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Instead of Standardized Testing, Consider Portfolio Assessment

Since learning is so nuanced, so too should be the means in which we assess it. Let's offer students the opportunity to be seen as whole people who can demonstrate different skills and knowledge in a plethora of ways over a period of time.




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Overhauling Student Assessments: A View From the Pilot's Seat

Louisiana and New Hampshire are among the handful of states that have stepped up to experiment with crafting new student assessments under the Every Student Succeeds Act.




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States Raise 'Proficient' Bar on Tests in Last 10 Years, Study Finds

Most states have raised their expectations for what constitutes proficiency on state math and reading tests in the last decade, according to a new study.




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How to Assess Group Projects: It's About Content and Teamwork

Group projects founder when students don't work well together. Here's the latest thinking on evaluating students on both content mastery and collaboration skills.




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Three Teachers, One Test Question: Will Their Responses Differ?

Education Week asked three 8th grade teachers to evaluate real student responses to an open-ended question on the National Assessment of Educational Progress in social studies. Here's what they said.




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Common-Core Testing 2.0: Get Updated in 7 Questions

The PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments have evolved since they were launched in 2015. Here's a guide to understanding them now.




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Teachers Should Design Student Assessments. But First They Need to Learn How

"When the day came to administer the first test I had designed," writes Brandon Lewis, "my heart sank."




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Could Testing Wreck Civics Education?

As civic education undergoes a renaissance in schools, educators are looking beyond standardized tests to determine whether the lessons empower students to embrace civic behaviors, like voting or volunteering.




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'Nation's Report Card' to Get Trimmed, Four Subjects Dropped

The arts, geography, economics, and foreign languages will lose their place in the testing line-up as the National Assessment of Educational Progress is being streamlined to cut costs.




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Readiness Assessments Fuel Testing Jitters

The collection and use of data about just how prepared individual children are to enter kindergarten can be a ticklish proposition.




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Is PISA a Victim of Its Own Success? IES Head Calls for Change

The U.S. Department of Education sees two specific challenges potentially undermining the quality of the international assessment program, writes Mark Schneider.




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The Five Big Challenges Ahead for Advanced Placement

AP has managed to dodge the partisan pitfalls that have felled other ambitious curricular efforts—so far, write Chester E. Finn Jr. and Andrew E. Scanlan.





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It's Official: All States Have Been Excused From Statewide Testing This Year

Within three weeks, a pandemic has completely changed the national landscape on testing. The U.S. Department of Education has now excused all 50 states and the District of Columbia from the requirement that they test all their students in math and English/language arts.




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Third Circuit Chief Judge to deliver 2020 Penn State Law commencement address

D. Brooks Smith, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, will deliver the Penn State Law in University Park 2020 commencement address on May 16 in Eisenhower Auditorium.




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Penn State Law to host panel discussion on current Supreme Court term

Penn State Law in University Park will host "A Take on the Term" with Sarah Harrington and Erin Murphy, beginning at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, March 5, in the Sutliff Auditorium of the Lewis Katz Building.




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Holocaust Education Initiative releases first set of free instructional material

To help teachers remotely engage their students during the coronavirus crisis, Penn State’s Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights Education Initiative has released its first set of free learning resources.




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Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia earns 2020 Rosemary Schraer Mentoring Award

Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia, Samuel Weiss Faculty Scholar and clinical professor of law at Penn State Law at University Park, is the recipient of the 2020 Rosemary Schraer Mentoring Award.




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Penn State Law in University Park announces spring 2020 grading policy changes

Penn State Law in University Park will have a mandatory credit/no-credit grading system for the spring 2020 semester in order to be supportive of students during the novel coronavirus public health crisis.




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COVID-19 online roundtable to examine disease’s impact on international affairs

The Coronavirus and International Affairs Roundtable, taking place 9:30 a.m. Friday, April 17, via Zoom, will bring together experts in law and international affairs from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and the Caribbean to discuss the broader impact of COVID-19.




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Penn State Law event sponsors become supporters of students during pandemic

When Penn State Law in University Park transitioned its annual Careers in the Law event to a virtual one due to COVID-19 concerns, Assistant Dean of Career Services Magen Mihok offered the sponsoring firms a choice: to receive a full refund of their registration fee, or to consider a donation to Penn State Law’s Future Fund to support students impacted by COVID-19. The result was a true embodiment of the "We Are" spirit.




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Virtual speaker series in May to focus on impact of COVID-19

The Penn State Law, Policy and Engineering initiative is hosting a virtual speaker series — titled, “Technology, Policy and Law during COVID-19” — that will consist of six sessions throughout the month of May.




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Penn State Law librarian elected 2021 chair of national law library organization

Rebecca Mattson, head of faculty and research services for the H. Laddie Montague Jr. Law Library, Penn State University Libraries, and professor of legal research at Penn State Law at University Park, has been elected vice chair/chair elect of the Research Instruction and Patron Services Special Interest Section of the American Association of Law Libraries.




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Penn State Law professor authors immigration chapter in COVID-19 legal textbook

Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia, Samuel Weiss Faculty Scholar and Clinical Professor of Law at Penn State Law in University Park, has written a chapter on immigration law in a new legal textbook covering issues surrounding the current global COVID-19 pandemic, published by Columbia Law School.




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Penn State Altoona's visual art studies seniors showcase work online

Visual Art Studies program seniors Andrea Regalbuto and Gary Weyandt are showcasing their respective exhibitions “Flap/Flutter” and “MEDIAted” online via websites, Instagram, and virtual exhibits.




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Libraries' Virtual De-Stress Fest open to all Penn State students

Penn State University Libraries is offering an Online De-Stress Fest to help students relax and unwind while completing end-of-term reports and studying for final exams. Visit through Friday, May 8, for a curated list of links, tutorials and homegrown videos that showcase the talents of University Libraries’ faculty and staff.




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Center for the Performing Arts picks proposals for inter-domain courses

The Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State, through a program funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, has selected five proposals for the development of inter-domain courses that include the performing arts at their cores.




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Behrend virtual cabaret: Stephen Humphries




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Behrend virtual cabaret: Maribeth Miller




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Behrend virtual cabaret: Jack Golec




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Behrend virtual cabaret: Claire Nicholson




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Behrend virtual cabaret: Emily Green




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Behrend singers take center stage in virtual cabaret

Choral students at Penn State Behrend typically end the semester with a concert. This year, because of COVID-19, they tried something different: a virtual cabaret.




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(Virtual) Things to Do at Penn State: May 7-14

Penn State Law, Policy and Engineering's "Technology, Policy and Law during COVID-19" virtual speaker series, a Penn State Extension webinar about food system disruptions, and a number of virtual exhibits at the Palmer Museum of Art and HUB-Robeson Galleries are among this weekend's and next week's cultural highlights at Penn State.




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Deb and Stan Latta named 2020 Distinguished Service Award recipients

For their longstanding support of the Center for the Performing Arts and the Penn State community, Deb and Stan Latta have been named the center’s 2020 Distinguished Service Award recipients.




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From Puerto Rico to Penn State: A journey to becoming a student marshal

Daniela Claudio Pagán, a graphic design senior from Puerto Rico, has been named the College of Arts and Architecture's 2020 student marshal.




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Travis Dandro's 'King of King Court' wins 2020 Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize

"King of King Court" by Travis Dandro, published by Drawn & Quarterly, has won the 2020 Lynd Ward Prize for Graphic Novel of the Year. Penn State University Libraries sponsors the juried award and its administrator, the Pennsylvania Center for the Book.




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New Kensington launches virtual offerings, resources for prospective students

The Penn State New Kensington Office of Admissions and Student Aid is available remotely for appointments, as well as scheduled virtual events for prospective students and families.




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Remote events scheduled for Financial Literacy Month in April

The Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center at Penn State has a slate of programming for Financial Literacy Month this April and is offering help to anyone in the University community who is anxious about their financial future.




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Virtual hackathon open to all Penn State students

The first-ever, virtual "Hack for Impact" hackathon will give teams the opportunity to work on ideas related to enhancing student life and engagement during times of disruption.




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Virtual expo highlights New Kensington students’ research

Twenty-four projects can be viewed online at newkensington.psu.edu/virtual-research-expo.




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New Kensington family of ‘Nittany Neighbors’ support each other during pandemic

The Nittany Neighbors program created at Penn State New Kensington in response to the coronavirus pandemic is testament to the fact that, as campus director of student affairs Theresa Bonk said, "we are a family, and like any family, we take care of our own."




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New Kensington student-athletes recognized for academic, athletic performance

Penn State New Kensington student-athletes from seven varsity sports teams were recognized virtually for academic and athletic performance during the 2019-20 academic year.




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New Kensington students, faculty celebrated in virtual awards recognition

Penn State New Kensington announced its academic, teaching and extracurricular award winners on May 1, and shared a dedicated, virtual recognition web page, including video messages, photos and award winners.




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Portion of New Kensington city block transformed into innovation corridor

In 2019 alone, Corner LaunchBox had 10 accelerator program graduates, supported five new startups anchored in Pennsylvania, and helped create 20 new jobs. More than 900 individuals utilized the facility for a variety of free and low-cost activities, including the 10-week Corner Opportunity accelerator program, an Idea TestLab, small business and entrepreneurship workshops, free legal clinics, weekly information sessions, and networking events.




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Provost shares guidance following latest statewide action

Following a March 19 announcement by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf to end physical operations at many businesses statewide, Penn State Executive Vice President and Provost Nicholas P. Jones shared the following message with the University community.




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Penn State Wilkes-Barre plans Accepted Student Virtual Week

Penn State Wilkes-Barre will host an Accepted Student Virtual Week from April 9-16, using technology to connect the campus and its personnel directly to students.




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Regional science tournament canceled

The 2020 Northeastern Pennsylvania Science Olympiad, scheduled for March 11 at Penn State Wilkes-Barre, was canceled and will not be rescheduled.




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Student Activities offering virtual events this month

The Student Activities Office at Penn State Wilkes-Barre typically offers a full slate of activities for students and will continue to do so throughout April — even though the way those activities are delivered may look a little different.




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Wilkes-Barre senior to receive Outstanding Adult Learner award

Dylan Fredricey, a senior majoring in rehabilitation and human services, has been chosen as the recipient of the Outstanding Adult Learner of the Year award for Penn State Wilkes-Barre.