ABSTRACT
Assessment has become a major focus in some educational systems, and is proving to be a challenge for teachers and teacher educators. This chapter examines the issues of assessment in science and in science teacher education. Prospective elementary teachers need to gain insights into important aspects of assessment in school science—especially in the context of high-stakes systemwide testing. Teacher educators also need to be aware of how findings about assessment impact on their preservice and inservice programs. The early discussion in the chapter examines assessment in terms of facilitating learning using science instances, but many aspects also apply to preservice science and methods courses, as well as inservice courses.
