Joan Herman, Pamela Aschbacher, and Lynn Winters offer cogent guidance on the creation and use of alternative measures of student achievement. They present a systemic and iterative process model that links assessment with decisions affecting curriculum and instruction, according to developmental theories of learning and cognition. The authors review the purposes of assessment and provide a substantive rationale for alternative structures. The heart of the book is the illumination of several key assessment issues that reaffirm our knowledge that assessment tasks must be informed by the most important elements of instructional practice. Includes sample forms and figures to help readers begin revamping their assessment programs.