The Instruments

The Predictive Assessment of Reading (PAR) can be used to measure a student's reading level, identify skills in need of intervention, monitor progress, and predict future reading achievement. The assessment contains four reading subtests that can be administered to special needs, gifted, ELL students, and developing students in grades PreK-3.

The Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales–Second Edition (PKBS-2) is a behavior rating scale designed to assess young children’s social skills and problem behaviors. It provides a balanced view of both positive and challenging behaviors, making it useful for understanding children’s overall social-emotional development in early learning settings.

Teachers rate children’s approaches to learning using the PLBS (PLBS; McDermott, Leigh, & Perry, 2002). In general, content focuses on attentiveness, responses to novelty and correction, observed problem‐solving strategy, flexibility, reflectivity, initiative, self‐direction, and cooperative learning.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The current revision of the PQA includes two notable differences from earlier versions: 1) the number of content areas has increased from four to seven, and 2) the scoring system has been revised to adequately measure the full range of quality along each quality construct. As described by the authors: “The Preschool Program Quality Assessment (PQA), Second Edition, is a rating instrument designed to evaluate the quality of early childhood programs and identify staff training needs. Developed by High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, it isappropriate for use in all center‐based settings, not just those using the High/Scope educational approach. The Preschool PQA intentionally reflects “best practices” in early childhood education as a whole. The measure identifies the structural characteristics and dynamic relationships that effectively promote the development of young children, encourage the involvement of families and communities, and create supportive working environments for staff” (High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, 2003, p. 1).

The PQA can be used for a variety of purposes including both pre‐service and in‐service training initiatives, self‐assessment and monitoring. The PQA can also be used to conduct observations and provide feedback to staff. In addition, the Preschool PQA can be used as a research tool when administered by trained outside observers to document program practices, compare quality, examine the relationship between quality of care and children’s outcomes, and evaluate the effectiveness of staff development initiatives. Finally, the Preschool PQA can be used to explain research‐based practices to a variety of individuals and agencies including administrators, policymakers, and support staff in the preschool (High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, 2003).

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Several observational tasks that show good value as denoting children’s ability to regulate emotions have been identified by Kochanska and colleagues. Radiah Smith‐Donald and Cybele Raver are now piloting a very clear, detailed use of such tasks, with specific measurement of the child’s performance both quantitatively and qualitatively.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Preschool Self-Regulation Assessment (PSRA) is a direct assessment designed to measure young children’s ability to manage their emotions, attention, and behavior in structured settings. It uses a short series of hands-on tasks and assessor observations to capture different aspects of self-regulation in preschool-aged children. The PSRA includes activities that assess impulse control, attention, and executive functioning—skills that help children follow directions, stay focused, and control their actions.

The Preservice Teacher Feedback Survey measures beliefs about classroom feedback practices and confidence in giving feedback to students. The measure is designed for use by preservice teachers to assess the extent to which their beliefs and confidence in giving feedback align with research on quality feedback. The measure has been used as a pre- and post-test to assess the effects of initial teacher education courses on assessment.

The Pride Learning Environment Survey is a comprehensive school climate survey designed for students in grades 6 to 12. This assessment measures aspects ranging from student-teacher relationships to student mental health and teacher involvement alone with several additional concepts. The Pride Learning Environment Survey can be administered in conjunction with the Pride Teaching Environment survey in order to to directly compare teacher and student responses.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Pride Teaching Environment Survey provides a context by which whole schools are measured. After undergoing more than three years of psychometric testing of responses drawn from 72,000 teachers, the data produced by this comprehensive school climate survey has been found proven and valid to help school administrators foster an environment of teacher satisfaction and student success.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a large-scale international assessment developed by the OECD to measure 15-year-old students’ knowledge and skills in reading, mathematics, and science. The assessment includes a mix of multiple-choice and constructed-response items, with test booklets containing roughly 60–90 items depending on the subject and cycle.

The Protocol for Language Arts Teaching Observations (PLATO) is a classroom observation protocol designed to evaluate thirteen elements of English Language Arts (ELA) instruction. It was originally developed for a study of the relationship between teachers' classroom practices and their impact on student achievement. It is currently being used as a professional development tool to support teachers' use of rigorous, research-based teaching practices. PLATO is designed to work across a variety of curricula and instructional approaches.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Psychological Wellbeing Scale (PWB) is comprised of several subscales (self acceptance, positive relationships with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth) that measures six aspects of wellbeing and happiness. Individuals respond to the 42 items within this measure using a seven-point Likert scale.

The Pupils’ Attitudes Towards Socioscientific Issues (PASSI) Questionnaire is a student survey designed to measure young people’s attitudes toward complex, real-world issues that connect science with social, ethical, and environmental considerations. The instrument examines how students think and feel about socioscientific topics, including their interest, values, and willingness to engage in discussion or decision-making.

The 12-item Pure Procrastination Scale (PPS) was created by combining the 12 highest loading items from 3 other procrastination assessments. Respondent indicate their answers to question items on a 5-point Likert Scale ranging from 1 (very seldom or not true of me) to 5 (very often true or true of me). The PPS has been translated into several languages. Subscore(s): Decisional Delay, Irrational Delay, Delay in meeting deadlines/timeliness

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Quality of Classroom Instruction (QCI) measures the quality of explicit instruction. QCI examines the following eight aspects of instructional interactions: teacher modeling, instructional pacing, response time, transitions between activities, student engagement, learning success, checks of student understanding, and academic feedback. Observers assign QCI scores to each instructional aspect on a scale from 1 (low quality) to 3 (high quality) at the end of the observed lesson.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Quality of School Life Scale (QSL) measures the extent to which students have positive attitudes toward school. Subscore(s): Satisfaction with school, Commitment to classwork, Reactions to teachers

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

This survey measures social, emotional, and other factors on a student's learning motivation. It can be used to capture a one-time snapshot of academic motivation drivers or administered multiple times to assess change in students' motivation and strengths over time. Subscore(s): Motivation

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

ReadBasix is a web-administered reading assessment for students in grades 3–12. ReadBasix measures foundational reading skills including word recognition & decoding, vocabulary, sentence processing, reading efficiency, and other skills involved in reading comprehension via separate subtests.The assessment has multiple forms and is vertically scaled, allowing it to be used for progress monitoring, measuring student growth, or detecting changes in reading as a result of intervention.

The Readiness and Expectations Questionnaire (REQ) is a researcher-designed instrument for measuring first-year postsecondary students’ expectations and preparedness for studying in college (Jansen et al., 2013; Jansen & van der Meer, 2007).

In the domain of student expectations, the REQ focuses on the expectations to be inducted by teachers, be involved in research or be told about research activities, that university will be similar to high school, and that they need time-management skills.

In the college readiness domain, the REQ measures students’ perceived readiness in information processing, collaborative learning, time management, and writing.

Year developed:2006.

The REAL Math Toolkit Observation and Debrief Protocol is a pair of tools designed to support teachers and coaches in examining how culturally responsive and sustaining mathematics instruction shows up in a single lesson. The Observation Protocol provides a focused set of indicators tied to key features of CRSE-aligned math teaching. Observers use it during a live or recorded lesson to note specific evidence—what students and teachers say and do—that illustrates how the lesson supported belonging, affirmation, and rigorous engagement.

Developed by Dierks et al. (2014) and adapted by Blankenburg et al. (2016) and Dierks et al. (2016), this questionnaire contains 93 Likert-style items graded on a four-point rating scale. It contains 3 science contexts: biology, chemistry, and physics.

RESET is a special education teacher observation system that includes observation protocols aligned with evidence-based instructional practices for students with high-incidence disabilities.  Subscore(s): Explicit instruction

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) is an observational instrument used to assess the degree to which mathematics or science instruction in grades K-12 is "reformed." Trained observers rate teachers' instruction across three domains: Lesson Design and Implementation, Content, and Classroom Culture. Possible scores range from 0 to 100 points, with higher scores reflecting a greater degree of use of reform-based instructional practices. Subscore(s): Mathematics instruction assessment, Science instruction assessment, K-12 education, Reformed instructional practices, Classroom observation instrument, Lesson Design and Implementation

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Regulatory Focus Questionnaire (RFQ) differentiates between: A prevention focus that emphasizes safety and responsibility, views goals as oughts, and is concerned with non-losses and losses. The RFQ was derived from a factor analysis of items assessing the history of individuals‘ success at promotion and prevention tasks over the course of their lives. This questionnaire consists of 11 items that are answered on a scale of 1-5. Subscore(s): Regulatory Focus, Promotion, Prevention

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Designed for the evaluation of school‐based character education programs. Multiple choice measure of psychosocial maturity derived from developmental theory that identifies the capacity to differentiate and coordinate the social perspectives of self and other to be central to treating other people in respectful and ethical ways. Items in the measure pose dilemmas common social situations with peers or adults. Uses a model of relationship awareness that includes 3 social‐cognitive constructs which are: 1) interpersonal understanding or social reasoning 2) interpersonal negotiation strategies or conflict resolution in thought and action and 3) awareness of the personal meaning of relationships. Relationship framework, in describing how social‐cognitive capacities underlie social interaction and development, addresses a common critique of cognitive‐ developmental approaches to sociomoral research: that there is little relation between the development of social cognition and real‐world action.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Formerly called Pupil Attitudes to Self and School® (PASS), the Renaissance Fundamentals survey assesses how students feel about school and themselves as a learner, including connectedness, self-efficacy, and motivation. The Renaissance Fundamentals survey can be used as a universal screener to help teachers identify at-risk students and to develop or deploy suitable interventions. Dynamic, interactive, and immediately available reports provide insights into the whole district or school, from the demographic level down to the individual student level. These actionable reports provide standardized measures based on nine factors that focus on how a student feels about their school and themselves as learners. Renaissance Fundamentals can be used as a critical component to your MTSS process or other whole child initiatives, allowing educators to identify at-risk students and areas of concern before they manifest as chronic issues. Subscore(s): (1) Connectedness (2) Feelings about school (3) Perceived learning capability (4) Self-regard as a learner (5) Self-efficacy (6) Preparedness for learning (7) Attitudes to teachers (8) General work ethic (9) Confidence in learning (10) Motivation (11) Attitudes to attendance (12) Response to curriculum needs.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Currently, the RAPS includes five separate but integrated measurement tools assessing aspects of three of the four major components described above: RAPS-R, a strategy for analyzing and reporting data from student records (component 1); RAPS-S, a survey given to students to assess their levels of engagement in school, their beliefs about themselves and the interpersonal supports they receive from adults at home and at school (component 2); RAPST, a survey given to teachers to obtain their reports of student engagement (component 2); RAPS-P, a parent-report of student engagement in school and the support that the student receives from his or her teachers (component 2); and T-RAPS, a survey given to teachers to assess their levels of engagement and the professional and interpersonal supports they perceive in their schools (component 3).

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Research Identity Survey-Form G (RISG) is a questionnaire containing 12 Likert-style items. It was created to assess researcher identity and self-identification in high school students. 

Adapted from the Resilience Inventory (Noam & Goldstein, 1998), a 44‐item measure of adolescence resilience. (Song 2003) Taps various domains of resilience: The Optimism (OP) subscale concerns the respondent’s positive perspective on the world and the future. The Self‐Efficacy (SE) subscale concerns confidence in the respondent’s ability to deal with situations or things effectively. One who scores high on this subscale can think of a situation from different perspectives and evaluate alternative actions to deal with it more efficiently. The Relationships with Adults (RA) subscale concerns support from and perceptions of adults. Research suggests that even one supportive figure outside of the family can make children and adolescents feel they are special and important, thereby making them more capable of handling stressors. The Peer Relationships (PR) subscale centers on the respondent’s relationship with friends. A person who scores high on this factor is likely to be popular among friends and have fun with them, thus having an active social life. Quality of peer relationships is reported to play an important role in competence in childhood and adolescence. The Interpersonal Sensitivity (IS) subscale concerns the respondent’s initiative to help others and improve one’s surroundings. Resilient children are empathic of the needs of others and willing to care for them. A person who scores high on this subscale takes the initiative to help others and is sensitive to others’ feelings. The Emotional Control (EC) subscale concerns the respondent’s ability to control himself or herself emotionally. A person who scores high on this factor is not likely to be agitated by a triggering situation but is likely to endure and be patient.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.