigan University [http://www.wmich.edu/evalctr/], are to 1) "Build the capacity of science educators to develop and carry through strong program evaluations", and 2) "Disseminate evaluation information and materials to science educators through instructional opportunities (conferences, institutes, and internships) and through direct sharing of ideas, materials, and resources".

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) [http://www.nwrel.org/]
From its participation in the Laboratory Network Program on Alternative Assessment (LNP-AA), along with the other nine federally funded Regional Educational Laboratories and CRESST, NWREL collects, reviews and offers instruments for alternative assessment in science and mathematics, as well as reading. Its database of alternative assessment instruments and procedures and annotated bibliographies is offered online. See especially its Assessment & Accountability Program [http://www.nwrel.org/eval/].

The Regional Alliance for Mathematics and Science Education [http://ra.terc.edu/alliance/HubHome.html]
A project of TERC [http://www.terc.edu/], a nonprofit organization committed to the improvement of mathematics and science learning and teaching, the Regional Alliance facilitates reform for mathematics, science, and technology via its partnerships and its reform-related documentation. Readers here may especially wish to see that documentation, available at Alli ance Resources [http://ra.terc.edu/alliance/TEMPLATE/alliance_resources/alliance_resources.cfm].

Secondary Mathematics Assessment and Resource Database [http://cq-pan.cqu.edu.au/schools/smad/smad.html]
Over 100 assessment items, of which many are alternative assessments, are available here in WordPerfect 6.0 format for downloading. This site is sponsored by an Australian professional educators development consortium and the Australian Department of Employment, Education, and Training.

Performance Assessment Links in Science (PALS) [http://www.tappedin.sri.com/pals/index.html]
PALS is a resource bank of performance tasks for K-12 science education that are consonant with national science education standards and that have been gathered from such sources as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), and various states' organizations. The arrangement of the tasks are by major science content areas for grade ranges within the K-12 spectrum. The sponsor is SRI International's Center for Technology in Learning.

Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) [http://wwwcsteep.bc.edu/TIMSS]- as reported by Boston College
The true TIMSS homepage offers full explanatory information for this test that was administered to one million students in 45 countries. See the next link for intial data reports from the U.S. Department of Education.

Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) [http://www.ed.gov/NCES/timss]- as reported by NCES
Thus far, the National Center for Education Statistics can report the initial findings for grade 8 U.S. students in Pursuing Excellence [http://www.ed.gov/NCES/timss/97198.html] and for comparative teaching methods in Germany, Japan and the U.S. in the TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study [http://www.ed.gov/NCES/timss/video/index.html]

President Clinton's National Testing Plan [http://www.fairtest.org/nattests.htm]
FairTest, or The Center for Fair and Open Testing [http://www.fairtest.org], articulates clearly its own criticisms, as well as those of other interested groups. Especially see it FairTest Fact Sheet on National Testing [http://www.fairtest.org/facts/ntfact.htm].

Voluntary National Testing [http://wwwcsteep.bc.edu/ctestweb/voluntary/vnt.html]
The Consortium for Equity in Standards and Testing [http://wwwcsteep.bc.edu/ctest] has compiled Web-based documents and Web sites pertaining to the issue as one of its current Spotlight Issues, with little to no declaration of its own position statement.

Voluntary National Tests: 4th Grade Reading & 8th Grade Mathematics [http://www.ed.gov/nationaltests/]
Here is the U.S. Department of Education's own explanations of the Voluntary National Tests, including their rationale as presented by President Clinton in his 1997 State of the Union address, contracts information, content frameworks, public meetings announcements, and full-text reports.

Undergraduate Outcomes Assessment [http://www.colorado.edu/outcomes/] - of the University of Colorado at Boulder
Covers types of outcomes assessments by individual disciplines and curricular changes generated by those assessments. Also offers a good set of pointers to similar projects at the higher education level via its Internet Resources for Higher-Education Outcomes Assessment [http://www.ga.unc.edu/UNCGA/assessment/resources.html]

Parent Soup Education Central: Standardized Testing [http://www.parentsoup.com/edcentral/testing/]
A useful primer which presents balanced resources by which parents can learn to conceptualize the desirable and undesirable policies and practices related to standardized testing.

What Should Parents Know About Performance Assessment? [http://www.accesseric.org:81/resources/parent/pba.html]
One of the excellent topical overviews offered by AccessERIC, from its set of Parent Brochures [http://www.accesseric.org:81/resources/parent/parent.html]

Talking to Your Child's Teacher about Standardized Tests [http://ericae.net/edo/ED315434.HTM]
This ERIC Digest offers a checklist of questions to ask your child's teacher before test administration, as well as a checklist of questions to guide your proper responses to the test results.

Questions About Tests [http://www.testpublishers.org/questions.htm]
We recommend this offering to parents and to the general public as a very good source of basic definitions, and of explanations of standards, fairness and appropriate usage of tests. This file is an offering of the Association of Test Publishers (ATP) [http://www.testpublishers.org/].

The Parent Teacher Conference – Five Must-Ask Questions [http://www.familyeducation.com/article/0,1120,1-2499,00.htm]
Parent-teacher conferences are a critical component of student evaluation. The Family Education Network offers parents, in checklist format, the questions that will help to generate productive, informative parent-teacher conferences.

Parents' Page [http://cresst96.cse.ucla.edu/CRESST/pages/infoparent.htm]
The National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) [http://cresst96.cse.ucla.edu/index.htm] offers full-text articles of high current interest, as well as a selection of the best Web resources designed to help parents to understand assessment processes and to support their children's achievement.

National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) [http://ncme.org]
In addition to its three quarterly publications, NCME publishes instructional modules targeted towards evaluators and teachers that cover discrete principles and methods of evaluation design.

Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN) - Census Data and Exercises for College Classes [http://www.psc.lsa.umich.edu/SSDAN/]
A collaborative project of University of Michigan's Population Studies Center, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Education, SSDAN offers products and services (with an especial emphasis upon their user-friendly nature), including customized datasets, to college instructors to facilitate the incorporation of census data analysis into undergraduate coursework.

Syllabi of Evaluation Courses - [http://ericae.net/misc/evalsyl.htm] - courtesy of Lawrence M. Rudner, Director, ERIC/AE, who makes an excellent effort to keep abreast of other professors' teaching agenda in support of his own..