Conference Program
Click on a session title for a detailed description

Saturday, November 1

8:30-9:00 — Registration & Coffee – Hotel Lobby

9:00-10:15 — Opening Plenary Session

Re-Envisioning Writing Assessment for Teaching and Learning
Dixie Goswami, Michael Armstrong, and Steve Seidel

10:15-10:30 — Break

10:30-11:45 — Concurrent Sessions A

A1: Re-Envisioning Assessment as Professional Development

A2: From Inspiration to Assessment - Writing Assessment and Urban Schools

A3: Re-Examining Connections between Student Self-Assessment and Learning

A4: Re-Envisioning Writing Through Performance Standards – The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Performance Standards Project

A5: Assessing Visual Communication

11:45-12:30 — Lunch

12:30-1:35 — Second Plenary Session

Assessment and Policy Issues Related to English Language Learners
Kate Menken, Wilma Ortiz, and Karen Sumaryono

1:45-3:00 — Concurrent Sessions B

B1: Removing Barriers for Non-Traditional Undergraduates and Graduates seeking Degrees as Early

B2: Collaborations and Connections:  Integrating Writing Assessments and Learning Outcomes

B3: Examining Placement Decisions for First Year Writing Courses:  Two Validation Inquiries

B4: A Study of Teacher Resistance to Assessment for Accountability

B5: Another Way of Telling: Students look at their writing using a collaborative assessment model

B6: Writing Toward the Future: New Technologies and Writing

3:00-3:15 — Break

3:15-4:30 — Concurrent Sessions C

C1: Validity and Equity in Assessment

C2: Beyond Rubrics: Dynamic Criteria Mapping at UMass Amherst and Beyond

C3: Using Summaries to Assess Student Learning in Math, Science, and Social Studies: A School Wide Approach

C4: Assessing the Individual Student: Learning from a Photography & Writing Project

C5: Off the Printed Page: Digital Storytelling For All Voices

4:30-5:00 — Conference “Town Meeting” Wrap-Up Session