The essays in this collection consider the meaning of authentic assessment and the implications of its use. "Section 1: Assessing Assessment" includes the following essays: (1) "The Nation's Report Card Goes Home: Good News and Bad about Trends in Achievement" (Robert L. Linn and Stephen B. Dunbar); (2) "Budgets, Politics, and Testing" (Chris Pipho); and (3) "Why We Need Better Assessments" (Lorrie A. Shepard). "Section 2: Testing and Thoughtfulness" includes the following essays: (4) "Testing and Thoughtfulness" (Rexford Brown); (5) "Project Spectrum: An Innovative Assessment Alternative" (Mara Krechevsky); and (6) "Teaching to the (Authentic) Test" (Grant Wiggins). "Section 3: Alternatives to Testing" includes the following essays: (7) "Searching for Alternatives to Standardized Tests: Whys, Whats, and Whithers" (Walter Haney and George Madaus); (8) "Assessment Literacy" (Richard J. Stiggins); (9) "Performance Assessment: The Message from England" (Desmond L. Nuttall); (10) "But...the Curriculum" (Carolyn Mamchur); (11) "Linking Restructuring to Authentic Student Achievement" (Fred M. Newmann); (12) "What Teachers Learn from 'Kid Watching'" (Richard VanDeWeghe); and (13) "Assessment: A Thoughtful Process" (Steven Ferrara and Jay McTighe). "Section 4: Journals and Portfolios" includes the following essays: (14) "Assessing Reflective Responses in Journals" (Elaine Surbeck, Eunhye Park Han, and Joan E. Moyer); (15) "Using the Computer as a Reading Portfolio" (Judy Hetterscheidt, Lynn Pott, Kenneth Russell, and Jakke Tchang); (16) "Teachers' Stories: Our Ways of Knowing" and (Mary Renck Jalongo). "Section 5: Significant Outcomes" includes the following essays: (17) "Learning from an Outcomes-Driven School District" (Tom Rusk Vickery); and (18) "Thinking: How Do We Know Our Students Are Getting Better at It?" (Arthur L. Costa). Each essay contains references. (Contains 10 figures.) (SLD)